Showing posts with label Interweave Knits. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Interweave Knits. Show all posts

Monday 8 August 2016

Interweave Knits Fall 2016: A Review


Interweave Knits Fall 2016 is out. Let's have a look at it!





Harvey Pullover. This is fairly basic, but attractive enough. I'd fix those slightly dropped shoulders and go for a non-oatmeal-like colour.





Augusta Cardigan. Good shaping, and I love the back.





Damien Cardigan. Rather a nice sweater coat, but the pockets bother me. They're too small to look proportionate and not well enough integrated into the design.





Catlett Shawl. What a lovely piece.





Botero Pullover. A very handsome look. I'm really liking the subtle fair isle stripe effect.





Kathe Cardigan. The back and sleeves are excellent, but I'm not sure I'm liking the way those front opening edges sit.





Hirst Pullover. I rather like the jesery shirt-like styling of this one, but I'd do it in a less blah colourway.





Calder Pullover. Lovely lace pattern on this one, and good shaping.





Rodin Cardigan. The body of this is pretty good, but those very abbreviated sleeves look ludicrous.





Edmonoia Shawl. Another good-looking shawl.





El Greco Pullover. A classic cabled pullover with enough variation from the usual in the cable pattern to make it feel distinctive.





Azure Lake Sweater. Like this one. The slightly offbeat colourway makes it feel fresh, though still masculine.





Rawah Pullover. Pretty basic, as well as rather 80s, but it's certainly nice and wearable enough.





Fall River Vest. Beautiful classic fair isle vest.





Bandelier Socks. Quite like the design, with the thin ankle band stemming out from the heel. Not crazy about the colours used in this sample, but then that's easily changed.





Neota Cardigan. Great stitchwork and good shaping in this one.





Bear Lake Pullover. Some good stitchwork on this one too. Almost any man would be glad to wear this piece.





Nakai Peak. Nice cap with some great textural work.





Thompson River Socks. This is the design version of the ubiquitous ribbed and red-striped gray work sock, and I must say it's a successful one.





Comanche Hill Cardigan. I like this cardigan on the whole. The colourway is attractive and the design is striking and effective (the design was inspired by "the gorgeous baskets woven by the Washoe people of Nevada and California"), but I'm not liking the way it lies in the front. Tying it shut with a skinny belt over the model's rib cage wasn't a particularly happy thought either.

Wednesday 11 May 2016

Interweave Knits Summer 2016: A Review


Interweave Knits has released its Summer 2016 issue. Let's have a look at it.





Cruz Shawl. This is a lovely piece of lacework that I am trying very hard not to associate with a certain former American presidential hopeful.





Catalina Shawl. Gorgeous.





Ventura Tank. Well shaped, nicely detailed, and I love the back.





Anacapa wrap. Beautiful.





Venice Top. The yoke is a nice piece of design, but the bottom is so shapeless and frumpy even on this model, and I don't know what's going on at the centre point of the bottom of the yoke, but whatever it is, it looks like a hole and a mistake.





Rosa Wrap. Another attractive shawl.





Clemente Tank. This is rather fetching and stylish in a contemporary sort of way. I wouldn't want to wear anything with this sort of loose front panel as it adds bulk and I don't need my front bulked up to a greater extent than nature has already done, but it could look quite good on a smaller-breasted woman, and I love the back.





Kingston Tank. Not bad. The lace side panels are a nice touch. I'd consider making this a little longer so that it could be worn as a beach coverup.





Pierpoint Shawl. Lovely. This is definitely an issue for lace shawl lovers.





Rimrock Vest. Useful and rather handsome little piece.





Two Tree Cardigan. The stitchwork is attractive and the shaping isn't bad overall, but I do wish those open fronts sat a little bit better.





Crossroads Carryall. This is a nice-looking classic bag -- it's like a knitted equivalent to the iconic Land's End tote. It's lined, which will make it reasonably sturdy.





Rivers Blanket. This is quite attractive and cleverly designed. The designer has gone with a Hudson's Bay blanket-inspired colourway, which does look nice, but I'm imagining it in a lot of other palettes as well.





Timbers Sweater. Classic shawl-collared men's sweater.





Harding Cardigan. Quite like this one. It sits so well, and it has a certain relaxed elegance to it.





Trail Henley. This is a comfortable and nice-looking piece.





Pinewood Pullover. Good shaping (I do love a ballet neckline), and the stitchwork is attractive.





Pathway Tee. Nice shaping, and the lacy back gives it all the interest it needs.





Santa Fe Belt. This is a little boho for me in style, but there's no denying that this belt is well and carefully designed.





As a bonus, Interweave Knits offers sewing patterns for these two sewn items, the Chief Joseph Skirt and the Whisperwool Clutch. I'm not thrilled with either pattern, as the skirt doesn't have particularly good lines and the clutch looks like something slapped together, but if you find them appealing, there are patterns available at the links provided.

Monday 8 February 2016

Interweave Knits Spring 2016: A Review


The Spring 2016 issue of Interweave Knits is out! Let's have a look at it, shall we?





Nash Island Shawl. A lovely piece of work.





Krokos Shawl. Another nice shawl, this time with a geometric eyelet pattern.





Catskill Pullover. Very much like this one, with its smart herringbone texture and good lines. I might raise that slightly dropped shoulder just a titch.





Hampshire Shawl. A nice-looking piece. Though I will have you know that this is not what farmgirls wear when they slop the hogs.





Blue Ridge Sweater. I like this one. There's something quite pleasing about how the lace and bobble pattern is shaped into a simple ballet neckline.





Yorkshire Capelet. Not a bad piece, though it doesn't seem to belong on this particular outfit.





Phi Cowl. The other day on Twitter, a knitwear designing friend's husband scoffed that this thing is a bib and that no one would wear it, and I have to agree.





Slippery Slope Socks. The sherbet colours are pretty and the design is cool.





Spectrum Pincushion. This is a cute idea, would use up some scraps, and as a bonus, might also help its user to remember which colour schemes are analogous and which are complementary.





Spectrum Pouf. This might be a fun piece for a kid's room.





Dorchester Pullover. Very pretty -- I love the scallop stitch front panel -- but I think I would either shorten or lengthen those sleeves. That's an awkward length.





Promenade Coaster & Trivet Set. This look a little too craftsy-kitschy and grandmotherly for my tastes, but I suppose a lot would depend on how one styled one's table. A bowl of waxed fruit and an oilcloth would take these coasters in one direction, and a funky tea set and a distressed wooden table in another.





Caldecott Jacket. This is a lovely, polished piece with one distracting flaw: the front closure sits so poorly. I'd fiddle with it and perhaps add an inner fastening to make the underlying front edge sit properly and to take the stress off the outer buttons.





Orangery Shawl. This could have looked Christmas tree skirty, but it's so carefully shaped and the colourway is so well chosen that it ends up looking like quite a visually interesting and polished-looking shawl.





Hobnail Coasters. This coaster is such an inventive and skilled piece of design that it is in much less in risk of looking kitschy as the previous coasters did.





Park Lane Coaster & Trivet Set. I'm afraid we're back in waxed fruit and oilcloth territory again.





Deanery Street Centerpiece. This one is a bib for your cake plate. I don't see why a cake plate needs a bib anymore than a grown woman does.





High Tea Doily. This is a lovely piece of work, though I don't know who uses doilies for anything these days.