Drawing on her extensive experience as a teacher & practitioner Francoise Tellier-Loumagne has assembled a creative & inventive overview of stitches & fabrics both h&-knitted & machine-made presenting hundreds of sumptuous ways of working with yarn from silk thread to Shetland wool. Other books propose patterns to copy; this book uses basic patterns as points of departure opening up endless possibilities for sophisticated knitting designs. The book is organized by fabric types: simple knits jacquards fine jersey knits interlock open-work & many others. It covers hand knitting domestic machine knitting & industrial knitting explaining the relevant techniques & notation for each. The author encourages the reader to be innovative & to experiment with the various techniques drawing inspiration from the natural world & ones personal surroundings: pebbles on the sand autumn leaves snow sparkling in the sun weeds & grasses bending in the wind. Every type of stitch that she describes is accompanied by enlarged photos of the textiles detailed diagrams & written instructions. The yarns used here are highly textural & attractive which further encourages experimentation with yarn combinations & knitting techniques. The book will appeal to domestic knitters professional knit designers textile designers & students & be a source of inspiration to anyone working with or interested in knitted textiles.