Synopses & Reviews
A Glorious Heritage from Warm Socks to High ArtWars and warm socks! Perils and purls! High treason and high art! Here is the history of knitting in America in all its many-stranded, multicolored glory.Knitter and scholar Susan M. Strawn unravels knitting history from pilgrims to pioneers, immigrants to native people, through war and peace. With more than 300 color and black-and-white images of knitters and knitwear, this is a story packed with much ado about knitting Also included are 20 historical knitting patterns—a Jamestown-era cap, Victorian silk gloves and miser’s purse, a Civil War soldier’s stockings, Zoar mittens, Red Cross socks and wristlets, and more vintage lace, shawl, scarf, and sweater patterns you can recreate today. “This meticulously researched look at knitting in America, from Colonial times to the present, earns an honored place on the bookshelf next to
A History of Hand Knitting and
No Idle Hands. Thing is, it’s so visually interesting, you’re going to want to leave it out on the coffee table instead. The illustrations tell the story as vividly as the text. . . . It’s a must-have for fiber historians.”
—Yarn Market News “Susan has placed the history of knitting within the context of American history, so we can clearly see how knitting is intertwined with such subjects as geography, migration, politics, economics, female emancipation, and evolving social mores. She has traced how a melting pot of knitting traditions found their way into American culture via vast waves of immigration, expanded opportunity for travel, and technology.”—Melanie Falick, author of Knitting in America
Synopsis
“Susan has placed the history of knitting within the context of American history, so we can clearly see how knitting is intertwined with such subjects as geography, migration, politics, economics, female emancipation, and evolving social mores. She has traced how a melting pot of knitting traditions found their way into American culture via vast waves of immigration, expanded opportunity for travel, and technology.” —Melanie Falick This is the history that Knitting America celebrates. Beautifully illustrated with vintage pattern booklets, posters, postcards, black-and-white historical photographs, and contemporary color photographs of knitted pieces in private collections and in museums, this book is an exquisite view of America through the handiwork of its knitters.
Synopsis
Through war and peace, bad times and good, Americans have knit and purled as though it were an inalienable right alongside life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Here now is the history of knitting in America, from pilgrims to pioneers, slaves to First Ladies, the Amish and Shakers to the Native Americans. Here as well you will find the rise and fall of mohair, the ongoing passion for ethnic knitting, the never-ending quest for warm socks, and the brave new world of art knitting. Knitter and scholar Susan M. Strawn unravels knitting history with more than 300 rare color and black-and-white images of knitters and knitwear from collections around the country. Also included are 20 historical knitting patterns—a Jamestown-era cap, Victorian silk gloves and miser’s purse, a Civil War soldier’s stockings, Zoar mittens, Red Cross socks and wristlets, and more vintage lace, shawl, scarf, and sweater patterns you can recreate today. Contributors include Linda Ligon, Deborah Robson, Katharine Cobey, Karen Searle, Karin Timour, Sumi Wu, Kathryn Alexander, Amy Clarke Moore, Lindsay Obermeyer, Paula Becker, and more.
Synopsis
Beautifully illustrated with vintage pattern booklets, posters, postcards, black-and-white historical photographs, and contemporary color photographs of knitted pieces in private collections and in museums, this book is an exquisite view of America thro
About the Author
Knitter, writer, and illustrator Susan Strawn has a Ph.D. in Textiles and Clothing from Iowa State University. A regular contributor to Piecework, Interweave Knits, Spin-Off, and other textile magazines and journals, she presented a paper entitled "Back to the Knitting Needle: Manufacturers, retailers, and the image of handknitting in America, 1935-1955" to the Costume Society of America. Strawn teaches textile-related classes at Dominican University in River Forest, Illinois, and researches hand-produced traditional textiles. She lives in Oak Park, IL, a suburb of Chicago.Knitter, writer, and illustrator Susan Strawn has a Ph.D. in Textiles and Clothing from Iowa State University. A regular contributor to Piecework, Interweave Knits, Spin-Off, and other textile magazines and journals, she presented a paper entitled \u201cBack to the Knitting Needle: Manufacturers, retailers, and the image of handknitting in America, 1935-1955\u201d to the Costume Society of America. Strawn teaches textile-related classes at Dominican University in River Forest, Illinois, and researches hand-produced traditional textiles. She lives in Oak Park, IL, a suburb of Chicago.