The Knitting Stitch Bible by Maria Parry-Jones

Over 250 Traditional and Contemporary Stitches With Charts

Sep 27, 2009

The Knitting Stitch Bible: Over 250 Traditional and Contemporary Stitches with Easy-to-Follow Charts by Maria Parry-Jones provides plenty of ideas for creative knitters.

The Knitting Stitch Bible: Over 250 Traditional and Contemporary Stitches with Easy-to-Follow Charts by Maria Parry-Jones and published by Search Press is a must-have knitting book for knitters who enjoy developing their own style. This is not a how-to-knit book or a collection of knitting projects, instead it is a comprehensive directory of knitting stitches.

There are two very simple features of The Knitting Stitch Bible that really make it stand out. One is the format. The spiral bound format means that the book opens – and remains – flat. As any knitter will know, trying to hold a book open while not ending up in a tangle of yarn and needles can be problematic. Having a knitting book that lies flat while allowing a knitter to concentrate on reading stitch patterns or instructions is a joy to work with.

Knitting Charts

The other feature that makes The Knitting Stitch Bible stand out, is the fact that the stitches are represented through charts, not through text. This is ideal for visual knitters and certainly helps to simplify knitting instructions. Maria Parry-Jones explains how to use charts for people who are new to this concept.

The Knitting Stitches

The stitches are presented at the front of the book with 16 stitches to a page, making it easy to browse the range of stitches and patterns. Full stitch information is then detailed further on in the books. The stitches are broken down into 8 categories. These include Knit and Purl, Rib, Cable, Bobble, Lace, Fair Isle, Intarsia, Sequins and Beads. Each stitch is illustrated with a clear photograph of a worked sample of the stitch along with a chart. The number of stitches required for each pattern repeat is also detailed.

The Knitting Stitch Bible is ideal for knitters who like to create their own designs or adapt patterns. Instead of knitting a garment in a plain knit stitch, a knitter can browse through the book and look for stitch ideas. It is also ideal for substituting a stitch, for instance substituting one cable stitch for another. The clear images that accompany each stitch give a good indication of how the stitch will look, however a knitter will still need to work a sample to be able to test the gauge of the stitch.

Other Information

Useful information about how to use the charts is provided. In addition to this, Maria Parry-Jones has included detailed information such as how to read yarn ball bands and how to select stitches. The Knitting Stitch Bible is a knitting stitch book and this is where the focus lies. There are no explanations about how to knit. There are many other books that explain how to knit and many knitters will prefer not to have precious pages used up with knitting basics.

The Knitting Stitch Bible: Over 250 Traditional and Contemporary Stitches with Easy-to-Follow Charts, by Search Press, is an ideal book for beginner and experienced knitters alike. This is an extremely useful knitting stitch directory that provides a knitter with a wide range of stitch ideas. This should be essential reading for someone who creates their own designs as well as for a complete beginner who is learning about different stitches.

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