Book Review: When Grandma Isn't Crocheting, She's Hunting Big Game

Wednesday, December 12, 2012 12-12-12: Nothing like this is going to come along anytime soon! Any of you who have followed my blog for some time know how hard I work at rambling on about how crochet is so intertwined with my life. Sadly, I must report that during our visit to the KrisKindl Market in Chicago, I was unable to make any connection, unless you count the lacy wood-carved ornaments I saw among millions of others. That's okay; it was nevertheless a wonderful way to stroll, get in the Christmas spirit with my honey and to get rosy cheeks in the crisp air!

Is that guy eyeing my purse, or have I lived in Chicago too long?

We bought authentic German Stollen and warm sugar coated pecans and cashews.

The millions of ornaments were handmade, beautiful and it was an overwhelming array!

You know if you read my blog that I am a bit quirky, so I'm delighted to review a quirky little book for you, When Grandma Isn't Crocheting, She's Hunting Big Game by my writing colleague, Kathryn Vercillo.

Only 44 pages, it is a quick but very rewarding read. Kathryn has found a unique niche to write about and she has a knack of bringing out the best in everyone especially when it comes to crochet. In these stories she honors elderly women who crochet and covers the stories of nine centenarians who still have something interesting to share. From there she goes on to cover thirty-three women in total and her chapter titles tell it best: Award Winners and Honorees, Givers, Adventurers and the Love Story which includes a husband and wife team of crocheters. No, there are no crochet patterns in this book, but the heartwarming stories of these wonderful elderly women who all made the news in 2011 shows us that our beloved crochet knows no boundaries of age. It has a way of staying with us as an important fixture in our lives until the very end! Available at Createspace.com/3739455 the book is moderately priced at $5.99.

Comments

Kathryn Vercillo said…

Aw, thanks so much for your kind words and for sharing this book!!

December 13, 2012 at 4:46 PM

Craft vs. Fine Art: How is Crochet Blurring the Lines

I was awakening to the world of crochet in 1972,a time of immense artistic expression through fiber arts; and crochet was not the “ugly stepchild” at the time. In fact, Ferne Cone Gellar who I admire as a successful fiber artist said in “Knitting: The Stepchild of the Fiber Arts?” ( Fibercraft Newsletter 1978), “Has knitting been slighted among the areas of the fiber arts? The very word ‘knitting’ evokes images of the little old lady in tennis shoes. Over the years, I’ve learned to ignore all those jokes.” Cone Gellar went on to publish Crazy Crocheting in 1981 and encouraged her readers to create more than bedspreads, providing ideas such as “things to play with or to display on a shelf or hang on a wall.” A photo of single crochet from bread wrappers served as inspiration. In 1972 in her book, Creating Art from Fibers & Fabrics , Dona Meilach wrote: “Why are fibers and fabrics becoming increasingly appealing to artists? Most artists ag...

Wartime Crochet With Attitude, Part I

Wednesday, October 30, 2013 Karen Ballard and I have a mutual love of free form crochet. We met for the first time in a class taught by Prudence Mapstone of Australia at the Chain Link Crochet Conference 2011. I admire Karen's vast knowledge of needle work history and am grateful for her willingness to share with us as my guest blogger this week. Karen wearing a World War II-era knitting hat with stubby needles on top Karen's Heritage Heart, with flowers symbolic of her heritage, is currently on tour with Prudence Mapstone's traveling "Hearts & Flowers Exhibition" in Australia and New Zealand World War 1 Attitudes About Crochet by Karen Ballard In 2008, I coined that term, "Workbasket Campaigns" to describe the organized efforts during World War I (WWI) and World War II (WWII) coordinated through the American Red Cross {ARC} and the Navy League to create needle crafted items. These items were mostly knitted but also sewn, qu...

Crochet and Society: How Crochet has Contributed

Wednesday, September 4, 2013 Because I am passionate about crochet and because it plays such an important role in my life. I am constantly “thinking crochet.” I want to bring awareness about crochet to everyone in the world. They don’t necessarily need to achieve the level of passion that I have for the craft, but my dream is that our society in general would come to recognize crochet as a valuable art and craft. I also want to see the entire genre of crochet planted firmly on a continuum with all the other needle arts as a valuable pastime and art, and for the day to come when society stops confusing it with knitting! I have often joked that I am “covering my world in crochet” and that’s because I think crochet can beautify nature as well as contribute to many aspects of my community. I have been covering rocks for years and I turn them into sculptures or decorative o bjects. Claire Zeisler: Fragments & Dashes , Threads magazine, Oct/Nov 1985 My fi...

Crochet Queen: Royal Ramblings

Search This Blog