First, the facts:
Title: Knitting Reimagined: An Innovative Approach to Structure and Shape with 25 Breathtaking Projects
Author: Nicky Epstein
Published by: Potter Craft, 2014
Pages: 175
Type: Patterns
Chapters:
1. Directions
2. Cool Construction
3. Woven Weaves
4. Stitch Impact
The In-Depth Look:
One of the things I love best about Nicky Epstein’s books is her curiosity. She’s a true “thinking knitter” and obviously one who not only wants to know how and why things work, but wants to know everything, without limits.
In fact, “limits” is one of the last things I would think of when thinking about her books. Because all of them (certainly all the ones I’ve seen, anyway) are all about options. Lots of options. Different ways to play with shapes or edgings or embellishments. New techniques to play with. Variations on old techniques. To say she’s creative is almost an understatement.
So, it’s not surprising to get a book whose subtitle claims it’s “an innovative approach to structure and shape.”
She says herself in the introduction that,
I consider Knitting Reimagined the destination I’ve arrived at after a thirty-year journey on a less-traveled road… One of my priorities–and passions–over the years has been creating unique designs. I have never adhered to the adage that ‘everything has been done in knitting.’ … there comes a time to break new ground, a time for experimentation and improvisation, and a time to rethink and reimagine typical structures and shapes in hand-knitting.
What follows is a series of experiments in design. Garments–because just about everything is a garment of some kind–with unique shapes, different construction, assymmetrical lines … There are coats, wraps, sweaters, ponchos, dresses, some of which have fairly traditional shapes but unique stitch patterns. Some have a unique style of construction. And some are totally unique in, well, pretty much everything.
As garments to be worn, I think some of these efforts are more successful than others, but as exercises in knitting creativity? Genius, really. And isn’t that the point? I love the idea of stretching the possibilities of a fabric that’s already stretchy and malleable, expanding techniques in an ongoing explosion of knitting possibilities. How can you not love a craft that has been around for centuries but is still creating new things to do? And how can you not love the people right up there on the cutting edge … and I don’t mean a steek. If some of these designs are more wearable than others, well, that’s not what high-fashion is about, and it’s not what pure creativity is for, either. Sometimes you go the extremes just to prove you can.
Nicky Epstein is great at that.
This book can be found at Amazon.com or at your local shops.
Want to see bigger pictures? Click here.
This review copy was kindly donated by Potter Craft. Thank you!
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