Book review: Interweave Knits: Holiday Gifts

(Technically, this is a magazine review, not a book review. But since this is probably the only magazine I'll be reviewing, I didn't think it worthy of a special heading.)

I've pretty much been drooling nonstop since I first heard about the Interweave Knits holiday knitting issue a few months ago. I started a subscription to IK this past summer (and thanks to JD I have a full year's worth on my shelf) and really like most of the patterns I see in there. (Where I'm skilled enough to knit most of them--or wealthy enough to afford most of the super-pricey suggested yarns--well, that's another story.) I can't quite decide whether or not I'm annoyed that this issue isn't included in the subscription. On the one hand, there are probably lots of people who don't want a full issue devoted to the winter holidays. (These people may not celebrate any winter holidays. Or maybe they have tons of holiday-themed patterns already. Or maybe they just hate Santa Claus.) But on the other hand, I don't quite see how a subscription doesn't include all the magazines published in a given year. Go figure.

I thought about ordering it from the IK website, but in addition to the $7.99 cover price there's an oh-good-grief-are-they-serious? shipping fee of $4.95. So I decided to pick it up from a local bookstore. I should point out that I had a gift card to said bookstore, so this magazine was going to cost me nothing.

It hit the newsstands on 17 October, and today I managed to get my own copy. My first thought was "Hmmm...that's an awfully skimpy magazine." (I haven't done a page count or pulled out the kitchen scale, but this seems to have about half the heft of a regular issue.) I've flipped through it twice, and my second thought is "Hmmm...there's a very high ad-to-content ratio in here." A lot of the content seems to be reprinted from other sources. For example, one of the four Christmas stockings is the Giant Jester Stocking (from an Interweave Press book) that I'm making for Sylvia. Oh well, I guess I can return that book to Beth now...

There are a few things in here that seem fun to knit. Overall, I'm a little disappointed with this issue. I mean, it cost eight bucks. For that amount of dough, I expect more content and less fluff, like several pages on suggested books to buy for new knitters (the ones listed are already known to the vast majority of knitters) and where to get $150 knitting bags. (I'd just like to say that given a choice between a $150 knitting bag and $150 of yarn, I bet most knitters would opt for the yarn. Yes, even those who have a separate room to house their yarn stash. It's not possible to have too much yarn.)

Also, what is the pattern "Crochet Slippers" doing in this issue? Not only is it recycled from the fall/winter 2005 issue of Knitscene (it's #15 on this list of free patterns--which means part of my $7.99 paid for a pattern that was already available for free), but it's crochet. I know that crochet is hot these days, and there's some crossover between the two crafts, but they are not the same. This is not a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, so please keep your crochet out of my knitting!

My final verdict: take a look at this issue before you decide. Make sure there are patterns in here that you really want before you throw down eight bucks for it. I don't necessarily think this is a bad issue...I just don't think it's worth the cover price.