5 Books of Projects to Knit Year Round

In 1974 Elizabeth Zimmermann released her Knitter’s Almanac.

She had already established herself as an influential voice in American knitting with her first book, Knitting Without Tears. In it she encouraged knitters to get creative with their knitting.

Through her humorous writing she quickly became America’s grandma; offering cheeky advice and helpful knitting tips.

The Almanac was her way of guiding enthusiastic knitters through a year of projects. Each pattern was chosen to be seasonally appropriate as the year progressed. The genius of her book was not only the entertaining anecdotes, but the timing of the projects.

Today we’re looking at planning a year of knitting so you can have the most productive 2024 ever!

Planning a Year of Knitting

Last year I came across a video with Jesse Itzler. He’s an entrepreneur who seems to have the whole work / life balance thing figured out.

He also does a lot of cool stuff, like biking across the US, running crazy ultra marathon races, and living with a NAVY SEAL for a month.

His secret is to do ONE life defining thing every year; write a book, run a big race, start a business, etc.

That got me thinking how can we apply some of his advice to knitting.

It’s not practical to plan out everything we are going to make throughout the year. I’m sure there are some people who can do that, but I’m certain that plan will end up changing at some point.

1 BIG project, 6 NEW patterns

Itzler uses his big calendar to plan 7 projects for the year.

One is the life defining event mentioned earlier. The other 6 are mini-adventures taken once every 8 weeks.

We can translate this to our knitting like this:

1 BIG project

This could be knitting your first sweater, knitting 100 hats for charity, making a temperature blanket, or knitting every sock pattern in the book below.

If you’re into heirloom lace knitting, make an Shetland lace shawl.

And if you want to knit all your Christmas gifts this year, do that.

The main idea is to have ONE thing you can look back at in 2025 and say “This is what I’m most proud of knitting this year.”

6 NEW patterns

Every couple months, try a new pattern. Ideally this is something type of knitting you’ve never tried before.

Make them short weekend or were long projects.

If you want to learn 2-Color Brioche, make a cowl.

If you’ve never knit a toy before, try it.

You can even jump on the Korean nose scarf trend.

If you did this every year for the next 10 years that’s 10 epic knitting projects and 60 new projects you’ve tried.

The key is to list out what those projects might be and then block out time on the calendar to work on them.

But if you need some inspiration for a big project check out the books below.

Our Favorite Year Round Knitting Books

Whether you attempt to knit a big project throughout the year, or you just want some inspiration for new projects to try, this list should help you on your journey.

There’s options for knitters of all types and interests.

Each book here is geared toward helping you knit throughout the year, so let’s dive in:

• 

  Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitter's Almanac

  What is it?A book full of seasonal knitting patterns written by one of the greatest knitters of all time. Why we like itIt's funny, it's inspiring, it encourages you to knit outside the box. Her book is full of thoughtful projects that don't rely on fully written patterns. There's a reason this is still a classic 50 years later.

  Get it at Amazon
• 

  Seasonal Slow Knitting by Hannah Thiessen

  What is it?This follow-up to her first book, Slow Knitting, takes Hannah's mindful approach to knitting and applies it to the seasons. Why we like itIf your goal this year is to take more joy in the process of knitting, this book will you do that in a guided manner. There's curated projects to work on throughout the year, as well as practices to help you slow down and enjoy the yarn.

  Get it at Amazon
• 

  A Year of Knitting Stitches

  What is it?This book is similar to the one which inspired New Stitch a Day. It's a perpetual calendar of different knitting stitch patterns. Why we like itKnitting a stitch a day is a great challenge. Not only will it improve your skills and teach you new techniques, but you can seam everything into a blanket to remember your year of learning!

  Get it at Amazon
• 

  A Knitter's Year: 30 Modern Knits for Every Season by Ida Wire Trettevik

  What is it? A collection of knitting patterns curated based on the season of the year. Why you should own it? Taking inspiration from Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitter's Almanac, this book updates and expands the idea. These simple but beautiful patterns have weather appropriate projects for the whole year!

  Get it at Amazon
• 

  52 Weeks of Socks

  What is it?A years worth of beautiful sock patterns curated by the folks at Laine Publishing. Why we like itLaine has found a niche for itself with their 52 weeks series of knitting books. The sock one has been so popular they are releasing a follow-up in April!

  Get it at Amazon

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Conclusion

I hope these books have offered some inspiration.

Are you going to try making a BIG project this year? If so what?

Or maybe you’ll put some new pattern to explore on the calendar?