recent book reviews
I am still catching up on book reviews! Today I’ll share two craft books that I recently wrote a few words about, Crafting a Patterned Home by Kristen Nicholas and Crochet Kaleidoscope: Shifting Shapes and Shades Across 100 Motifs by Sandra Eng. You can read these reviews in the virtual pages of the Spring + Summer 2018 issue of Knitty. Where? After clicking “in this issue”, choose Features and then Cool Stuff (and scroll)! For your convenience, I’ve included the reviews below.
Crafting a Patterned Home
I urge you to purchase your copy of this title directly from Kristen! Here’s some details about how & why.
Pattern is everywhere. No matter where you are on the pattern-mixing comfort scale, you can learn from Kristen Nicholas’ newest book, Crafting a Patterned Home. Perhaps best known for her colorful knitting and stitching, Kristin Nicholas is a multi-talented artist and experienced author. In this title, she invites you into her home to see how you can craft projects that will brighten your abode.
Crafting a Patterned Home begins with an introduction to pattern. In this section you learn how different motifs, repeats, and scales can create various visual effects. There are also tips and tricks for how to begin to create your own patterns.
Next, we enjoy a tour of Nicholas’ home (a working farmhouse for Leyden Glen Farm), inside and out, and selected creative projects that you can do. You’ll discover the inspiration behind each project and why particular techniques are applied in certain situations. Even if you aren’t familiar with a technique you are guided every step of the way. Each project includes the pattern style, the repeat format, the featured crafting technique (painting, print making, knitting, crochet, and embroidery are all represented), a list of tools, a list of tools and supplies, and a detailed tutorial.
Nicholas invites you to add pattern to your home and understands that it may be overwhelming. Her expert guidance will help you begin to create a look that is cohesive and colorful, not garish. The beautiful photographs by Nikki Snyder add to the inspiration in this book. And the adorable kittens and farm cats help to remind me this beautiful home is one that’s lived in and not just pretty inspiration.
Crochet Kaleidoscope: Shifting Shapes and Shades Across 100 Motifs
by Sandra Eng
Color and crochet motifs go together like peanut butter and jelly. However, it’s often challenging to visualize how different color combinations can transform a motif.
In Crochet Kaleidoscope, Eng provides clear photos of 100 motifs and explores how they look with different choices. After learning basic color theory, you can find answers to common questions from “how many colors are too many?” to “does order matter?”
Included are several home decor and accessory projects to help you begin your color journey. All motifs include both written instructions and stitch diagrams.
Disclaimer
I received an eARCs of the above titles from NetGalley in exchange for reviews. The FTC wants you to know.