Customer Reviews

Everyday Knitting: Treasures from a Ragpile

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I believe that Annemor Sunbo has become a cult figure because her work is so difficult to categorize. This book combines her sensibilities as fine artist, craftsperson, entrepeneur, social historian, and anthropologist.

"All over the world where people have time to knit, literally tons of wool garments have been produced by hand, by home knitting machines, and industry....what happens to all this wool fiber? In Scandinavian countries, frugality dictates that it be recycled. The author...was the operator of the last wool garment recycling center, a shoddy factory. Suffice it to say that when a knitter gets 16 tons of discarded wool garments that have accumulated since the turn of the last century, she sees the heap of history therein. So she has sorted out examples that she uses to illustrate `everyday knitting'.... When she embellishes the illustrations with archeology and printed commercial patterns, things get very interesting...."

Trade paperback with about 200 illustrations in black and white and color: photos, commercial art, paintings, drawings, and pattern diagrams.

A 6 page bibliography.

In a brave step the author, a weaver, buys a (Norweigen) shoddy mill to learn more about operating mills. At the bottom of an old pile she recognizes in the layer of rags dating from the period between the world wars a history of everyday knitting. She sorts her rags yeilding trends and patterns, researches sweater styles in Sweden and knitting history.

I looked for this book after purchasing and reading Selbuvotter: Biography of a knitting Tradition. This book and author were referenced several times throughout and very highly recommended. I am not disappointed!! There are so many pictures and explanations of sweaters, mittens, socks, even underwear! Photographs, paintings, historical findings related to the area or style... what a gem. I am so pleased and I wish it were still readily available.