Full-color reproductions of original pattern swatches, sweaters, and accessories from the Bohus workshop in Sweden, along with the history of the women who designed them.

    Johnson takes a look at her lifelong obsession with “casting on” as she chronicles her journey from a crudely self-taught, left-handed beginner to one of the world’s most prolific knitters—not to mention premier knitting bloggers. From the virtues of learning how to knit the perfect sock, to the compulsive need to stash exquisite skeins of yarn in every crevice of one’s home, this is the perfect book for every knitter. Wendy also offers tips for avoiding errors, thoughts on knitting gifts for others, and more than twenty original patterns for knitters of every level of expertise: from the ridiculous and irreverent (a cell phone cozy) to the absolutely sublime (your very own luxurious Nordic style pullover).

    This book contains hundreds of ideas and instructions for using knitted appliques, borders, cords, embroidery, and enhancements such as fringes, tassels, pom-poms, and ties. Step-by-step instructions, line drawings, and charts present more than 350 patterns for all types of embellishments. A special section includes techniques on how to incorporate these patterns into projects. Photographs provide guidance and inspiration to novices and experts.

    . . Mary Thomas's Knitting Book. It's a veritable encyclopedia of knitting, clearly and definitively explaining and illustrating every method, operation and stitch, and a good number of the patterns you are ever likely to need or use. After an engaging history of the craft and its implements, Miss Thomas carefully lays the foundation of knitting in the opening chapters ― how to hold needles, wind yarn, gauge stitches, control tension, etc. ― and builds gradually upon it in the following sections. These explain in lucid progression every operation in common knitting, from basic knit stitch and purl, casting on and casting off, shaping by decreases and increases to turning, triangular shapes and mitres, and knitting on the diagonal or bias. For the reader who has mastered these fundamental procedures, Miss Thomas devotes the remainder of the book to fancy knitting stitches and techniques, including color knitting by stranding and weaving; pattern weaving; knitting woven, by frame with its complement of stitches (plain, raised, rib, etc.), looped, beaded, embroidered by chart, using cross stitch, honeycomb, etc.; and making patterns for garments and working out their details (armholes, belts, buttonholes, collars, hems, necklines, pockets et al). To put what the reader learns into practice, she offers instructions and patterns for making various Shetland shawls, gloves, and socks. More than 250 technique diagrams clearly illustrate every operation and pattern as to position of hands, yarn, and needle, so the knitter will have no trouble in following along. For all knitters, whether beginner or adept, a chapter of helpful knitting hints on blocking, picking up dropped stitches, lengthening, knitting up, mending, taking-back (correcting), etc. completes these invaluable and personalized lessons.Unabridged republication of original (1938) edition.

    Radford’s fascination with the creative potential of these raw materials is evident throughout One More Skein, where she melds the alternative approach to knitting and felting she introduced in AlterKnits and AlterKnits Felt with the magic she worked with a single skein of yarn in the bestselling One Skein. One More Skein features 30 diverse projects that can be completed with one or two average-sized skeins of yarn or multiple bits of leftover yarn. Projects include an earflap hat sized for the whole family; fingerless mitts; sweaters, britches, and capelets for baby; hemp jewelry embellished with jump ring “beads”; a felted, pleated sleeve to dress up a vase; and a multicolored blanket worked from assorted stash yarn. All of them are quick and relatively easy to make, without sacrificing beauty or ingenuity.

    We 'English' look at the Amish through rose-colored glasses. They seem so peaceful and content with a simple way of life. But we forget they are people like everyone else. Karen's series shows this through the hardships and heartbreaks they face and the faith they cling to or struggle with." Rita Gerlach, author of Surrender the Wind, Daughters of the Potomac Series "Author Karen Vogel has approached the often misunderstood beliefs or the Amish with tact and tenderness, and I highly recommend this heart-stirring story."Kathi Macias award-winning author of 35 novels, including Deliver Me From Evil and Unexpected Christmas Hero."Karen writes with heart-touching insight and her characters are gripping. Highly recommended."Jennifer Hudson Taylor, author of Highland Blessings & Highland Sanctuary"Two cultures knit together by one faith" Ginny and James Rowland have close-knit ties with many Amish families in the small-town of Smickburg, PA. But these ties are threatened to unravel... Ginny's photographer brother, Joseph, comes up from Pittsburgh to capture Amish farm scenes, but instead captures the heart of an Amish woman, Katie Byler. A shunned Amish man finds refuge in the Rowland's Baptist Church. The Bishop discovers his son is dating the Rowland's daughter.Will Granny Weaver's knitting circle, that Ginny and other Englishers attend, be able to bring harmony through their love and faith? Karen Anna Vogel is a trusted English friend to Amish families in Western PA and Western NY. These friends inspired her to write the Amish Knitting Circle series. She owns Thrifty Christian Shopper, an online Christian bookstore, and is a volunteer advocate for Compassion International.

    . . What is remarkable about this book is that a history of knitting can function so well as a survey of the changes in women's roles over time."--The New York Times Book ReviewAn historian and lifelong knitter, Anne Macdonald expertly guides readers on a revealing tour of the history of knitting in America. In No Idle Hands, Macdonald considers how the necessity--and the pleasure--of knitting has shaped women's lives.Here is the Colonial woman for whom idleness was a sin, and her Victorian counterpart, who enjoyed the pleasure of knitting while visiting with friends; the war wife eager to provide her man with warmth and comfort, and the modern woman busy creating fashionable handknits for herself and her family. Macdonald examines each phase of American history and gives us a clear and compelling look at life, then and now. And through it all, we see how knitting has played an important part in the way society has viewed women--and how women have viewed themselves.Assembled from articles in magazines, knitting brochures, newspaper clippings and other primary sources, and featuring reproductions of advertisements, illustrations, and photographs from each period, No Idle Hands capture the texture of women's domestic lives throughout history with great wit and insight."Colorful and revealing . . . vivid . . . This book will intrigue needlewomen and students of domestic history alike."--The Washington Post Book World

    Anarchists generally do not like to do what they are told."

    Among the more than 35 patterns provided here are a cozy neck wrap featuring a built-in iPod holder, a lacy drawstring hood, and a woven necklace sparkling with Swarovski crystals.

    Similar to prayer shawls, friendship shawls are handmade gifts of caring. They're perfect for special occasions or simply as friendship gifts. In addition, these shawls make wonderful gifts for individuals in nursing homes, hospitals, and shelters. Includes 10 shawls to knit.

    General instructions at the beginning of the book outline the basics of sock construction, including measuring feet and making calculations based on gauge.

    Titles in this growing series for middle school and high school students analyze novels and plays that are included in most schools' English Lit. curricula. Literature Made Easy books are more than plot summaries. They analyze characters, explain themes, and point out details that make each author's writing style unique. Each book also features "Mind Maps"--diagrams that summarize the work's most important details and serve as stimuli to help students focus their ideas for exams and term papers.

    All four books are included in this series, including:The Cain Conspiracy:Shot in the head and recovering from brain surgery, Delta Force soldier Thomas Nelson wakes up in a military hospital unable to remember who he is. Faced with going through recovery alone, with no family that he's aware of, he is recruited by a top secret government agency. Project Specter is tasked with eliminating targets they deem to be a threat to the United States. Their goal is to turn Nelson into a super assassin named Matthew Cain. Cain's first mission is supposed to be a piece of cake. Just take out an escaped fugitive in Honduras who's on the run for the rape and murder of a little girl in New York. There's only one problem...somebody beat him to it. Everything is not what it seems as Cain gets mixed up with an international arms dealer and an ex government agent who's gone rogue and supposed to be dead. The Cain Deception:In this follow-up to The Cain Conspiracy, Matthew Cain finds himself on the wrong side of a hit man. After he is sent on an assassination mission in Russia, The Specter Project learns of a man seeking revenge for Cain’s actions. After Cain hears of the man’s intentions, he sets out on a frenetic search to find the killer before he makes good on his plans to kill both Cain and his girlfriend. Along the way, Cain finds more questions than answers about the mysterious assassin, who seems to be a ghost. As Cain dives deeper into his quest, he starts to wonder about his role within the super secret agency and whether there are those above him who know more than what they appear.The Cain Directive:Cain, still reeling from the attack on his girlfriend, gets even more suspicious of Project Specter when they send him to Russia to find Dmitri Kurylenko, a man he has already secretly killed. After another attempt on his life, he soon learns of the agency's involvement in keeping his memory from him and sets to meet with a man who seems to know everything. Unfortunately for Cain, Specter showed up first and framed Cain for murder. Now, on the run, he must protect those close to him, while also trying to prove his innocence. In his quest to take down Project Specter, Cain turns to the only man he can trust for help, Eric Raines, a man Specter wants almost as badly as Cain, and a man as equally bent on taking down Specter as he is.The Cain Redemption:Cain finally relents to getting his head and seizures fixed, but his recovery time is cut short from eight weeks to one week when he learns his fellow agent, and friend, Eric Raines has gone missing. Will the rushed recovery period have dire consequences for the super assassin? Despite the concerns of those closest to him, Cain ignores the personal dangers to his health in his quest to find his friend and the last remaining remnants of the previous Specter regime, who are still on the run. His adventures take him to France, Germany, and back to Honduras, where it all started for him. Will his mission end where it all began?

    Especially in Winter. Especially at Christmas.Edith Atkinson lives hand to mouth on the streets of London with her friends James and his sister Donna Walsh, selling songs, flowers and Christmas wreaths.But survival is never guaranteed for street rats, even at Christmas. Relying on their wits, their meagre sales and the kindness of strangers, the trio manage to keep body and soul together until a terrible circumstance forces a harsh decision. Now Edie finds herself alone facing dangers that she never knew of when she had James to protect her.When desperation drives Edie to try to find James and Donna again, she is dealt a further terrible blow. Everyone Edie has ever loved is lost to her and she is truly alone. On Christmas day, Edie loses all hope and is propelled towards a dreadful fate.Will this be Edith’s last Christmas? And what of James and Donna? Are they lost to her forever, or will fate step in and reveal a miracle that Edie could never have imagined?This heart warming clean and sweet historical romance from Nell Harte brings you to the wintery London streets of the Victorian era. For fans of Dilly Court, Rosie Goodwin and Tania Crosse.

    And it’s all in one flirtatiously fresh package.Aimed at the knitter who is super-passionate about socks, The Joy of Sox delivers on its name. With their tantalizing cables, intricate lacework, and intriguing color work, the patterns represent the very best in sock design. There are revamped classics, bold new styles, and even a few themed socks—like the diamond lace thigh-highs and toeless pedicure socks. In addition to the results of our online knitting poll, you’ll also get fun stuff, including info from knitting personality Laurie Perry and phenoms Laura Bryant and Shannon Okey.