Recent reading

I've read through several great books lately.

The first is The Knitting Sutra: Craft as a Spiritual Practice by Susan Gordon Lydon. Crocheters, don't abandon this because of the word knitting in the title, so does include us in that subtitle. This book is small and easy reading. I took to reading one short chapter before I picked up the hook for a session of crocheting. It gave me a lot to think about as I worked in the quiet house. This book could easily be reread every few years, a chance to spend some time thinking about the journey you've been on since the last reading.

Next, Handmade Lace and Patterns, by Annette Feldman. This starts with the history of lace and lacemaking, including cultural and economic impacts on the business. Crochet seems to have come fairly late in the needle arts, but is well represented in this book. Included are pictures of various kinds of lace, examples of lace from museums around the world, and then patterns in crochet, hairpin, knitting and tatting. There's a beautiful crocheted pineapple square that I'd love to try. There are some beautiful knitted and tatted doilies as well.

McCall's Big Book of Country Needlecrafts: 150 Beautiful things for your Home to Quilt, Sew, Knit, Crochet, Embroider, Stencil, Paint, or Work in Wood. Okay, I didn't actually read this whole book. In this I looked at the pictures, used the index to find the crocheted items, and leisurely browsed. Some of my favorites - an afghan with a monogram worked in, Pineapples and Diamonds afghan, and the Baby Blocks afghan. The blocks are diamonds worked in 3 colors then the diamonds connected to form what looks like 3D cubes. This definitely says "Future Project". There is a gorgeous knitted bedspread called Swirling Stars, and a crocheted bedspread with hexagon motifs, called Water Lily. I think I will make just one motif!