on walkabout

Posted on Posted in book reviews/events

i’m on a plane at the moment, winging my way toward san francisco and a visit with our dear friend cookie. since i’m going to be in the shadow of a sock guru for the next week, i’m not only packing a couple of unfinished sock projects to take along (just to look somewhat on the same wavelength), but i thought i’d leave you all with some food for thought (i’ve been thinking a lot about socks lately, maybe as a substitute for actually knitting them? not sure . . .).

and for variety’s sake, there will be two dishes to choose from . . .

the first is from another dear friend, alice (AKA socktopus), who celebrated a big milestone this month with the birth of her first daughter. while our knitting community rallies around the new family, i though it would be fun to highlight one of her other recent achievements—the publication of her own socktopus book in october, 2011 by taunton press (she’s just had one great event on top of another this past year; go alice!).

while most of alice’s book focuses on a collection of sock design from her popular club (more on those later), she starts the ball rolling with a concise overview of sock knitting basics—things to consider when getting started that will have the biggest effect on the final results.

she delves just far enough into fiber facts, yarn characteristics, tools, fit, fabric, and constructions to begin building a knowledge base, without overwhelming the reader. this is so like alice herself that i had to smile when i read these pages—in her work, clean, clear, and to the point.

the pattern section begins with a basic sock recipe—and i love this—shown in a setting that is anything but. just to prove that you don’t need to be fancy to be effective.

a plain sock in a smashing color is at least as eye-catching as something complicated.

each design is shown at a variety of angles and distance, so that we get a sense of it both as a fashion piece and as a knitted item. i always enjoy it more when knitted items are photographed as part of our lives, instead of as pristine objects on display.

that said, in an instruction manual, we of course want to see the details of each piece to guide our own work. and this book delivers both. nice.

each pattern is accompanied by good-sized, easy-to-read charts; written instructions are provided for the construction points, though not necessarily for every pattern rnd.

in addition, many patterns include tutorials on technique or notes on unusual abbreviations or maneuvers.

the designs are by and large deeply textured with allover patterns in lace, crossed stitches, and slip stitch effects, while maintaining a mostly-girly point of view (though there are several that could bat for either team).

(i love this pair!!)

the textural choices are the perfect way for alice to show off the gorgeous colors of her handpainted yarns, making a great case for such a designer pairing.

the stitches really enhance the colors, bringing out rich background tones and glowing highlights.

if you’re a texture junkie, this collection of 17 designs should be on your shelf—just sayin’. you can purchase a copy here.

now, for those who have read this far, a special treat from the lovely folks at taunton—a giveaway copy for one luck winner. if you’d like to throw your hat sock in the ring, please leave a comment at the end of this post by 9 pm EST on sunday march 4th. i’ll get my friend cookie to do the honors and we;ll announce it as soon after that as i can (remember, i’m traveling; it might not be til wednesday next week)

now, as if all that excitement wasn’t enough i’ve got another great sock book to show you. while it has its similarities, it couldn’t be more different in some ways either, so read on.

this one—by the esteemed clara parkes, fiber guru and author of knitter’s review—also released in october (by potter craft), just about the same time as alice’s and it is also about socks.

but the knitter’s book of socks diverts from the path of the previous book in several important ways and in doing so, rightly wins equal position as a favorite new release for me.

anyone who reads knitter’s review knows that clara is a very thorough investigator. when allowed to unleash her full reporting powers on a book-length project, what she delivers is a thoughtful resource of considerable usefulness to knitters and other scholars of fiber. you want to know that answer to a fiber question? go ask clara (or better yet, read her three books).

this volume delves a little deeper into individual properties of  fiber, yarn, and fabric that will affect the outcome of your sock. she also reaches further afield to talk about factors outside the sock itself that will have an effect on your experience.

she takes the sock student from the ground floor (when the fiber is still on the animal) through the fabrication, tools, wearing experience, and finishes off the lesson with some schooling on washing up afterward. nice and tidy.

all of this takes up about half the volume (which is a nice thick hardcover totaling about two hundred pages).

the other half of the book is devoted to sock designs and patterns that explore the concepts presented in the first half (or you can flip straight to those to get started knitting, if you like).

the big difference in this collection of designs is that it is a compilation of many designers chosen by the author—myself and cookie among them. those are our socks, together in the photo above; isn’t that cute? i bet you can you guess which is which, haha. in fact, they appear together an erie number of times, as if we were following the photographer around.

cookie’s sock is really cool—a pattern of traveling stitches that cris-crosses all over the place, but not the way cables do. i really love it.

we are in good company, with nancy bush, sivia harding, ann budd, cat bordhi, and many others, for a total of twenty new and creative designs.

while many of these are indeed girly and/or focused on a fancy motif or construction, there are plenty of choices that will be suitable for men and boys.

clara’s stepping stones design is one and stephen houghton’s salted caramels is another (to point out just a couple)

i love the look of the yarn used for this design; it’s something that david would really like and supports the design beautifully.

this is another attractive pair that has a delicious moroccan feeling, due to the combination of stitch pattern and color. i could see a pastel yarn choice being equally lovely, but changing the tenor of the design completely.

each pattern is accompanied by written instructions in the construction; charts are provided for specific pattern stitches. the charts here are a little harder to read though, which is the only drawback i can see to the book layout.

all in all, a wonderful and  varied resource for the sock knitter, whether beginner or experienced—there’s always something new to learn, right?

clara has green-lighted a giveaway copy of her book as well; same rules apply. leave a comment at the end of this post by 9pm EST on sunday, march 4, 2012 if you’d like to be included in the drawing.

thank you to both authors for sharing their wealth of knowledge and skill with us!

i will be back with a report form the west coast just as soon as i gather my wit’s after landing (that could be a day or two, hee-hee and this will give me some leeway)

431 thoughts on “on walkabout

  1. socktopus looks like a great book on sock knitting!!! Would love a copy of either one of these books

  2. Both books look like so much fun! I’ve definitely been bitten by the sock bug!

  3. Love, love the books. I have many sock books but not either of these. Wonderful presentations. Would knit all the patterns. Hope I have a chance.

  4. Either book looks like it would be fun to own and knit from! Thank you for the reviews and giveaways!

  5. The books look awesome. Even better is hearing about your adventurous knitting life, Anne.

  6. I really enjoyed your thoughts on the books – and thanks for having a giveaway!

  7. Thanks for the chance to win either of these books, I am 1/2 way through my first patterned socks and think that I have been bitten by the bug! Would love another sock book to add to my library.

  8. I have never knit a pair of socks (yet!), but it is one of the few things that my boyfriend requested that I knit for him. This would be just the thing to get me started!

  9. It’s been awhile since I’ve purchased a sock knitting book. Both of these look good!

  10. Both books look great. Knitting socks is a necessity mentally and physically. Would love the cookie pair and of course yours, in that order from Clara’s book.

  11. I have been wanting how to learn to do socks. Thank you Thankyou for the wonderful book recommendations!

  12. Have been considering buying both books for a while now, so it’s encouraging to read another positive review. Would love to add them to my library 🙂

  13. I have a ton of sock yarn-both books have some beautiful patterns to help me on my way to turning the yarn into socks

  14. I have Alice’s book already (and was in her club for a couple of years), it’s a lovely book. I love the look of Clara’s book too!

  15. Sooo many beautiful socks, so little time! But for these I would make time!

  16. I love your very detailed review of both books! would love to own either one, & thank you.

  17. The Socktopus book has been on my wish list for a while. (I have and love my copy of Clara’s book.)

  18. Please include me in the drawing for the book(s). They both look lovely!!!

  19. Oh boy, a chance to win a new book. Please count me in! Both books look to be wonderful.

  20. Both books look amazing. So much knowledge is available to us knitters in the world today.

  21. Three hundred eighty-nine responses? Wow! I think it may have been four years ago I started reading your blog. Congratulations on the growth of your business and following. I rarely win anything but it never hurts to try…

    Hope is good, books are great, knitted socks – luxurious.

  22. Funny that I was just queing a bunch of Socktopus patterns today on Ravelry- love both the books!

  23. I’m knitting my way through Clara’s book at the moment, trying out Firefly, Darjeeling and Kensington, and the addition of Socktopus would keep me in sock patterns for the rest of the year.

    Kristina

  24. Hmm! Wow, please include me for the draw of either of these wonderful books! I guess being the scientific type, the second one would quench my curiosity better, but the designs in the first one are equally inspiring! So please include me for both draws!

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