Vogue Knitting On the Go! Ponchos
(Sixth & Spring Books)
AUD$21.95/ISBN 1-931543-79-8
88 pages, hardback
This title in Vogue Knitting's On the Go! series exploits fashion's ongoing love affair with ponchos. Who'd have thought the trend would be more than a fling? A quick flick through this handbag-sized book reveals some must-have knits, as well as some must-not-be-seen-dead-in garments, all aimed at 'a whole range of levels and tastes'. On closer inspection, with an eye to using a different colour scheme here and there or using different yarns the book becomes more of a potential investment. There are even a couple of cute designs for kids, too.
The 'Basics' section is ample, though you'd have to be competent al-ready in following charts and colourwork to attempt the designs that use these features. Similarly, I'd have liked diagrams for less common methods such as the long-tail cast on, and I'm not sure I could meet the crochet requirements of some patterns based simply on the instructions provided--but the book doesn't claim to be a how-to manual.
This would be a great book to share with some fellow knitters. There's some-thing here to cover a variety of tastes, shapes and sizes (as advertised) and the styles range from winter warmer to light summer cover-up. Very versatile--a bit like a poncho, really.
—Megan Longhurst