In Praise of Debbie Bliss

I love fashionable knits for women and every now and again I flick through a Rowan book, or one of my knitting magazines, and think "I shall definitely knit that for myself", however I never do. It seems that I have an uncontrollable addiction to knitting for kids and my addiction just will not allow the deviant activity of knitting for big people. Over the past couple of years I've been knitting using vintage patterns and I've loved it. It's been quite a challenge as finding the correct yarn and tension has been troublesome and the sizing is a little too snug for modern children, but it has been nice to see a little bit of history come alive in a cardigan or a jumper.

However, just recently I've gone back to good old reliable Debbie Bliss for some nice spring-time knits for my children. Knitting the pattern, no matter how complex, is always straightforward with Debbie Bliss. Largely because the patterns are written with real clarity. They are ideal for a beginner who wants to venture into something more complex, indeed I learnt to cable knit using a Debbie Bliss pattern and I've never looked back. She is so good with texture, her yarns are lovely and her designs are incredibly tactile.
This little bunny, from Baby Cashmerino 2, is a lovely quick project and I really enjoy the knobbly, uniformity of the moss stitch. I made her to go with this baby's cardigan with moss stitch edging for a friend's first child, however, my youngest girl has grown rather too fond of the rabbit so it looks like I'm going to have to knit another one for my friend's new arrival!

Here's quick look at my next project. It's baggy, collared jumper for my eldest girl. For me this pattern, from Great Knits for Kids, exemplifies why Debbie Bliss is so very good. She seems to have instinctive knowledge of what children will feel comfortable in without making them seem too adult. That is to say, she knows what children like to wear and she knows what mums want to see their little ones wearing. Again, texture and detail, particularly in the edgings on the designs, in this book are excellent. There are some super cable knits, I mean they would really make you swoon and she mainly uses a lot of Rowan Cotton Glace, so they will be ideal late spring cover ups for out-doorsy children, not too heavy or bulky...divine!