Mar 02 2007
Notes on a Compendium
Nancy Bush’s work has greatly inspired me over my (few) years as a knitter. I greatly admire her meticulous research and methods, as well as her modern adaptations of traditional patterns from Europe. I have collected all of her books, several of her magazine features, and some single patterns.
Folk Knitting in Estonia : A Garland of Symbolism, Tradition, and Technique
Folk Socks: The History & Techniques of Handknitted Footwear
Knitting on the Road
Knitting Vintage Socks: New Twists on Classic Patterns
I even had the great opportunity to interview Nancy for last year’s Socktoberfest - in two separate interviews, she shared some great information: about her methods, her knitting style, and about her future plans. In my second interview with her, conducted over the telephone, she told me one of her fondest sock knitting memories.
Nancy’s work inspires me because it is living history. It is part of a greater tradition of knitting, taking into account the cultural and societal motivations behind the craft, as well as sharing the stories of the various regions and communities.
I started an informal study last year of her patterns, represented in her multiple publications. The three pairs of socks I have made thus far are all patterns from her well-known Knitting Vintage Socks
I plan to knit selected and representative patterns, primarily socks (but it may include mittens, lace, and other accessories from her work as well) from her various books and patterns for my Nancy Bush Compendium project.
compendium: a concise but comprehensive summary of a larger work
I am not limiting myself with a deadline, but rather enjoying the body of her work, and learning more about the history behind each knit design.
With the Compedium Project in mind, I have several Nancy Bush patterns planned for Project Spectrum crafts, and for various other knitalongs in which I am participating. Remember the Green Socks Knitalong, that Maritza and I are co-hosting?
I started these socks in January, before Project Spectrum started, and after I finished up my last pair of socks, I returned to the pair that I already had on the needles. I find it is easy for me to cast on for something new, but very hard to return to an old lingering project. However, once I picked up the needles again, I was ready to go. This yarn, Tess Designer Yarns, is one of my all-time favorite sock yarns. This particular skein has some minor pooling issues – and usually pooling is a deal-breaker for me. However, I don’t seem to mind this light and dark green…
The pattern is Juta’s Stockings, from Folk Knitting in Estonia (which is now available via Amazon!). It is a simple arrowhead lace pattern on the cuff, and continues into the top of the foot. (Picture of socks here)
I have several other patterns planned in conjunction with Project Spectrum’s colors: I can take my pick for next month’s color triad, and the Schottische Kilt Hose, featured in Folk Socks will most likely be one of my summer projects for the red month (did you see Terhi’s finished kilt hose!?). I am hoping to take on “my dream socks” as a Socktoberfest 2007 project as well.
My photo gallery will have a sub-category for the Nancy Bush Compendium, and I am also maintaining a Flickr Photo Set for the project, for any of you that are interested in following along!
*Hope you all have a nice weekend! Kris and I are traveling to North Carolina this weekend to visit my sisters. I am looking forward to the trip (and to the car knitting!)
Just yesterday I returned to a pair of socks from Socks for the Traveling Knitter that I am making for my sister Moira. It is the Conwy sock in a colorway called Pinstripe (very Project Spectrum) from Lorna’s Laces. I am part way through the second sock. Her patterns are wonderful and I really like yours!
What a fun project – I look forward to seeing all your Nany Knits in the coming months. Now that socks have clicked for me maybe I’ll venture into her patterns.
Very Cool! I really do admire Nancy Bush and her designs. I have the Vintage Knitting book and have yet to make any socks! I look forward to see your progress
Enjoy the weekend trip!
I think the pooling on those socks is an added feature to the overall design.
I am looking forward to your Kilt Hose, those are awesome.
Oh, and have fun on your trip to see your sisters!
ok – how weird is that – we both do nancy bush “tribute” posts in one day!!!!!!
Having just knit a nancy bush sock…I have to tellyou I’m HOOKED!
Love the tess and it’s so subtle the pooling..I’d call it a feature!
have a terrific trip!
x/o
Knitting Vintage Socks is on my wishlist! Can’t wait to see your project progress.
As always, a pleasure to read your blog.
How very ambitious, I love the idea of the NBCP, a great idea. I love all of her sock designs but I like her shawls too. You are going to have a lot of fun, I look forward to following along!
I’m sure that you’ll learn many valuable knitting lessons and skills by following Nancy’s guidance. You can’t help but hope that a bit of the genius will rub off, right? I’m glad you went back to those green socks, I think they look wonderful. My Tess yarn pooled a bit but I think it added to the beauty of my sock, as it is with yours.
Have a great trip and enjoy your car knitting!
Pooling isn’t so bad when the colors are close, but the purple pooling in my Schaefer Elaine Indira Ghandi really drove me batty.
Have fun with the sisters!!
Wonderful socky goodness! Nancy Bush is definitely a smart cookie with the socks — I just wish they were photographed better in her books. (By the way, did you get a new lens for your camera, or did you take that top photo with the kit lens? You’ve got great depth of field.)
i’m also doing juta’s stocking, in cherry tree hill and i’m loving every moment-i’m on the foot of the second sock. the pattern reminds me of dublin bay socks….i love nancy bush – i have her four sock books too – this is my first from one of her books; i also did birch leaf socks from ‘a gathering of lace.’
Nancy’s designs are always so interesting and fun to do. What a great idea to do a compendium!
Thank you for the shout-out, Lolly! I really like your sock-in-progress, that green yarn is delicious. Have a nice trip!
They look great!
Lovely idea! I have started TWO different mittens from her Folk Knitting in Estonia, which I see at the top of your pile. Is that a gorgeous book or what?
I have had some trouble with her sock patterns, though. I think I knit too loosely … when I follow one of her sock patterns they usually end up too big and then I have to rip.
Is there a Nancy Bush Flickr group? Must look.
Nice green, love the color. Have a nice weeked in NC, hope you have good weather…ciao
love that green! Have fun with your compedium,,. she has so many beautiful designs, how will you choose?
I love how that sock looks. The color is beautiful, the pattern is perfect for the yarn, which is lovely…and did I mention that I just love the sock?
I went to Border’s looking for some of those books and they didn’t have them.
…so sad…
Hi Lolly! I am a new knitter, as I began in July, and I am pretty much self-taught.
Since I began, I have said that I have to wait a while to be “ready” to make socks, meaning I need to develop more experience. I figured it was like everything else in life, when I want to make them then that means that I am ready.
Well, I have finally turned the corner and feel the intimidation of making socks is not so great.
My question for you, perfect for your current post, is do you have a suggestion for a good “first sock” pattern? Also, a suggestion for a “first sock” yarn?
Thanks.
Jane in Maryland
Amazing how car trips are desirable rather than a chore when one can knit. My sister-in-law was complaining (rather rightfully so) about a hours-long delay at her dentist the other day, and i was actually jealous, thinking of how much knitting I could have done!
I just put an order in for the Vintage book because I had kept it out from the library for a month past its due date (after I had renewed it 3 times)… bad me. I don’t have the Estonia book but I remember she talked about it with Brenda Dayne on Cast-on and it seems super interesting.
Happy travelling! I am gonna send you an email about something I hope you will be interested in- just let me know if you are not and I won’t bother you.
I am also a collector of everything Nancy Bush. I am actually taking a class that is being given by her on Knitting Vintage Socks and I cant wait. Have a great trip and happy sock knitting!
I have Folk Socks, but I’ve never knit anything from it because the patterns look a little too complicated for me (she who can’t finish her pair of pomatomus socks).
I hope your trip is going well! We had a nasty little storm over here, but it’s since moved along.
Your socks are so lovely. I’ve been wanting badly to knit a pattern from Knitting Vintage Socks (which was a Christmas present) but haven’t yet decided which pattern to knit. Nancy Bush’s socks are so amazing!
love nancy bush socks too.
Oh my goodness! It was such a wonderful treat to have run into you today while out. If you only knew all the little “delays” in our day that lead us to that place at that moment. . . . . it’s amazing how these things seem to work out. DH, DS and I spent a good deal of time talking about that after we parted ways with you. It made the day trip that much more special to have been able to see you again and to meet Kris and the rest of your family.
I’ll be sure to let you know when we are going to be in the DC area (cherry blossoms and summer vacation). That way we can have some PLANNED time (and knitting time >wink
I know it’s not an official knitalong, but I would love to join you in your sock-knitting tribute to Nancy Bush! Probably half the socks I’ve knit (or more!) in the last year came out of “Knitting Vintage Socks,” my first NB knitting library addition. Since then I’ve aquired “Knitting on the Road” and “Folk Socks,” but have yet to do a pattern from either. I really just love her designs and find her patterns so easy to follow. I will definitely be adding photos to the Flickr pool!
Just bought Kittin gon The Road last week, I am giong to make the mismatch socks for my husbby but I am going to match them.
Car knitting- fun! Hope you had a good weekend!
Oh, I love that pattern (Juta’s Stockings). I have the book, but have only looked at it in passing. I bought it when I went to a Lace Knitting workshop with her last spring/summer. It was a great class and the LYS sponsoring her had all of her books out. Since I had most of them, but not the Folk Knitting, I bought it while I was there. I thought that I might like to have it, even if I wasn’t necessarily that interested in it right now, odd, huh?
This is very interesting to me – the whole idea of a compendium. I have notice that all of the socks I have knitted have been Nancy Bush Patterns, and as I start a new one I think, “you know I should really knit a sock designed by someone else”. Then I think – “well that’s stupid, you should knit the patterns that you want to knit” So I really love the idea of doing a knitting compendium. It’s a very cool idea. I own all three of her sock books and have knit from them all. Right now I have just started the Country Socks from Folk Socks. Oh, and I just realized, the project spectrum colors of blue and grey.
You probably already know this, but for several years Nancy has been the knitting contributor to a magazine called Piecework (a sister publication of Interweave Knits). She has lots of really cool patterns in the back issues of this magazine – including scarves, shawls, mittens, and of course, socks.
[...] are my seventh pair of socks for my long-term Nancy Bush Compendium Project (you can see all of the completed socks for this project in my Gallery), and the second pair from [...]