7 Books to Level Up Your Sweater Knitting Skills

In my opinion, sweaters are the most flexible and customizable form of knitting.

They’re also the most useful project, both from a functional standpoint and an aesthetic one.

You can express a lot about yourself through the sweaters you wear.

But what if you could also express who you are through how you knit those sweaters too?

These books are geared toward helping you knit customizable sweaters, using all kinds of form factors, shapes, details, and more.

The only thing we don’t cover here is yarn choice, since that’s a whole topic of its own.

Adding one (or all) of these books to your knitting library is certain to level up your sweater knitting skills.

Ultimate Sweater Book by Amy Herzog

Before she left the knitting world behind, Amy Herzog was the modern go to expert of sweater knitting. Her book series became a must have for knitters that wanted to customize their sweaters.

Her last book, The Ultimate Sweater Book, combines the best of her knowledge and puts it into one easy reference.

Knitting from the Top by Barbara G. Walker

Barbara Walker is not only famous for her stitch pattern books. She also was a big proponent of top down knitting. While this is not the only book on this topic on this list, it is was one of the first published.

If you’re interested in learning to knit without a pattern, this book teaching frameworks for knitting seamless top down sweaters. There are multiple styles outlined here so you can knit almost any type of sweater using her method.

Just FYI this book is NOT for beginners.

Seamless Knit Sweater in 2 Weeks by Marie Greene

Marie Greene of Olive Knits became famous for her 4-Day Sweater KAL, which she holds every year in April. Her goal was to show people it didn’t have to take a year (or more) to finish a sweater.

This concept was refined into her first book, Sweaters in 2 Weeks, which gives a little more time to finish. While we think that’s still pretty quick to get a sweater done, this book is well loved by knitters who have been inspired to actually finish a sweater.

Wilderness Knits by Linka Neumann

Few sweater style are as iconic as those from the Nordic countries. Linka has does an amazing job of showing how to knit these beautiful sweater. This book features 23 designs inspired by traditional Norwegian knitting. Plus all of these patterns are photographed in the incredible wilderness of Norway.

Knitting Ganseys by Beth Brown-Reinsel

The Gansey is another traditional sweater style hailing from the British Isles. This updated version of the classic book includes modern collaborations with new designers.

With traditional patterns and newer, gansey inspired projects, there’s something for everyone to explore.

One-Piece Knits by Margaret Hubert

Want to knit outside the box?

This book takes a novel approach to sweater construction, showing you how to knit a sweater from side to side, back to front, and more.

A great way to explore how sweater knitting works!

Tudor Roses by Alice Starmore

This book is for the truly fearless knitter. Known for her intricate colorwork, Alice Starmore’s iconic pattern collection was update for this 2010 book. These projects are more than just beautiful pieces of knitting. They are historic pieces of art.

- BONUS PICK -

• 

  6000+ Pullover Possibilities by Melissa Leapman

  This book is for those people who love all the details. It's literally a spreadsheet of calculations to make different sweater elements in multiple sizes at different gauges. You have to figure out how to put it all together, but if you have the technical knowhow, this book is invaluable. I only wish they had a cardigan version!

  Get it at Amazon

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Conclusion

So there you have it.

These are some great resources to help you on your sweater knitting journey.

Do you have book about sweater knitting we didn’t mention?