Read These 10 Knitting Books to Unravel the Secrets of Needlework

The author of My Knitted Doll brings her unique style to these “beautiful designs” featuring twelve distinct animal friends with distinctive styles and knitwear that can be switched between them to create fun ensembles and “whimsical results” that “children will love” (Publishers Weekly). 

Of course, it isn’t just children who will appreciate the fun and distinctive animal dolls that you can create with the patterns in this book, which make ideal gifts for friends and family of all ages. 

Everyone has to start somewhere, and there’s no better place to start knitting than with this “absolute beginner’s guide” to the hobby, which features easy to follow, step-by-step instructions broken down into chapters covering techniques from the simplest to the more advanced, with each chapter featuring projects that can be completed with only the techniques in that chapter. 

Before you know it, you’ll be knitting like a pro in no time – and enjoying the many benefits that come with this relaxing and therapeutic hobby! 

In this approachable guide, author Val Pierce introduces 20 fun new designs that can all be created from one simple knitted bear, which is easy enough that even beginners can make it. 

From there, you can craft the cuddly friend of your dreams, with patterns for hiking bears, ballet bears, beach-loving bears, and more! And if bears aren’t your thing, the Twenty to Knit series also boasts books with designs for baby mittens, tiny toys, pocket pets, knitted hats, and more, so you’ll never run out of new projects to keep you knitting! 

“A must-have book for anyone who wants to knit,” this step-by-step guide features colorful photographs depicting every stage of the knitting process, including a wide range of techniques, from the most basic on up. Here, you’ll learn about casting on and casting off, how to increase and decrease, and much more. 

And if you don’t know what any of that means, not to worry; you’ll learn that, too! Before you know it, Knitting for the Absolute Beginner will have you started on your very first project and, by the time you’re done, you’ll be knitting yourself a comfy cardigan or striped scarf in no time! 

Knitting is great all year round, but knitted accessories are ideal for cold weather, and with more than 100 designs, this “inspiring” book “will satisfy beginning and experience knitters alike” (Booklist). 

From wrist warmers to boot cuffs, hats to snoods, you’ll find a bit of everything among these fantastic patterns by veteran knitting designer Monica Russel, all designed for knitters of varying skill levels. Why not stay warm and stylish while knitting up a storm the next time that cold weather rolls around? 

Many knitting enthusiasts are already familiar with Amy Herzog, whose previous books include You Can Knit That and Knit Wear Love. In this latest volume, she sets her sights on the sweater, bringing experienced knitters everything they need to not only knit their own sweaters, but to modify existing sweater patterns to suit their own style and preferences. 

With this handy guide, you can add hoods, turtlenecks, pockets, zipper fronts, and so much more! Your imagination is the limit, and Amy Herzog can show you how it’s done! 

More than another book of knitting designs, Claire Garland’s Magical Woodland Knits is inspired by her own observations of the wildlife that surround her home in rural Cornwall. Accompanying these twelve realistic patterns, designed to look like a real animal in its natural habitat, are her observations, drawings, and studies of the natural world around her. 

While you may not be able to go to Cornwall to see barn owls, foxes, fawns, or wolves in the wild, this book will give you the next best thing by showing you how to knit a facsimile that captures that same magic. 

The cover calls it “the complete handbook for creative knitters,” and you can see why for yourself inside these pages, which include more than 25 easy-to-follow projects as well as an indispensable overview of yarns and equipment available on the market, an extensive stitch library, and guides to techniques both basic and complex. 

From those who are just starting out to those who have been knitting for a long time and want to hone their skill, The Knitter’s Bible offers something for all skill levels, and a must-have guidebook for knitters of all types. 

Most of the books on this list are books about how to knit – featuring techniques and designs – but Esther Rutter’s “wondrous” (BBC Countryfile) book is instead about the history of knitting, textile manufacturing, wool, and sheep throughout Britain. 

Rutter herself was raised on a sheep farm in Suffolk, and she brings a personal touch as well as a rigorous scholarship to this journey across both the physical and the historical British Isles as she explores the important role that wool and knitting have played in a book that the Irish Times calls, “A yarn well told.” 

Renowned as the author of The Yarn Whisperer, known for her PBS television appearances, and beloved for her small-batch handcrafted yarns, Clara Parkes takes knitting enthusiasts on a tour of the world – and of a life lived creatively – in this one-of-a-kind book that is part memoir, part travelogue, part cultural history, and all celebration of knitting and the wonders that it brings into the lives of those who love it. 

From the fjords of Iceland to a cozy little yarn shop in Paris, readers will be whisked along on Parkes’ adventures, and into a celebration of the creative life.