Monthly Archives: May 2010

Over the years I’ve bought far too many a few knitting and craft books as soon as they are published, because there has been much pre-order buzz or I’ve seen reviews on other blogs and the books look rather splendid. But while some of these books get used and abused, others just sit on the shelf looking pretty but not earning their keep.

So, I have a plan to start writing reviews of books that have been in print for a while. And, for my benefit as much as anyone, say whether they were a good purchase. I don’t know whether it will stop my impulsive book buying, but it might help anyone who takes a more considered approach to make up their mind.

To start with, I’ve chosen Knitting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush. I bought this back in November 2005, a couple of months after publication.

The sock patterns in the book are all adapted from Weldon’s Practical Needlework, a series of publications from the late 18th/early 19th centuries; probably the Simply Knitting of its day, though with less use of the words fun and funky. Nancy Bush starts with a brief history of the publication and the historical context of handknitting at this time.

Now for a brief digression. She writes that up until even the 1930s, knitting wasn’t considered appropriate on a Sunday in parts of England for religious reasons (the idea being that no work should be done on a Sunday at all). However, my grandma has told me of when she was a fairly newly-married woman (so around 1945/46) and living with her in-laws (my grandad’s family) and they still observed the “no work on Sundays” rule. But on one interminably long Sunday, my grandma dared to pick up her knitting. Her MIL mentioned that they didn’t do that sort of thing and she replied that it was a pity as it was a pair of socks for my grandad. A brief discussion followed between her MIL and an aunt and it was agreed that she could continue knitting the sock as it was for my grandad, after all.

Back to the book. I bought this at a time when I was still relatively new to sock knitting and, honestly, was getting a bit fed up of it. I started knitting socks at the time when self-patterning yarns were very much in vogue and for the first few pairs when I was finding my feet (ha ha ha), they were perfect. But I started craving more exciting socks and this book pretty much kept me interested in sock knitting.

So yes, the patterns all need pretty solid or semi-solid yarns. They are very textured, either with lace or other patterns. There are tiny wee baby socks and big manly socks. My favourites are probably the Child’s French Sock (top left, below), which I think are the only socks I’ve ever knitted from the exact yarn used in the book (Jaeger Matchmaker Merino 4ply in Strawberry).

Clockwise, from top left: Child’s French Sock, Heelless Sleep Socks,
Fancy Silk Sock for a Child of 5 or 6 years and Infant’s Silk Sock

I’ve knitted four pairs of socks from this book, which averages out at £2.50-ish per pattern, which is easily what I’d pay for an individual pattern, so I think its earned its keep. The historical information is fascinating, the patterns are beautiful and I’ve barely scratched the surface!