Hip Knits! : 65 Easy Designs from Hot Designers

Rating:
Summary: a disappointment
Review: Definitely disappointed with the projects in this book. They're anything but "hip." Most are shapeless, overly simplified patterns. Even beginners can work something more interesting than the projects in this book. While there are a couple of cute items, it's definitely not worth the expenditure. You can find better in knitting magazines or on any of the many sites offering free patterns.

Rating:
Summary: Hip to Who?!?!?!
Review: First off 75% of the patterns in the book are so beyond ugly...they're fugly. 22% are just dull. Why buy a book that totes "65 easy projects from hot designers" for just 2 or 3 patterns that you MIGHT make IF you were stranded on a desert island with tons of acrylic yarn AND had no one to talk to? I would understand if those 2 or 3 anomalies were totally hot, but they're not. They're just kinda cute and for $20 bucks kinda cute doesn't cut it. Who were those designers and why did anyone ever let them near a pair of needles? Put your time and money to better use, you can get a Debbie Bliss, Rowan, or Mission Falls pattern book. You could also subscribe to Interweave Knits, Knitters or Vogue Knitting. Alternatively there are websites with far nicer patterns that are free (like Knitty.com)! My copy is going back.

Rating:
Summary: Not as hip as implied...
Review: I am a relatively new and young knitter, and the title caught my eye. But I ended up returning the book. The patterns were boring, not very 'hip' and too easy, even for me. I guess I should have known, as it was compiled by Better Homes and Gardens, which has a very staid idea of hip, it seems. Not recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Good book but with a mistake
Review: I disagree with many of the other reviews. I think there are a lot of very cute patterns and interesting ideas in this book. The nice thing about them being easy is that they are easily adaptable or to use as a jumping off point -- something that I like in both recipes and patterns. One caution: I made the baby jacket on page 58 and it turned out very cute, but I think there is a mistake in the pattern. It says to knit for 14 inches for the hood. The hood would end up being five inches longer than the body of the sweater. I did 9 inches, and it still seemed a bit long. There were not good instructions for sewing the hood, and a grammatical error made the ones that were there confusing. It's pretty simple, actually, and a cute pattern if you only have a few days to make something for a baby shower. I didn't use the Sprinkle color of the Lion Brand Boucle. The dark thread running through it made the white look dirty. But, there are a couple of other colors of that yarn that are even cute, so it's not a huge problem. Despite the problems with the hood, I'm looking forward to using more of the patterns in this book.

Rating:
Summary: Don't Buy It
Review: I just received this book in the mail today and had a chance to look through. I love most knitting books, but this one is not nearly as "hip" as they make it out to be. My first clue was that most of the patterns call for acrylic yarn (not there is anything wrong with acrylic yarn), which is not the sign of a cutting edge knitting book. Secondly, there is no nice way to say this, the patterns are ugly. Most of them have very little shaping and most knitters do not need to buy a $20 pattern book that only calls for knitting big rectangles together. Basically, save your money and buy a Phildar or Rebecca magazine instead.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I love knitting books, and every time a new one comes out, I buy it. It's been a few months since any new knitting books have been released, so I was excited to see this one, and of course, bought it. I have been very disappointed by the projects in this book. The majority are simply ugly sack sweaters, with a few scarves, and, despite the title of the book, quite a few crochet projects. The only remotely redeeming quality of this book was the baby knits, which were actually kind of cute. Look through it before you purchase, if you get the chance.

Rating:
Summary: Diverse knitting and crochet projects
Review: One of the newest needlecraft titles from the editors and writers of Better Homes and Gardens magazine, Hip Knits: 65 Easy Projects From Hot Designers offers diverse knitting and crochet projects that will please even the most experienced needlecrafter while being presented with such easy-to-follow illustrated directions as to make every "do-it-yourself" design accessible to even the most novice beginner. These projects range from charming baby sets, stylish sweaters and vest, useful totes, warm mittens, imaginative hats, lovely scarves, and more. Each project comes complete with a materials list, step-by-step instructions, and project diagrams. Enhanced with knitting and crochet basics, Hip Knits is a welcome and enthusiastically recommended addition to any needlecrafting reference collection.



Rating:
Summary: Some nice projects using inexpensive yarns
Review: This book has a few nice, classic projects for the whole family using yarns that you can find easily. It includes projects for scarves, sweaters, a bolero jacket, bags and vests. I would not call most of them 'hip', but I might have a different idea of what hip is. I do not think it is geared toward a 20-something wanting to make projects for herself and her 20-something friends. There are plenty of other books out there that have more projects geared toward this group that are better.

I am a new 20-something knitter and I understand the knitting instructions fairly well. It always gives you the skill level for each project. It also has a short techniques reference in the back for knitting and crocheting. What I don't like about Better Homes and Gardens books like this one is that they have too many pages where they just show models wearing the projects. I like pictures of projects, but I don't need 2-3 pages of pictures for one project. They could have added another 65 projects if so many picture pages were not included. Overall, it is not one of my favorite books, but it is also not a complete waste.