my taste in furnishings is a little bipolar. while i love rooms that feel spacious and spare, containing just few pieces of streamlined furniture, i also admit to a penchant for concentrated areas of organized clutter.
these mini museum displays are set up all over my house and so it has been, ever since i can remember—i was one of those kids that constructed alters of bird nests, broken china, and rocks. and shells. and old jewelry.
i nestled cracker jack toys and beads in bits of wool and put them to bed in matchboxes that i secreted away in my pockets or drawers (the layering is so important). i narrated their stories to myself constantly.
and so on. i never met a small box or bottle i didn’t like . . . or a baby shoe.
i see a bunch of you smiling to yourselves out there—you know what i’m talking about.
when i moved to NYC after college, a country mouse making my way to the city life, i discovered there existed a whole new level of detritus beyond my imagination. the things i found on the street, in forgotten corners, or in the trash to make art from were almost limitless in their potential to mix with other things and tell tales.
(i know—that part about the trash makes me shudder now too, but honestly, i never picked through; just took from the top and then, only clean stuff. i swear.)
i love that david has a similar affection for curious doodads, but i’m starting to see that two of us in one house can be trouble. in our current home, things have gotten a bit out of control since, with the renovation, we have never completely settled into a permanent configuration. our displays are a lot more haphazard and they grow quite organically out of nowhere and in the oddest spots, where they sit unattended. we have little time to be the curators we once were.
as we finish each room, we are very careful to edit and introduce “order”, allowing only our most favorite stuff to remain. david refinished my dad’s old desk for me and i created a curiosity cabinet within, ostensibly to keep from cluttering other surfaces and cut down on dusting.
but there’s still a ways to go; i admit i do not get carried away with organizing my surroundings—yet. and after ten years in one place, we could use a thorough sweeping out.
one good development has been that as my design career expands, i see more and more how to process textural inspiration into my work without having to collect and assemble so many actual things; now that we live outside the city, i also use my natural living surroundings as inspiration.
and then i saw that another designer has undertaken a similar journey of converting actual collecting into a more visual reflection of her love of texture.
in the knitter’s curiosity cabinet, author and designer hunter hammersen explores the history of the curiosity cabinet, where combining objects can range from indulging in a mild interest to a fiercely fetishistic passion.
what she has done is to make the book itself into her cabinet and assembled within a collection of socks, fingerless mitts, cowls, scarves, and shawl designs, tied together by a botanical theme.
(haha, wow; that looks way too familiar for comfort)
she then uses the the curiosity cabinet as a central touchstone around which to fashion a book containing her knitted accessory collection.
each piece is a little universe swirling with interest, contained within the boundaries of its small shape. the textures captured within the projects are inspired by botanical prints.
such as the crocus versus sock, above.
there is something for every knitting level and many pieces are good candidates for gifting, even at the last minute.
and the chrysanthemum frutescens socks (cover photo) and hat (below).
there is more than one pairing of pieces in the collection; several accessory sets are featured which make good use of a larger skein of yarn.
the pattern steps are written out in paragraph form, while the stitch patterns used within appear both in row-by-row and charted format; the charts are large and easy to read.
the book is an almost-square shape that lay open nicely to individual project pages.
the collection is rich with deep, luscious color, sparked by highlights of fresh spring, such as the pink shawl above.
the palette is very appealing and in keeping with the theme with yarns sourced largely from favorite indie dyers.
the best part is that hunter is a “neighbor” of mine who lives up in cleveland, just an hour away and i got to meet her when i was at TNNA last weekend. silly me, i forgot myself entirely and did not get a photo of us together—drat.
now you might already have guessed what’s coming next, but i’m going to tell you anyway. hunter has very graciously set aside a copy of the knitter’s curiosity cabinet to send to one lucky reader of today’s post.
leave a comment at the end of this post by 9 pm EDST on sunday, july 8th to have your name included. we will announce a winner early next week.
very many thanks to hunter for providing the opportunity to share her book and to offer a giveaway copy; thank you hunter!
406 thoughts on “curiouser and curiouser”
Looks like a great book! Nice collection- I like books with patterns and groups of things.
Lovely book, I would love to make many of the patterns.
Me! … me! over here (waving arm madly) What a lovely looking book, I’d love it!
I *get* your inner collector. I am that way, too. Trying to just appreciate and do with less… Thanks for the chance on the book.
That book looks fabulous! I want to knit everything you showed 🙂
What a gorgeous book!
Ooh, ooh, lacy patterns for yarn from indie dyers — my favorite kind of knitting! 🙂
I thought it was just patterns. Now I’ll have to look for it for the info on “curiosity cabinets”
I’m always amazed with the knitting books you find…this one is fascinating and I’d love to have a copy. It’s not your grandmother’s knitting anymore. The possibilities are endless.
Inspiring! I want to knit all the projects.
Oh…I would LOVE to win this!!! Love the projects and the inspiration used to design them!
Such a pretty book; I’d love a chance to win it. Thanks.
Very nice looking book!
such a beautiful book!
I love those small projects! They would be so satisfying to knit and to wear. Would really like that book. Thanks for the chance to own it.
Your collections look very interesting, I love to see your home. And of course if I won the book that would be nice too!
Sounds like a great addition to any knitter’s library!
Love the patterns and the concept of this book!
Wow, love those patterns! Would love to try some!
Oh man, I saw a copy of this before, and now I want it even more.
There are some beautiful patterns in this book. I would love to add it to my collection.
I especially love the rust/brown/red of the fingerless mitts about halfway down the entry. How clever of the author to translate botanicals into kniticals! Love your patterns and your photography, Anne.
What a wonderful looking book! It’s full of neat looking patterns, and colors, and textures. Thanks for sharing!
What a wonderful book. I can’t decide which pair of socks I like the best. They’re all spectacular.
I’ve been ogling that book for a bit now – it would be lovely to win it.
I love the crocus socks and want to make them now! Would love to win the book. It looks lovely.
Absolutely beautiful book!
How could one resist such a collection, especially after such an introduction?
Yes this book looks really great. Lots of great reading, photos and patterns.
Mmm, I’ve had my eye on that book for a while… Thanks for the chance to win it!
Wow, I would love this book, it looks amazing. Thank you for introducing it to us.
yummy socks! Yes, I would like that book, please!
These projects are wonderful! The socks alone make me want to abandon everything else on my needles right now and get started…….
Oh, I’m a clutterbug too and I find it quite inspiring! That book looks lovely – eye candy and some beautiful patterns
That book looks lovely. I could easily fall into the collector category, I must have all of a series of whatever.
Gorgeous vignettes! Interesting patterns. Thanks for the contest!
Lovely book—would be fun to peruse………and then to knit with!
Thank you for sharing this book. It looks to be full of beautiful projects.
Oh please let this be my turn!, are you listening Universe? All of the things I adore in one book?… Sigh
I, myself, much prefer a house with some curiosity spots. Such character, such stories!
Thank you for introducing us to the book…I’d love to have it.
Such an interesting concept for a knitting book! I want to read more!
I love how you tied a vignette of your life with the book!
Oh, this book must have my name on it! But if the giveaway copy doesn’t, then I will surely buy it. Thanks, Anne, for bring it to my attention!
what a lovely book
Those raspberry socks look great, as did your lemon meringue pie in the last post. Do you have a recipe for it?
What lovely patterns, and such a good story behind them! Wonderful!
I love Elizabethan “Wonder cabinets.” This book makes me think of them. It would be fun to knit some curiosity-inspired socks!
I have to “hand” it to you… I’ve never seen such an organized collection! So eclectic!
I love this post, Anne.
And, not just because you referenced an “Alice” quote!
What a beautiful book – I love the botanical themed projects, especially the socks!
Collections, gardening seem to me to have natural connections to knitters and knitting. Thanks to Hunter Hammersen for putting them together and to you, Anne, for the offer of the book to one lucky person.
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