Jan Messent's Have You Any Wool? by Jan Messent

Jan Messent's Have You Any Wool? by Jan Messent

This book is for those who have never knitted or crocheted before and for all those who enjoy creating with yarn. Using innovative and imaginative methods, Jan Messent encourages readers to work with small quantities of yarn to make decorative novelty pieces - including fun figures, cats, cacti, cottages, sheep, landscapes and much more. The beauty of the projects is that they can be made as simple or as complicated as you like and there are ample instructions on the various stitches, tools and techniques required throughout the book. Discover hundreds of witty and wonderful ways to use up oddments of yarn with this invaluable book. It is packed with truly amazing ideas and is indespensable for anyone wanting to extend the boundaries of their work.

Nov 08

Yarncrafts are enjoying a surge of popularity at the moment, so it is a good time to reissue this lovely old classic from 1988It has had several other reprints, and now it is once again back by popular demand. So just what is it that is so special about this book?

I guess it is quite an unusual approach to knitting and crochet, and this is all explained in the introduction. Rather than the usual format of stitch diagrams, lists of equipment you need to buy and staged diagrams of projects it takes a less structured approach. You could say in fact that it hits the ground running. It takes a look at fibers first, showing what you can do with them without even picking up a pair of needles. Although it does have a few diagrams on learning how to cast on and things like that it mentions experimentation and a freer approach to a normally format process. This sets the scene, and includes projects for a number of small figures and other "sale of work" items making this a very good book for children. It is a difficult book to describe, other than by saying that it looks at yarncrafts from a different angle. As mentioned in the introduction it is not specifically aimed at children although it contains many suitable projects but at anybody who prefers its approach. I particularly liked the figures that introduce each chapter and then appear as projects at the end! This one surely belongs on the keeper shelf of any yarncrafter.

* Myshelf.com *

March 09

First published just over twenty years earlier, [this book] is a celebration of whimsical, yarn-based fun. There are pieces for box coverings, to create small people and to form beautifully mounted pictures. Each time I dip into this book I find something new: teaching crochet by working into holes punched into card, drawing as an aid to seeing, combing experimental squares to produce a fabric. It does not provide any start-to-finish instructions for projects, it does not have step-by-step photographs of techniques (although the line drawings are pretty good) but it has endured for a generation. Unsurprisingly, there is a dated air to it – but have lichens, or sheep, changed much in two decades? It won't help clothe the family – but is that why knitters knit in the developed world in 2009? But it might contribute to a sense of self-expression and some yarn-based fun.

* SlipKnot *

Nov 08

In her new book, Jan Messent explores the creative use of yarn for those who have never knitted or crocheted before and for all those who enjoy creating with yarn. Using innovative and imaginative methods, Jan encourages us to work with small quantities of yarn to make decorative novelty pieces including fun figures, cats, cacti, cottages, sheep, landscapes and much more.

* Machine Knitting Monthly *

Jan Messent qualified as a teacher in the mid-50s and, after teaching Art, History and English, became deeply involved with embroidery as an art form. As a member of the Embroiderers’ Guild, she taught embroidery design to its members, wrote and illustrated design books, and lectured worldwide. Her last embroidery book was about the Bayeux Tapestry. She became interested in the experimental use of knitting and crochet and hoped, by her books on the subject, to open up new dimensions in the creative use of yarn. Now, having retired from lecturing, Jan writes historical fiction full-time, embroidering as a side-line, reading, painting, and listening to good music.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781844481828
ISBN 10	1844481824
Title	Jan Messent's Have You Any Wool?
Author	Jan Messent
Series	Search Press Classics
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Search Press Ltd
Year published	2008-10-01
Number of pages	128
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note	Unavailable