Book Review: Unraveling

I have seen a lot of knitters this year reading Unraveling by Peggy Orenstein, and I finally got my hands on a copy and read it recently.

It’s a great book for knitters, crafters of all sorts, women, people with parents and kids and folks trying to make sense of the world we’re living in now.

The subtitle is “What I Learned About Life While Shearing Sheep, Dyeing Wool, and Making the World’s Ugliest Sweater,” though if the picture of the sweater on the back of the book is any indication it’s probably definitely not the ugliest sweater (it is a pretty small picture, though).

Orenstein decided during the pandemic that she wanted the sheep to sweater experience, so she found someone to teach her to shear sheep, learned to spin, did numerous dyeing experiments, got help to design a sweater using her DIY yarn and ultimate knit that sweater.

There’s a lot here about the value of making things, whether that thing is yarn or a sweater or a relationship with a family member. When writing about dyeing yarn with an indigo vat (something I’ve wanted to do but am a little afraid to try in my backyard), she talks about the pride of making things without worrying too much about the result.

“I will miss the lightness of a beginner, the freedom from expectation, my sense that any result is ‘good,’: she writes. “‘These are mine,’ I say, smiling to myself, and I know that is all that matters.”

The knitting part is actually a pretty small part of the story. It’s also about the history of craft, where colors come from, fast fashion, climate change, aging and more. I want to recommend it to knitters in particular but I really want to recommend it to everyone, because I think there are insights here that most people will find interesting (not to mention some funny bits, and some sad bits, and there’s a sweater at the end, which is kind of like a happy ending).

If you read it I’d love to hear what you think!

About the book: 224 pages, hardcover, published January 2023 by Harper Collins. Suggested retail $27.99.

Get the book here: Unraveling

Next Pattern:

Why should the fireplace get all the fun? Instead of knitting stockings this year, why not whip up a pair of Christmas themed socks? These Christmas sock knitting patterns are lots of fun to make and you can wear them to holiday gatherings for years to come.

For our friends in the southern part of the world, there are the Christmas in July socks from the Kiwi Lodge – Kylie (Ravelry link). These shorty socks are covered in Christmas trees and have bright pink heels and toes for a tropical feel. There’s also an option to make a longer sock if you celebrate somewhere it’s colder.

Twin Stitches Designs (Ravelry) has a fun pattern with mix and match colorwork motifs you can use to build your own cozy Christmas socks. From the sample socks I see Christmas puddings, trucks hauling trees, Santa belts, ornaments and a couple of different borders. There may be more patterns included but the listing doesn’t say. Make a pair that matches or use different motifs on each foot for extra holiday cheer.

If you want to stick to Christmas puddings on your holiday socks, check out this cute pattern from Stone Knits. These lovely socks feature a band of puddings around the leg and a bit of holly by the toes.

These vintage holiday light socks from Grey Owl Knits by Sarah are classic looking and lots of fun at the same time. I love this color combination but of course you can make your lights and stripes whatever colors you like or have on hand. They’re worked using stranded knitting.

And if you’d like even more of a mix of patterns for your socks, try Barbara Ceglédi’s Christmas Chaos socks, a free pattern on Ravelry. The pattern includes 25 little motifs you can choose from, ranging from snowflakes and Christmas trees to elf hats, reindeer and hearts.

Next Pattern:

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