Book Review: Follow the Flock

Humans and animals have grown up together and influenced each other in ways obvious and less so. Sally Coulthard explores the connections between sheep and people throughout history in her book Follow the Flock: How Sheep Shaped Civilization.

The book is a collection of stories about how sheep and humans have helped each other, including theories about how and when sheep were originally domesticated, the importance of felted wool for many nomadic people, the rise of the woolen industry in Britain, the origin of iconic sweaters, how sheep helped protect people from anthrax and more.

Maybe it doesn’t sound super interesting, but it actually is a fun read that will make you appreciate our animal friends even more. As if sheep weren’t already great enough for giving us fleece and meat!

It’s an entertaining and enlightening read that knitters and natural history lovers are sure to enjoy.

About the book: 320 pages, hardcover, published 2021 by Pegasus Books. Suggested retail price $27.95

Next Pattern:

The other day I saw a post from Pinterest about trends for summer and it said one of them was “cultivating whimsy.”

Well, I don’t know where Pinterest has been all this time, but we’ve been cultivating whimsy here at Craft Gossip for a long time. I love sharing projects that are a little different, things that make you smile when you see them, and will make you smile when you knit them and wear them or use them.

Such it is with the Tutti Frutti tee knitting pattern from Bea Creative Knits.

This cute little baby tee is worked top down in the round with contiguous shoulder construction to shape the sleeve caps. There are short rows for the neckline and folded hems with picot edging at the hemline, neckline and edges of the sleeves.

All of this would be great on its own, but then there’s the addition of a super cute fruit icon, which is added with duplicate stitch. There are a lot of options, including strawberry, banana, orange, cherries, watermelon, lemon, blueberries, kiwi, peach, dragon fruit, apple and pear, so it’s likely you can add on your favorite fruit.

It is offered in eight sizes, to fit a bust measurement ranging from 28-30 inches (71-76 cm) to 56-58 inches (142-147 cm). The design is meant to be worn with around 6.3 inches/16 cm of negative ease, but you can choose the fit you prefer. There’s also optional bust and waist shaping included in the pattern if you want to make it even curvier.

This is considered an advanced beginner or intermediate project because of all the skills involved, but it’s sure to be a lot of fun even if some of these techniques are new to you.

Grab a copy of the pattern for yourself form Bea Creative Knits on Etsy.

[Photo: Bea Creative Knits]

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