Cast on Kill off

This is another crafting mystery for knitters. This is book 10 in this series by Maggie Sefton. I have not read any of the other books in the series.

A knitting friend is getting married. Kelly refers her friend to a talented seamstress, Zoe, to make the bridesmaid dresses. The only problem is Zoe is in a troubled marriage and ends up dead. So Kelly, along with her knitting friends, set out to find the true killer.

The story, like many crafting mysteries, have the usual crafting mystery cliches. The story is charming enough that the reader will want to finish it. The end is not totally unexpected, but it still took me some time to figure it out. I do not feel I missed too much by not reading the other books in the series, so this could easily be read as a stand alone.

Book rating - 4 stars

The books I select for review are books which I personally select from my local library. I do not receive any reimbursement from authors or publishers or free books. I do provide links to Amazon as a convenience to the readers of this blog. I do earn a small referral pittance which is not even enough to buy a soda.

A fatal fleece

Crafting mysteries have been a trend for a while. Our library acquired a few of them. This is book 6 in the series, but also the first that I have read.

This story is about a group of knitting friends, one of whom runs a knitting shop. An old, lonely seaman is discovered dead wearing a yellow fleece vest. The knitting friends do their own investigating to solve the crime. In the meantime Birdie's unknown granddaughter, Gabby, shows up for a visit. Gabby, of course, gets in the middle of both the mystery and takes up knitting.

The story is charming. I do not feel I missed out by reading the 6th book in the series first. There are a number of standard crafting mystery cliches in the story, so do not expect too many surprises with the characters or what they do. The mystery kept my attention and so I did finish the book. Also, the author has a tendency to describe the meals the characters eat in detail. Not too annoying, but it may make you hungry.

Book rating - 4 stars

The books I select for review are books which I personally select from my local library. I do not receive any reimbursement from authors or publishers or free books. I do provide links to Amazon as a convenience to the readers of this blog. I do earn a small referral pittance which is not even enough to buy a soda.

Respect the spindle

 

I have been eyeballing spinning for a long time. I thought I wanted a spinning wheel - and maybe I still do - but the cost commitment is rather high. The average beginner spinning wheel is $500 without any of the accessories that you will eventually want or need. A spindle however is a low cost, low tech tool that has been used since ancient times. There is this assumption that the spindle is just a beginner tool for those that eventually buy a wheel. Maybe it's because the tool is so simple. Whatever the reason, the tool has not received the respect it deserves.

Abby Franquemont is a well known spinner with a lot of experience using a spindle. She learned spindle spinning in Peru as a child and has kept with it since. You can find demonstration videos on youtube - which will amaze you.


I have to say, I love this book. I had watched many youtube videos on how to use a spindle, but it wasn't until I had this book in hand that it call came together. Abby discusses the history and physics of spinning. She demonstrates every step from attaching or creating a leader to plying and finishing your yarn. She has examples of many different kinds of spindles from the beginner CD spindle to the expensive Golding. She convinced me that everything that can be done on a spinning wheel can be done on a spindle.

I am now a devoted spindle spinner. While I need more practice (and fiber!), I love watching a yarn form and the control I have on how it turns out. I love how portable it is and how little space it takes up. Thank you Abby for sharing your love of spindles.

Book Rating: 5 stars

The books I select for review are books which I personally select from my local library. I do not receive any reimbursement from authors or publishers or free books. I do provide links to Amazon as a convenience to the readers of this blog. I do earn a small referral pittance which is not even enough to buy a soda.

Jewelry Making & Beading

 

Teach yourself visually jewelry making and beading by Chris Franchetti Michaels was one of those books I turned to when I decided to try jewelry making. Some books in the Teach yourself visually series have not been received well by crafters, but this book is truly exceptional.

There are large, clear pictures throughout that help with the most basic jewelry making steps. I really liked the clear charts that detail wire sizes and component parts. The resource lists were helpful. I didn't really care for the section on beading, because I just wasn't interested in that aspect. I tried some techniques and it is clear that I need some more practice. One of the downfalls of the series is that there is no video component. While the photographs do a really good job, there are some skills in which you need to see them in action. Even so, this book stands above others in the series.

Book Rating: 5 stars.


The books I select for review are books which I personally select from my local library. I do not receive any reimbursement from authors or publishers or free books. I do provide links to Amazon as a convenience to the readers of this blog. I do earn a small referral pittance which is not even enough to buy a soda.

Sock knitting master class

 

I loved this sock knitting book. Ann Bud pulled together this collection of knitted socks from various popular knitting designers. Each sock demonstrates an advanced knitting technique. The cover of the book has a pair of stunning knee length socks with stripes and bands of intarsia. Other techniques include cabling, colorwork, and texture. A knitter could really improve their skills by knitting each sock in the book.

The book comes with a bonus DVD that features Ann Budd demonstrating how to knit a sock and discussing each sock in the book. The DVD is a great addition as it shows the basics of sock knitting, which is not presented in the book with much depth. There are a few oddities in the demos though. Ann Budd shows all the basics of sock knitting except for how to pick up the stitches along the gusset, if I remember right. She demonstrates how to prevent holes in the corners but nothing else. The camera angles are a bit weird in some of the demos. In places where a straight overhead shot would be best, we get a straight on shot or a strange angle where you cannot see what Ann is doing. Despite those deficiencies, it's nice to see another knitter knitting.

The books I select for review are books which I personally select from my local library. I do not receive any reimbursement from authors or publishers or free books. I do provide links to Amazon as a convenience to the readers of this blog. I do earn a small referral pittance which is not even enough to buy a soda.

Friday Night Knitting Club

Books that feature a certain craft have become popular for the last few years. Somehow Friday Night Knitting Club made it to the New York Times bestseller list. They all seem to follow a similar theme. A story about women who gather to share their love of a craft while helping each other or solving a mystery (some are murder mysteries, go figure). This one, of course, features knitting.

A few years ago I read The Shop on Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber. It is a similar story about a single woman who opens a yarn store. I didn't love this particular story but the characters interested me enough to finish it. I never did read the sequel(s).

The Friday Night Knitting Club is about several characters but centers on a single mom who, you guessed it, opens a knitting shop. Several women gather on Friday nights to stitch and gab about their lives.

I only read the first few chapters. None of the characters interested me at all. It's the same boring feminist literature that is so common. A struggling single mom becomes pregnant by a jerk who becomes an absentee dad until one day when he decides to grow up. Each and every character has some bad relationship which contributes to their need to pick up knitting for therapy. Boring.

I have to be fair and say that I returned the book. I can't say if the book gets better. I have heard there is some kind of tear jerker ending, but I wasn't willing to wade through the muck to get to it. The story has mediocre reviews, despite being on the NYT bestseller list. Even so, it has spawned at least two sequels: Knit Two and Knit the Season I am not opposed to reading these kinds of books, but for goodness sake they need to be a bit more interesting. Maybe like The Persian Pickle Club.

Book rating: I'd rather purl.

Knitting without tears

Elizabeth Zimmerman has written the ultimate knitter's companion. Originally published by Zimmerman in 1971, Knitting Without Tears continues to sell decades later. I had heard much about this book, but never read it. I am so glad I did.

It's true this book is for knitting geeks, but it is also for beginning knitters who are frustrated by traditional texts with step by step directions. Zimmerman presents a simple approach to knitting using percentages. She shows how to knit a sweater with as few seams as possible, some without seams. The book contains some basic sweater patterns that are timeless and easily made.

The charm of the book is Elizabeth Zimmerman's wit and humor. I honestly laughed out loud in some parts. For example, after cutting (yes, intentionally cutting) your sweater, she suggests lying down in a dark room to recover. Once I do this, I am sure I will have to do just that. She inspired me to let loose and experiment with knitting.

There is a new edition available now, but it has not been updated in any way. The book has a new cover but the interior is almost like a photocopy of the original. It would have been nice if the book had been updated with new pictures. The text, thankfully, the publishers left alone.

Book Rating: 5 stars, but for knitters

How to make books

How to Make Books by Esther K. Smith was not what I expected but I ended up liking it anyway. With a title like "How to make books" you would expect a manual consisting of basic how-to information with excellent photos and step by step instructions. After all, this book was published in 2007. Someone needs to do an update with basic how-to instructions like the A. W. Lewis book, an excellent reference but it only has line drawings.

Nope, this book is geared to the book arts where the book becomes the basis of the art. No inherent emphasis on basic technical skills, precision, accuracy, or required tools. There is a general overview of some of those things. Instead the author prefers to explore the artistic side of the craft by utilizing some basic book structures.

Even though I expected one thing and was temporarily disappointed, I ended up liking the author's artistic style. For someone like me, I tend to get hung up on the technical aspects of creating a book. This kind of book helped nudge me into a freer direction, almost giving me permission to just play with paper and book styles. The idea is still a challenge for me, but this book provided plenty of inspiration. (Some of the how-to illustrations still left me scratching my head and could have not been so artsy).

The book itself is an example of what it tries to depict. It has a unique design sense and composition. Should this be a required book on a book artist shelf? I don't know as that is a personal choice. I liked the book, but I probably won't buy it. It is possible to get this book through many public libraries, so that is where I will leave it.

Book rating: 3 stars.