Barbie(r) Doll and Me: 45 Playful Matching Designs for Knitting

I have been buying quite a few of Nicky Epsteins books and have found this book to be up to her excellent high standard of quality design, instructions and gorgeous photos which both myself and my grandaughters love looking at to choose which outfit to make next.

This book goes far beyond Barbie. It has become my favorite knitting pattern book! The doll patterns are adorable, but usually call for tiny amounts of fine-gauge, hard-to-find yarns. I personally am not planning to knit a doll sweater. If you are a Barbie Doll lover though, you will certainly find some wonderful things to make. But the book also has patterns for girls, boys, women and men (one "Dad" sweater). Nicky Epstein has some wonderful techniques in her patterns which make for beautifully finished sweaters. I am at the advanced-beginner level, and her book makes it easy to turn out professional looking sweaters by using methods like a three-needle bind-off at the shoulders, and making sleeves by picking up stitches at the shoulder and knitting down toward the cuff. The writer suggest specific yarns to use, but she also gives you plenty of information about gauge and yardage so that it is easy to substitute a different yarn. My daughter and I love to look through the book and pick out our "next" patterns. There are lots of matching mother and daughter patterns (plus doll, of course) which look equally nice on women and girls. I have already made the father-and-son rugby sweaters, and my next project will be a soft little cardigan for my daughter, with a fluffy collar and cuffs and matching fluffy headband. For myself I would like to make the raglan sleeved turtleneck. Nicky Epstein has some awesome knitting books out on embellishments and edges, and home decor. I wish she would write some more sweater patterns too, because she makes it very easy to make a great looking garment.