Behold My Humble Library

Behold My Humble Library
by Christine Weiss

I kid you not that 10 of the 14 rooms in my house, hold some part of my personal library.
The dedicated shelves contain books on politics, religion, art, travel and history. There are cookbooks, how-to books, fiction books, children's picture books and alas knitting and crocheting pattern books! I love my pattern books. There have been a lot of beautiful books published in this genre in recent years. We seem to be in a bit of a renaissance time for knitting and crochet books and I couldn’t be happier. We are so used to the visually outstanding cookbook, and now we have the visually outstanding crafting book. These bound volumes are tastefully done, many are hardbound and some even have fabric case cloth and liners. Some are done as sleek little handbooks to keep in your bag. Others are multi volume periodicals that you can collect. But all use visuals to inspire, explain, entice!  The photos are relevant and inviting and the text offers so much more than simple recipes for stuff. Our pattern writers are now sharing their stories or the stories of their inspiration. 

A few of my favorite books have stories about various animals with accompanying patterns, stories about the animals from which wools were shorn, and even hand drawings of said animals. Others have hand drawings of places and seasons that led to the imagined finished products of included patterns. I have come to enjoy the journey of my fellow fiber artist and I am really pleased they have found such artful ways to share. 

So even though my books are filled with things I want and plan to make, they are so much more. I can curl up on the couch and read, anticipating what yarns I may choose and how I will approach my project. I can see and understand new perspectives on designs by artists I never knew and now love. I can even see, sometimes, a few cracks in the design thinking and maybe pass on a project or two.  These books  have brought me yet another way to engage with fiber, knitting, crocheting and accompanying crafts community. They help me find my place in this corner of the crafting community. This community is real, and bound, and not popping up on my social media to make me buy, buy, buy indiscriminately. These books add intentionality to my work and have tangible ways to allow me to share and discuss with my friends and colleagues the designs and designers pushing our craft forward. It is often, nowadays, when I enter a yarn store I go straight to the books. I am building my library with intention and am proud to support the hard work of my community when they produce a wonderful, eye-catching volume of good patterns, inspiration and just plain joy. 

Favorite yarn in the shop: Fable by West Yorkshire Spinners
Favorite non-yarn item in the shop: Patty Lyon's Knitting Bag of Tricks
What I am looking forward to: Heading to Ecuador for a bit to visit some birds in the jungle.