Kids Can Knit: Fun and Easy Projects for Small Knitters

Kids Can Knit! has a lot of strengths to recommend it: 1. It's got huge illustrations of the cast on, knit and purl techniques. You couldn't miss what's going on. 2. Nearly all the projects are small things that kids would enjoy making--friendship bands and chokers, flowers for adding style to your clothes, "floppy dollies," a Peruvian Pom Pom hat, and a mohair sweater. My favorite project in the book is the Desert Island belt and scarf, stylish and hip with beads. I know some girls who would love to make that set! 3. Finger knitting and spool knitting are both included, in addition to two-needle knitting. 4. The author gives options whenever possible--how to hold your needle, which hand to hold your yarn in, two ways to increase, two ways to decrease, two ways to cast on (simple and cable). That makes the kids aware that there's more than one way to do things, and they can choose. 5. The author even explains ways to make your own yarn from rags, plastic bags, and various kinds of string, wire, and ribbon. Some kids would enjoy that. 6. Two of the "big" projects in the book--a sweater, and a scarf, use super large needles and super bulky yarn--a really good idea for kids who knit. I only have a few quarrels with the book. One is the miniature knitting required to knit miniature pins (the kind you wear). The kids would have to knit on super small skewers--very short, and narrow diameter. I would think this would be too difficult for beginners, though it is included early in the book. I would like to try making the pins myself, but I would be careful about introducing the project with beginners. And I have found that the "simple cast-on" (made with the left thumb) does not work well with the kids I've taught. Though the casting-on is simple, knitting the first row is devilishly difficult. I don't recommend beginning with that cast on for kids--or adults, for that matter. If I were Clewer's editor, I would ask her to ditch the poncho project. It's a full poncho knit on size 6 and 4 needles. I don't know one kid who would ever finish it. Finally, the projects are mostly girly girl projects. Not much there for boys. There's a boy pictured with a knitted "silly sausage," and a few other boys pictured throughout, but most boys wouldn't be caught dead with the other projects. All in all, I plan to buy a copy of Kids Can Knit because the projects are so kid-friendly and imaginative. I can live with the rest.

Clear step-by-step photos and instructions. The book is colorful and easy to read. The projects are creative. We like it so much, I decided to learn how to knit with my daughter!

This book covers the basics, and takes kids far beyond the ordinary. Projects include flower pins, a kerchief and belt, knitting with rags, and even videotape! My daughter is definitely interested in several of the projects, and they've given me ideas for several projects of my own.