Knit edgings & trims, 150 stitches

I had better confess straight away: Harmony Guides are my knitting bibles. I have two of the older editions of the Guides to Knitting Stitches and hardly a day goes by without using these books. So I’m not an impartial reviewer, but an enthusiastic fan. There. You’ve been warned.

Now for the book: The newish format of the Harmony Guides is handy and I love the fact that they, unlike the old ones (when they were new), are stitched and lie flat so you can keep the instruction open on your knees while trying to get your head and hands around [k3tog tbl] yo, k3, skpo in row 18.

The book has 150 simple edgings like picots and tags, and some more complicated lace borders, fringes, ruffles and pleats. All 37 edgings from the two old knitting guides have found a home in the new book.

Always keen to wear my new knitted garment hot from the needles I’m relatively new to edgings and trims. But having decorated a pair of bell-bottom doll’s trousers with a scalloped edging, I’m a convert to finishing techniques. It just looks so much more professional.

I started with a doll’s garment because I hate trying out something that takes weeks to complete only to find that it doesn’t “look right”.

Knit Edgings & Trims is a practical guide that uses the usual abbreviations. Here’s my revolutionary idea for future editions: Especially for new knitters it would be great to have the abbreviations inside the book as well as on a detachable card that could double as a bookmark.

A few pages on learning on how to cast on, knit and purl, knit a swatch (never!) and how to count stitches make the book useful even for newbies. Its clear pictures really tell the whole story. They show the finished edgings in shades of green, grey and blue.

A few more colours wouldn’t have hurt here, but I suppose the designer wanted to keep a streamlined look to match the lime-green cover. The book feels good to the touch and its stitched binding make it unlikely to fall apart like my old guides. Knit Edgings & Trims will definitely take up a place beside my lovingly repaired old Harmony Guides.

Knit edgings and trims: 150 stitches: Edited by Kate Haxell

by

I started to write when I was about seven - and only minutes later I started to cook. Since then I've slightly refined techniques and discovered a few more words and ingredients, but not much else has changed: Words and food are my thread through Knossos. I was born in Germany where I lived and worked for more than 35 years. There I trained to be a cook, kindergarten teacher and graphic artist. In the 1980s I lived and worked in England and France. About a decade ago I started my latest stint right here in New Zealand, where I worked as a graphic artist, creator of bags and beanies, caterer, writer, baker and cook.