Traditional Scandinavian Knitting

by Sheila McGregor

An expert on traditional Scandinavian knitting explains the distinctive craft's origins, its various types, and knitting techniques in this classic guide. Sheila McGregor's in-depth treatment ranges from the regional styles of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark to those of the North Atlantic Islands of Faeroe and Iceland. Vibrant patterns for an array of garments include jerseys, gloves and mittens, stockings, and caps.
Illustrated with 191 black-and-white and 20 color pictures, this volume is well known and prized among longtime practitioners of the craft. Its return to print will delight a new generation of knitting enthusiasts.

Genres: Knitting, Nonfiction, Crafts, Reference, Scandinavian Literature, History, How To

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1984

Reviews

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE this book ... the details on the knitting and the history behind it all is just amazing! What a great book

[Hazellucia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing designs, though not many "real" patterns. Just very useful guidlines for an authentic scandinavian knit.

[Laryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Do you love Fair Isle or relief/damask knitting? Do you love flipping through colorwork charts? Or learning about knitters from the past? If you like any one of those things, you're going to love this book.

This book includes charts & designs from Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland & Faeroe-- even charts from the 18th century! There is so much knowledge jam-packed into this book, you'll be busy trying new techniques for months, if not years. From Selbu to double knitting to two-stand to damask texture to traveling stitches- I guarantee there something new for you to learn. And if not, there are large, gorgeous colorwork charts to capture your attention!

The book contains no patterns, but rather advice for knitting your own sweater with purled stitch texture or colorwork from the included charts. You can take just about any plain sweater, glove, mitten, hat, or stocking pattern that fits you well & apply the traditional techniques outlined in this book to make it something completely unique but rooted in history.

If you love colorwork, want to learn more about it, or just appreciate historical crafting, this book is a great resource!

[Mette · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is amazing! So much research, graphs and instructions - I love it!
Can't wait to knit something using these charts. I already used some of the tips for knitting hats and it worked really well. I definitely need to read her book on Fair Isle as well.

[Kati · Rating 3 out of 5]

The history in this book is very romantic in places, but probably not very accurate. In fairness, a lot has been learned about the history of folk art in the last 30 years, and this has been supplanted by later and more in-depth research. It does, however, have charts of historical colorwork and texture patterns you're not likely to find elsewhere. I suggest using it as a stitch library rather than a history source.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

About to start a yoked pullover using a design from this book. So far I love the complexity and range of patterns but the sheer number and complexity of patterns crammed into one page is hard going on the eyes and requires me to sit down and colour in squares on the photocopies.