Today marks my stop on an all-star blog tour for a fantastic new stitch dictionary called 'Up, Down, All-Around Stitch Dictionary: More than 150 stitch patterns to knit top down, bottom up, back and forth and in the round.' Blue Sky Alpacas has teamed up with Abrams books, who is publishing this fabulous new resource from best-selling author Wendy Bernard. Read on to find out how you can win a signed copy of the book and a project bag full of yarn from Blue Sky Alpacas!

First off, I have to tell you that I own quite a few stitch dictionaries. And none of them are like this book. Wendy has done all the dirty work for you (and me) and this is honestly one of the most useful knitting books I've ever laid eyes on.

Wendy has taken 150 stitch patterns and converted them so they could be knitted flat (of course) but also in the round, bottom up and top down. Any direction! The stitch patterns in the book are both written out and charted. (Go ahead and let that sink in for a minute!)

I chose a herringbone lace rib pattern from the 'Ribs' chapter and wrote up a pattern recipe for a summery cowl using Blue Sky Alpacas Worsted Cotton. Was it hard to do? Not at all! Wendy gives you the number of stitches in each pattern repeat along with how many rounds it will take and boom, you've got everything you need. You don't have to convert it to make it work in the round. It's ready to go!

Here's the pattern recipe if you'd like to make this cowl, too.

Herringbone Lace Rib Cowl

Materials:

- 1 hank Blue Sky Alpacas Worsted Cotton in Aloe/color #604

- US 11 (8mm) 16" circular needles

- Tapestry needle

Directions:

Using US 11 (8mm) circular needles and long tail cast-on, CO 70 sts.

Join in the round and PM.

Rnd 1: P around.

Rnd 2: K around.

Rnd 3: P around.

Rnd 4: K around.

Rnd 5: *K1, p1, k1, yo, p2tog, k1, p1; repeat from * to end.

Rnd 6: *K1, p2, k2tog, yo, p2; repeat from * to end.

Repeat Rnds 5 and 6 until piece measures 9" from the CO edge.

Rnd 7: K around.

Rnd 8: P around.

Rnd 9: K around.

Rnd 10: P around.

BO loosely, break yarn and weave in ends.

Win the book + 3 hanks of Blue Sky Alpacas yarn + a project bag!

Blue Sky Alpacas is going to give one lucky reader a signed copy of Up, Down, All-Around, 3 gorgeous skeins of yarn and a Pretty Cheep Project bag. What a fantastic prize!

To enter, just leave a comment below. I will choose a winner at random on Friday, May 30th at 12:00 p.m. CST. Thanks for reading and good luck!

Join us for an exciting blog tour full of book giveaways and other good stuff. Also, follow me on Twitter at @KnitTonicWendy for more promotional news, and a tutorial on using Up, Down, All-Around Stitch Dictionary to custom-design your own cowl with any pattern you like!

The Up, Down, All-Around Stitch Dictionary Blog Tour sponsored by Blue Sky Alpacas; be sure to visit these tour stops:

- See more at: http://blueskyalpacas.com/blog/#sthash.vGDagwX5.dpu

Here's the Up, Down, All-Around Blog Tour schedule, sponsored by Blue Sky Alpacas. Be sure to visit the other blogs on this list for more giveaways and lots of fun projects and customization ideas using this book.

Blog Tour stops:

May 20: Knit and Tonic on the Blue Sky Alpacas Blog

May 22: FreshStitches

May 24: Hey Jen Renee

May 26: Very Shannon Knits

May 28: Miso Crafty Knits

May 30: The Sweatshop of Love

June 3: Stockinette Zombies

June 4: Mari Knits

June 6: Lattes and Llamas

June 21: Wendy Bernard on the Ready, Set, Knit! podcast

Up, Down, All-Around Stitch Dictionary

By Wendy Bernard