Trisha Malcolm

Another interesting pattern book from Malcolm, this has the usual Vogue good pix, clear instructions, some interesting designs, and clever construction techniques. Also thoughtfully offers yarn options, something all pattern books ought to, but don't always, do.

Good stuff, as are most Vogue books, but they also tend to not offer much in the way of size ranges, alas. This one isn't bad in that respect, but although I liked several patterns rather a lot, I was unable to actively consider show more making them up due to limited pattern ranges, hence my lowish rating. I'm willing to try and update a pattern a couple of sizes, but when it's listed as 42" for the largest size and I want a 54".... (I prefer things very loose)! The general run of pattern sizes here is about 42" for the largest, although several are meant to be oversized and made-up measurements were ~50", so they might work for some folks' inclinations.

Worth a good look. show less

Another interesting pattern book from Malcolm, this has the usual Vogue good pix, clear instructions, some interesting designs, and clever construction techniques. Also thoughtfully offers yarn options, something all pattern books ought to, but don't always, do.

Good stuff, as are most Vogue books, but they also tend to not offer much in the way of size ranges, alas. This one isn't bad in that respect, but although I liked several patterns rather a lot, I was unable to actively consider show more making them up due to limited pattern ranges, hence my lowish rating. I'm willing to try and update a pattern a couple of sizes, but when it's listed as 42" for the largest size and I want a 54".... (I prefer things very loose)! The general run of pattern sizes here is about 42" for the largest, although several are meant to be oversized and made-up measurements were ~50", so they might work for some folks' inclinations.

Worth a good look. show less

This book is a real disappointment. The subtitle is "Classic knits from the 1930s-1960s" so you can expect some conservatism, but what you get aren't old patterns rewritten to modern standards; you get patterns that may be "slightly altered to give a more modern fit". Which means the most interesting patterns have modern lines and don't represent the styles of the mid-twentieth century.

Most (but not all) of the garments have the original photograph that appeared when the pattern was first show more published, so you can often see what was changed. Each pattern is written in the modern Vogue Knitting style so you know what to expect, and each has been updated to reflect modern sizing. You get about four sizes, so the very small and the very large are SOOL.

About half the patterns are for women, five are for men, seven are for babies or children, and the rest are wraps, socks, and gloves. Difficulty ranges from very easy to intermediate.

These are good patterns, but look elsewhere for styles that represent days gone by. show less

The patterns are lovely and often quite sophisticated, but as often with Vogue most are quite advanced. The cover sweater, for instance, uses extensive Fair Isle work but is knit back and forth rather than in the round. Many other patterns use similar complicated techniques. Expensive luxury yarns are also the norm here even though all the garments are for infants. Still, if you are willing to put the time and money in and are a serious enough knitter to do so successfully, you should have show more some lovely results. show less