Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Review: Holla Knits Fall/Winter Collection.

The second installment of Holla Knits was released a little over a week ago, and as soon as it was available, I rushed to the site to download my copy. This issue is the Fall/Winter 2012 collection, with six garment patterns from different designers. You can buy the entire collection for $18, or buy the patterns individually for $6.

There are a couple of things that Holla Knits does with its patterns that I really love. The first is that each pattern is knit twice, once in an indie dyer's yarn, and once in a more affordable Knit Picks yarn. I'm really happy to see some indies represented in a knitting publication (you'll see Gynx Yarns in the Accessories issue next month), but I also understand that not everyone can shell out the money to knit an entire garment out of hand dyed yarn.

The second is that each pattern is shown on two different sized models. Most of the time, patterns are only shown on one sample-sized model, and it can sometimes be hard to decide from that if the pattern will look good on you. Sure, you can look in the Ravelry project pages, but if it's a new pattern, there probably won't be many, if any, projects on there. The patterns in this collection all look good on each of their models, which is a lot more reassuring that it has a chance of flattering me as well.

Now, on to the individual patterns:

Devon Cardigan by Karin Kemper


This cardigan to me is everything fall should be: a little roomy, very cozy, and perfect for layering and wrapping yourself in.

Bombshell Shorts by Katie Canavan

 
 Admittedly, these are a bit out there. Knitted shorts? And yet, for some reason, I really like them. I think it would take a lot of confidence for these. If I knit them and don't get the courage to wear them outside, I've heard they're very comfy lounge shorts, but they look really nice over tights.

Sexxxy Librarian by Lilith Ubbelohde


Sleeveless pullovers like this aren't really my style, but I adore the cable patterning and the fit of it so much, that I just might have to knit myself a version with sleeves.

New Girl by Allyson Dykhuizen


A lot of knitted skirts don't look good on many people, because a lot of them are fitted and don't flatter a wide range of sizes. This knit circle skirt, however, is so cute on both of the models. Out of all the patterns, this is the one that I most want to cast on.

Jilted by Jennifer Dassau

 
 This is a pretty basic sweater, except it has a few strategically-placed dropped stitched to add some interest. I think if I did this sweater, I might either add a couple more dropped stitches on the body of the sweater, or just do the dropped stitches on the sleeves.

Henri by Ann Leachman


 Look at all of those cables and stitch patterns! This is a very interesting sweater to look at. This is supposed to be an oversized sweater, but oversized pullovers aren't really my style. If I knit this (which I want to) it's going to have to be a bit fitted, because I can't abide by the rules.

So far, this is my favorite fall collection this year. There are only 6 patterns, but I want to knit all of them. I can't wait to see what Holla Knits comes out with next month in their Accessories collection.

Disclaimer: I purchased my own copy of this collection and was not compensated for this review. Photos posted with permission.