Reading and

My copy of the Sept/Oct Piecework arrived in the mail the other day. As always, I enjoyed it, but rather wished wished there were more of it.



The theme of Needlework in Literature is a fun one, and a glove pattern inspired by Dancing at Lughnasa is especially nice.

I was rather sorry that the article about Rose Wilder Lane didn't give a nod to Mary Schiffmann, who was the one that actually actually figured out from historical samples the directions for knitted lace used by Lane in The Story of American Needlework . At least, this is the case according to The Lacy Knitting of Mary Schiffmann, also an Interweave Publication. However, the lace edging in the magazine is not included in that book, and is a nice addition, especially as it uses a slightly unusual technique.

There are, appropriately, three little bookmarks included among the projects: crochet, embroidered and knit. I've often been pleased by the look of knit bookmarks (and they seem like a wonderful project for trying out new stitches, which is very appealing to me). But, alas, they don't seem all that functional. Too thick to slip smoothly between the pages (though I haven't tried one in lace weight), and too floppy for my taste. But then, I'm always loosing bookmarks anyway, and end up resorting to odd scraps of paper, or (on my own books only, I swear) the deadly sin of dog earring the pages.