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Nicky Epstein is a knitting designer and author of books on knitting. She is known for her creative combinations of knitting stitches, and for the colorful patterns often found in her sweaters, especially involving applique of separately knitted motifs. [1] In 2005, she was given an award by the National NeedleArts Association. In 2006, her work was included in a retrospective fashion show at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York City. Since the (winter) Holiday 2005 issue, Epstein has written a regular column in Vogue Knitting called "Nicky Epstein".
Nicoletta Quinones was born into an Italian/Spanish family and grew up in a mining town in West Virginia. Her Italian grandmother taught her to knit, and she completed her first sweater in seventh grade with the guidance of her home economics teacher. Epstein's mastery of knitting techniques began, however, when she was fourteen, with lessons from a local Spanish woman.
In 1970, Epstein enrolled at the Columbus College of Art and Design to study fashion design, but switched to retail sales and fine art. She continued to knit in college and earned money for tuition by selling oil paintings.
In 1979, she was art director at a design firm when she entered a McCall's Needlework design contest with a unicorn sweater and won first prize. Since the early 1980s, Epstein has published many knitting designs, sometimes over fifty a year. [1]
She is married to Howard Epstein and lives in New York City.
Epstein has long been respected as a knitter and designer, and has been quoted as saying, "I will support anything that promotes knitting." [1] Since 1999, she has published a series of technical books on knitting, focusing on applique ornaments and borders of knitted garments, which are renowned for their creativity. More recently, she has begun to explore other areas of knitting, such as felting. Epstein has also authored popular books on making knitted or crocheted clothes for Barbie dolls, as well as sundry projects for the home, such as afghan blankets and Christmas stockings.
Knitting is a method for production of textile fabrics by interlacing yarn loops with loops of the same or other yarns. It is used to create many types of garments. Knitting may be done by hand or by machine.
Circular knitting or knitting in the round is a form of knitting that creates a seamless tube. Work in the round is begun by casting on stitches as for flat knitting but then joining the ends of that row of stitches to form a circle. Knitting is worked in rounds, which forms the tube by winding around in a helix.
Knitting is the process of using two or more needles to pull and loop yarn into a series of interconnected loops in order to create a finished garment or some other type of fabric. The word is derived from knot, thought to originate from the Dutch verb knutten, which is similar to the Old English cnyttan, "to knot". Its origins lie in the basic human need for clothing for protection against the elements. More recently, hand knitting has become less a necessary skill and more of a hobby.
Intarsia is a knitting technique used to create patterns with multiple colours. As with the woodworking technique of the same name, fields of different colours and materials appear to be inlaid in one another, fit together like a jigsaw puzzle.
Elizabeth Zimmermann was a British-born hand knitting teacher and designer. She revolutionized the modern practice of knitting through her books and instructional series on American public television.
In knitting, an increase is the creation of one or more new stitches, which may be done by various methods that create distinctive effects in the fabric. Most knitting increases either lean towards the left or the right.
The "sweater curse" or "curse of the love sweater" is a term used by knitters and crocheters to describe the belief that if a knitter or crocheter gives a hand-knit sweater to a significant other, it will lead to the recipient breaking up with the knitter. In an alternative formulation, the relationship will end before the sweater is even completed. The belief is widely discussed in knitting publications, and some knitters claim to have experienced it. In a 2005 poll, 15% of active knitters said that they had experienced the sweater curse firsthand, and 41% considered it a possibility that should be taken seriously.
In knitting, ribbing is a pattern in which vertical stripes of stockinette stitch alternate with vertical stripes of reverse stockinette stitch. These two types of stripes may be separated by other stripes in which knit and purl stitches alternate vertically; such plissé stripes add width and depth to ribbing but not more elasticity.
In knitting, binding off, or casting off, is a family of techniques for ending a column of stitches. Binding off is typically used to define the final edge of a knitted fabric, although it may also be used in other contexts, e.g., in making button holes. In principle, binding off is the opposite of casting on, but the techniques are generally not mirror images of one another. Sometimes, however, they can produce a mirror image appearance.
Beaded knitting is a type of knitting in which the stitches are decorated with ceramic or glass beads.
Sweater design is a specialization of fashion design in which knitted sweaters are designed to fulfill certain aesthetic, functional and commercial criteria. The designer typically considers factors such as the insulating power of the sweater ; the fashion of its colors, patterns, silhouette and style lines, particularly the neckline and waistline; the convenience and practicality of its cut; and in commercial design, the cost of its production and the profitability of its price point. Sweater designs are often published in books and knitting magazines. Sweater design is an old art, but continues to attract new designers such as Nicky Epstein and Meg Swansen.
In knitting, welting is the horizontal analog of ribbing; that is, one or more horizontal rows of knit stitches alternating with one or more rows of purl stitches.
Knitted fabric is a textile that results from knitting, the process of inter-looping of yarns or inter-meshing of loops. Its properties are distinct from woven fabric in that it is more flexible and can be more readily constructed into smaller pieces, making it ideal for socks and hats.
Mary Walker Phillips, was an American textile artist, author and educator. She revolutionized the craft of hand knitting by exploring knitting as an independent art form. Her hand-knit tapestries and other creative pieces are exhibited in museums in the U.S. and Europe. She was honored as a fellow by the American Craft Council (ACC) in 1978.
Shannon Okey is an American writer and knit designer.
Hand knitting is a form of knitting, in which the knitted fabric is produced by hand using needles.
Cowichan knitting is a form of knitting characteristic of the Cowichan people of southeastern Vancouver Island, British Columbia. The distinctively patterned, heavy-knit Cowichan sweaters, popular among British Columbians and tourists, are produced using this method. Cowichan knitting is an acculturated art form, a combination of European textile techniques and Salish spinning and weaving methods. From this union, new tools, techniques and designs developed over the years.
Vogue Knitting, also known as Vogue Knitting International, is a magazine about knitting published by SoHo Publishing LLC. It is published biannually and includes knitting designs, yarn reviews, and interviews with designers. Vogue International Knitting is a registered trademark of Advance Publications Inc. and is used under a license.
Marius sweaters are Norwegian-style knitted sweaters with patterns inspired by traditional Setesdal sweater, but without lice, a type of pattern. While the traditional sweaters used the natural colors of sheep wool - black, gray, brown and white - Marius sweater designs incorporated colors, with the most common being red, white and blue, the colors of the Norwegian flag.