quick is (very) good

Posted on annePosted in book reviews/events

i got a neat little book in the mail last week and i saved it for today to share it as a holiday treat.

with 60 quick knits, sixth&spring books has produced a winning collection of hat, scarf, and mitten projects featuring the ever-versatile cascade 220 yarn.

what i like so much about this book (besides that it is chock full of attractive projects) is that “quick” in this case does not translate to childish or underwhelming.

most can be completed in a few evenings and will make make lovely last-minute gifts. though not all qualify as quick enough to start the day before a gift-giving event, there are a few winners in that category too . . .

the projects are quick because they are smaller accessory pieces that are stylishly and effectively detailed, without involving a lot of fussy work. the results speak for themselves

neat and tailored pieces with a dollop of whimsy that are sure to generate the great compliment of being worn over and over by the recipient.

what is especially notable about this book as a whole, is the attention the editors have given to color choices as an effective component of successful quick projects.

color packs enough impact to carry a design and will eclipse the need for laborious embellishment when speed is a priority. this concept is illustrated extremely well throughout the book in the sample projects

color is fun, fast, and a very effective vehicle of style—once you’ve chosen the right colors for a simple project, all you have to do is knit it up very nicely. everyone appreciates an accessory in an awesome color.

as i said, the collection does not descend into childishly executed pieces, but there are a number of wonderful knits included that are appropriate for children.

in fact, every age is well represented and many projects are of a unisex design—again, think color; changing the colors of a project can completely transform it

i love this hat in soft, neutral tones, but i can totally see it in pinks and greens for a very different effect.

various fabrics and techniques are well represented; cables, lace, colorwork, special stitches—you name it, it’s all in here.

i know i’m gushing a bit—forgive me. i just love a book full of fun, classic projects that could conceivably be sourced over and over for years—that’s the kind of book i grew up with, back when knitting books were very few and far between.

as much as i want to keep my copy, i think i’m gonna send it to my mom—now that she is rediscovering her knitting mojo, she been experimenting with small projects like the ones in this book. i think she’d enjoy it (and who knows—maybe she’ll knit me a great hat or scarf for christmas).

here’s your chance to receive one too—once again sixth&spring books is allowing me to raffle off a copy of 60 quick knits to one lucky winner. if you’d like a copy, leave a comment at the end of this post some time before 9 pm on sunday, april 4th. i’ll ask david to draw one name and announce the winner on monday morning.

356 thoughts on “quick is (very) good”

  1. Cascade 220! My go-to yarn! Hmmm…small projects – sounds like a way to use the skeins I always have left over at the end of a project. I’ve run out of yarn so many times that now I buy at least two skeins more that I think I could conceivably use. As a result, my stash is growing Cascade 220. You know how it reproduces…

  4. Oh, I might as well throw my name in as well. This book looks like great fun. It’s nice to have some small project books coming out. I’m also excited about the new Homespun, Handknit from Interweave.

    I loves me some Cascade 220, so this one is particularly cool.

  5. I just spent the afternoon winding some Cascade 220 into balls — I have bought a lot of it for use in an upcoming class, and I was thinking, after the class, how will I use the rest of the yarn? Thank you for the chance to win the book, the project look great —

  10. Thanks for sharing a quick tour of the book, as well as your lovely drawing for a copy. If I don’t win, I think I’ll still be a winner when I purchase a copy. Too many good ideas not to!

  11. Please enter me in the drawing also.I would love to try some of the projects, Are the daffidils blooming in the park below the hospital? I remember that as being a beauty spot in Canton yay many years ago.

  18. It was wonderful meeting you and taking your classes at the Indie Artist Celebration in February. Thank you for your blog. The iPod scarf is a great gift idea for my niece!

  20. Thanks for sharing your ideas and expertise! The blog is lovely to read. Please enter me in the book contest. Thanks!!

  21. Love those mittens and my grandkids would have so much fun with the lion scarf. Thanks for offering us the book. Hope I win!

  22. I love those projects with multiple colors. I am just getting to the point of experimenting with colors not that I have the basics of knitting down (pretty much). Thanks for holding the raffle.

  25. LOVE your blog – read it daily. Love your designs!
    Would love to own this great book!

  27. I feel like Horshack(Welcome Back Kotter)…lol…please add me to the pile of knitters that would love to receive this book.

    Have a wonderfully Happy Easter!

  28. wow, that sounds great! I’m often envious of those of us who have knitting as a larger piece of their lives than I am able…And as you said, most of the “fast” patterns are very beginner-esque. So please include my name in the drawing!

  29. The more projects I see from that book, the more I realize I just need to get it. It’s a terrific inspiration!

  31. This looks like a fun book and I have many skeins of Cascade 220 to work with.

    Thanks for the raffle.

  33. I’d love to win this book! I enjoy quick fun projects in between the marathon ones!

  39. Quick knits, especially such cool ones, are a wonderful quick fix therapy in between large marathon projects. A girl just needs that somtimes. Thank you!

  41. This is the sort of book I really like – I lose interest really quickly on projects that seem to take a while – and the quicker you finish a project, the quicker you can start something else and use up more stash (if you *happen* to have quite a lot, which I’m not saying I have …), which of course makes you feel justified in buying more. And quick projects make great presents too.

  42. It does look like a lovely book…great inspiration for Christmas gifts…only 265 days to go!

  43. Looks like an awesome book! I’m such a sucker for scarf patterns, but even the hats look great! Thanks for reviewing and sharing with us.

  44. Hi Anne, I don’t normally get a chance to enter your contests because they are over by the time I check mail and look at blogs! For a lot of different reasons, I don’t have internet at home and it is convinient to check on Sundays. I also download blogs and read them off line later. Yours is the first I read every time. I enjoy seeing your house progress and all the things you design. I have been downloading your archives lately to read at home. The first ones are different than your posts now. The socks in your earlier blog posts are all pretty plain and done with hand spun, compared to your socks now. Oh, and I love to follow your garden. I am a gardener as well as knitter, too. I have a plot that is aout 18 feet wide and 60 feet long. The weather here in west central washington is pretty close to yours in Ohio. We had a little snow yesterday! Gone today. I would love to have that book of patterns. Just the ticket for Christmas gift items, I’m thinking. Thanks for being on the web. I look foward to reading.

  50. OH! OH! oH! (imagine arms waving wildly here!)

    PICK ME! PICK ME! PICK ME!

    (I guess I have no shame when it comes to a free book that I will actually use.)

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