Increase, Decrease

I just received a review copy of Increase, Decrease – 99 Step by Step Methods by Judith Durant from Storey Publishing and I am absolutely floored!

I answer multiple questions each and every week from readers struggling with knitting patterns and the vast majority of them are having difficulty understanding or performing the increases or decreases called for in the pattern. Even when a new knitter goes out there with their needles blazing, determined to learn the language of knitting – there’s just so many possibilities for shaping a knitted item that there’s often something unfamiliar in every new pattern encounter! 

As a relatively new knitting pattern designer, I’m often confused about what is the best shaping to use to get the finished look I’m after. And looking through Judith Durant’s new book, I can see that this is a wonderful tool for designers as well.

With 99 different types of increases and decreases detailed, there’s plenty to choose from. You can bet that anything you can find in a knitting pattern will be covered here with a very clear, well photographed tutorial on how to perform it.

For each increase or decrease method, you’ll also see a swatch of the result, a valuable feature for knitters who like to design their own projects! The book covers the most common shaping methods to more complex multiple stitch methods. Even those special circumstances of shaping textured, lace or colorwork patterns are well represented. 

I love that it’s spiral bound to lie nicely flat beside me while I’m following a tutorial and the compact size, (6 x 7 inches), makes it easy to take along. Best of all, with Increase, Decrease on hand, you can finally stop searching the internet for shaping tutorials that make sense. This handy little reference solves any shaping problem you can throw at it!