Arans & Celtics: The Best of Knitter's Magazine (Best of Knitter's Magazine series)

by Rick Mondragon and Alexis Xenakis

After over 18 years of quality publishing and numerous sold-out issues, 'Knitter's Magazine' has compiled the best Aran and Celtic projects to meet the demands of their readers. The sweaters, jackets,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 189376205X
• Release Date: November 2003
• Publisher: XRX Books
• Length: 108 Pages
• Weight: 1.24 lbs.
• Dimensions: 11.0" x 0.3" x 10.0"

Customer Reviews

Timeless cable designs with easy-to-read charts

After repeatedly checking this book out from my library I am glad that I bought my own copy! I was hesistant since I've been a Knitter's subscriber since 2000 and do have a few issues from before that from Ebay. But after some research I found that 17 of the 30 patterns I did not have in my magazines, and 12 of the best were from the two oldest magazines (K16 and K40) which form this book compilation. It is true, you will not find whatever body/armhole shaping that is currently in vogue in these designs. You WILL find cable designs varying in difficulty that are a joy to knit and large charts that pose no eye-strain with easy to understand cable symbols. In addition, for those interested in different construction techniques, there are a couple pullovers knitted in the round (one of which involves steeking), a sideways knit, and a top-down aran with saddle shoulders. There are helpful knitter's tips in the margins (such as grafting a garter stitch underarm seam) when needed. Also some gorgeous close-ups of the cable details! For those who wish to modify the boxy drop shoulder look of some of the sweaters, it looks like it would not be difficult to adjust these designs for a square inset or fitted armhole. All in all, I highly recommend this book if one does not have the original magazines.

Very appealing designs and clear directions

I just finished knitting the "Sensational Shirttail" from this book, a v-neck aran cardigan. The design appears complicated and is rated intermediate, but it was truly easy to follow the very clear instructions. Everyone who has seen it loves it and is astonished that I, a novice knitter, actually did it all myself, and in less than three weeks! I am ready to begin others sweaters from this book, just trying to decide what colors and types of yarn to use. Oh, another great thing about this book is that it gives you the yarn weight used in the original pattern and the yardage, as well as the needle sizes, so you can adapt to your choice of fiber. I knitted my sweater in a chunky weight cotton, and I couldn't be happier with it. There are so many other beautiful patterns in this book, I'm sure it will appeal to just about every knitter.

At last, a collection from the back issues of Knitters

These patterns were so popular that back issues of "Knitters Magazine" were going for quite high sums on Ebay. Now, after a lot of begging on the part of knitters around the world, Knitters Magazine and XRX Press have collected patterns by type from those hot issues and released them in book form. THANK YOU! Now I don't have to sift through back issues or beg copies of friends to find certain patterns I like.There are a number of children's sweaters in the thickly-knit Aran style that are especially appealing, and many other knits including for MEN, who are sadly neglected in many other publications. If you longed to get your hands on some of the back issues for the Aran style knitting, this is a great resource. Note: Aran knitting is by nature complex though not impossible. This is probably best for middling-experienced knitters who have tried patterns with crossed, cabled and twisted patterns before. But not impossible even for a beginner who is determined. Hint: Swatches of the patterns help, and it helps to visualize the layout of the different stitches from a "top down" viewpoint as well as row-by-row.

Looking for a Challenge and Something Different

This is a well made book with great photos and challenging patterns. Be warned though, if you do not like cables and designs requiring concentration, you will not be well served by purchasing this book. If you are looking for something a little different, you will be delighted. There are some stitch techniques used which may be unfamiliar, they are briefly explained in the back of the book. The design ratings are accurate and the patterns fun. Overall, it is a great value and well worth the price.

Great classic looks collected under one cover

The decision for many buyers on whether to buy this lovely trade paperback may well rest on how long you've subscribed to Knitters Magazine and just organized you are. This book is another in their series of "best of" books and it includes over 30 beautiful sweaters. However, they only took patterns out of eight issues (16, 40,44,46,48,51,56,and 60). So, if you've subscribed since the mid-90's (as I have) you probably own most of the patterns already. Still, I plan to keep my copy for the sheer convenience of having so many patterns in one place and the knowledge that all the quirks should be fixed for these often complex patterns.If redundancy isn't an issue for you, A & C is a very appealing collection of patterns. The format is similiar to the magazine including charts rather than line by line written instructions. There are numerous sidebars with very handy instructions. The look of the sweaters is essentially equally divided between the traditional and modern takes on traditional techniques.While probably half the sweaters are basically unisex, the breakdown based on the gender of the models is as follows: women - 2 turtlenecks, 8 crew necks, 7 cardigans, 2 vests and 2 looks I can only describe as "other." Men are featured in 3 crewnecks and 3 vests. Children's looks are 3 crewnecks, 1 cardigan and 1 vest.This isn't a book for beginners. Only 1 pattern is described as "easy+." The vast majority are described as intermediate with 5 advanced/expert sweaters.21 sweaters call for medium weight (worsted) yarns with 7 light weight yarn sweaters and 6 bulky yarn sweaters. Needle sizes reflect this distribution with all but 4 of the sweaters being knit on needles within the US size 4 to 8 range.Bottom line: Not a must have book for every knitter, but a worthy addition to your shelf if you like cables and texture knitting