Customer Reviews

Handpaint Country: A Knitter's Journey

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Advertisement for this book began nearly two years ago. I don't know if this was meant to be a teaser or if the publisher simply had extensive delays in putting out the book. I won't say that the wait was worth it, since I'm too impatient by nature to claim that. However, if I had known what a fantastic book they were publishing, I think that at some point I would have become unnervingly desperate for my own copy. I suspect that Cheryl Potter was determined to surpass the classic Knitting Across America, and she has! The quality of this book is magnificent. It's an art book, the coffee-table book that belongs in every knitter's home. Large format, artfully decorated, with hundreds of pages that are simply covered in beautiful photos of natural landscapes, yarns upon yarns, colors upon colors, and the artist designers of the yarns. La Lana is here, and Rachel Brown and Mountain Colors, and many more. The patterns for the sweaters, all focused on handpainted yarns but easily adapted for other yarns if you are not fond of handpaints, are almost secondary to the beauty and quality of this book -- and yet these patterns are all exciting and lovely (most are even easy to make!). You'll find sweaters and vests, all inventive in how they use one or more handpainted yarns in order to display the variations of colors to best advantage. There are a few children's sweaters, but most are for women. Many are classic styles with an interesting twist, either with the use of yarn or in the styling of the sweater. A few are a bit weird, there to satisfy those of us who want something playful. We even get a knitted pair of slacks. I didn't count how many patterns there were, but I'd say close to thirty, in that range or possibly more. Additional sweaters are shown in photos, which you could easily copy without the directions. A good portion of the book is taken up with stories about the artists who created the yarns, all quite nicely written, which preface one or more patterns for their yarns. Photos large and small dot the pages, keying you in on all sorts of stunning and artful displays of sweaters and tapestries. Once through all these wonderful pages, you'll find at the back of the book is a thorough and well-illustrated section on creating your own handpainted yarns. I have never seen a finer book for knitters and cannot find words to praise the high quality of this product -- well worth the price and a total enjoyment to read. Absolute beginners may be uncomfortable with the complexity, but then again they can appreciate all the possibilities for knitting handpaints. Intermediate and advanced knitters will be delighted. Highly recommended as an addition to your knitting library. Sure to be one of those books that you look through over and over, just for the pleasure of it, even if you never get around to knitting the sweaters!

It's a gorgeous book, hands down. I put it right up there with Knitting Across America for sheer inspiration and beauty. The book is organized by geography, much like Knitting Across America, and Cheryl interviews dyers from every area. Mountain Colors, Valentina Devine, La Lana Wools, Fiesta Yarns, Koigu, Great Adirondack, and more. The only area that wasn't covered well is the West, which may mean that there are not a lot of hand dyers in business here.

Patterns follow each dyers review, and they are varied and beautiful. Top name designers such as Lily Chin, Sally Melville, Rick Mondragon, and Cheryl Oberle offer a wide range of garments and other items; sweaters, vests, afghans, shawls, hats, etc. Some are deceptively simple; Valentina Devine's Garter Blocks afghan is simplicity itself to make, but it's just beautful in the colors she chose.

Of course, the photography is incredible. Alexis Xenakis has outdone himself yet again. Yarns are photographed in natural light, often using the landscape as a backdrop.

The book is printed on high quality glossy paper, so the colors really shine. The body text is in a sans serif font, in a size that is quite comfortable to read. There is plenty of white space for your eye to rest after the excitement of texture and color.

I am very fussy about my knitting books. Many of them have the same basic sweater patterns over and over (look at the schematics) the change in "look" of a sweater comprising of variations in guage, yarn used, or a different pattern stitch. An experienced knitter can figure most of this out by his/herself. Therefore I look for something new - something different - in a book of knitting patterns. Otherwise I pass on the purchase.

This book has lovely, creative designs and they are readily adaptable to substitution yarns, as most of the yarns featured are MUEY EXPENSIVO! (I don't know about you but I consider spending 3 - 500 dollars on yarn for a sweater I may not finish a bit steep!) I still buy the handpaints, but where a solid is shown, i will substitute a more basic yarn.

In any case, the patterns are beautiful and inventive - showcasing Top designers best work. The yarns are drool material, and the photography is exceptional, displaying these incredible handyed yarns in all their sensual beauty! This book goes far beyond a "coffee table" book, although it has the same size AND you really want to pick it up and look through it whether you knit or not. You will want to photocopy the patterns before you make them.

I love this book.

This book is beautiful beyond belief. The photographs are beautiful and it's interesting to compare and contrast the different views of handpainting yarn and design sensibilities presented here. I also liked the insights provided into running small yarn companies coupled with the sense of craft in different parts of the US. The big pages can inspire dreams about knitting and the book is a great spur to the imagination.Some of the designs are not to my taste but there are many tastes presented here and I'm sure most readers would find plenty of things they like.
I would also recommend this book to people who handpaint their own yarn as I do - seeing the excellent photographs of many different styles of handpainted yarn was a real eye opener to me.
That said, I regret that it's hard to find out where to buy many of the yarns so tantalizingly presented here. I have been knitting for over thirty years and never follow a pattern exactly; I wouldn't recommend this book to neophytes.

If you loved "Knitting in America" and have been looking for something similar, this may be what you were looking for. There are projects to knit, but the book goes way beyond that. This is a book first to look at and then to read, full of the stories of people who dye, spin, design, create, and sell the materials spinner, weavers, and knitters use. Here are their reasons for creating "handpainted" yarns and their ways of using them. The photography is exceptional. The book itself is so beautifully designed and the layout so appealing that any booklover with even the smallest knowledge of knitting will want a copy for inspiration and simply to enjoy.

Though I am weaver, I find the ideas and the color-ways extraordinary ! The photos are eye candy for the soul ! The patterns in some cases are quite adaptable for the weaver to use as is, or act as an inspiration. I have contacted a few of the people/shops listed in the book.. and have found them to be wonderful ! Truly a "must have" item !

Sometimes I just want to pick up a knitting book just to drool over the designs, colors, textures rather than attempt something. The patterns appear rather well written and easy to follow-it's just that I am a basic, basic, basic knitter and have not reached this "Zen" level of knitting. This book TOTALLY inspired me to keep going. I WANT to be able to knit like this and use these yarns. I saw one review that said she couldn't find the yarn. Concidentally, the other day I was in AC Moore craft store and picked up a magazine titled Interweave Knits. Almost every one of the yarns were listed in this magazine! I will always reach for this book for inspiration.

As a handspinner, I'm always curious about what other spinners and dyers are doing. Handpaint Country was impossible to put down. The photos are beautiful and I was enchanted by the stories of the women who spin and dye in the book. Their yarns are gorgeous! i thought some of the projects in the book were a little odd, but other than that, it's a great book.

This is not a book of how to dye, paint or otherwise color fiber. It is a road trip throughout America to see the operations of fiber artists. The projects range from simple to complex, and showcase the artisinal yarns made by them. While some directions are given to color fiber, the concept is broader than that. It is the idea that just making beautiful yarn is more than plunging yarn into a bath; it is the idea that from fiber to finished yarn, it is about the process, or the journey. It was enjoyable to read, and I will be casting on a couple of the projects in the book. It is a treasure.

This book is a must have for every knitter or lover of knitted products. It has wonderful pictures, articles and patterns. I had resisted buying another book as my bookcases are loaaded but when I saw it, I knew that it needed to be part of my collection.
It would also be a wonderful coffee table book for others to roam throught instead of just putting it on a shelf for your own eyes alone. I have already lent it out to a friend to browse through and perhaps she will also love it enough to buy it.