The Yarn Book, by Penny Walsh
Yarn is the basic unit of textile construction and every fabric, except felt is made with it. The properties of yarn — its ply, tensility, strength, weight, elasticity, and resistance to heat, water, shrinkage — are what give each yarn its unique characteristics. By manipulating these properties, an astonishing array of fabric types can be produced, creating any number of textures and appearances. By focusing on these varieties, Penny Walsh is able to closely examine the composition and construction of different yarns and explore their many uses.
Spin to Knit, by Shannon Okey
Do you want to knit with something other than commercial yarns? Dare to be different — become a full-fledged fiber fanatic with Spin to Knit, the essential guide for knitters wanting to learn to make their own yarn! Urban spinner Shannon Okey, author if KnitGrrl, teaches the basic tools you need to get started spinning. . .
Freeform: Serendipitous Design Techniques for Knitting & Crochet 2nd Edition - available now
Including tips on Finding the Right Yarns, Choosing Your Colours, Fabrication, Patterns and Hints for Successful Knitting & Crochet
Please note: If you already have the 1st edition of this book, the 2nd Edition includes the same text, however it is updated with a fresh design and beautiful new photographs.
Contemporary Tapestry by Harriet Tidball
Shaped Tapestry by Kathe Todd-Hooker
This book is filled with information about weaving tapestries "outside-the-box." By this we mean, non-rectangular tapestries. Such tapestries can be shaped and lie flat on the wall or they can be 3-dimensional. There are many ways to weave a non-rectangular tapestry: shaping the loom itself, using weave structures that cause the weaving to become shaped, and using scaffolds and other devices to hold areas of warp that are then manipulated into 3-dimensional shapes when the weaving is finished. Naturally, these types of processes require some special finishing techniques, and this book covers those as well. If you wan a truly creative approach to this centuries old medium, this is the book for you.
Line in Tapestry by Kathe Todd-Hooker
Tapestry Weaving by Kirsten Glasbrook
Even if the modernistic samples and bright, primary colors in this book are not your favorite decorating style, the clear how-to instructions give you confidence to interpret the techniques into your own preferred designs. Basic methods are demonstrated through large, color photographs. All the tapestries in this book were woven on simple, rectangular frames, and you can even adapt an old picture frame for this purpose, and use rug yarn for the weft. (A valuable hint to someone who wants to try the skill before investing a lot of money in a loom.) From a solitary heart to circles, simple landscapes then progress on to a labyrinth and incredibly detailed side-woven panels. This book is a wealth of knowledge on the subject of weaving.
MAKING FACES: Using Wet and Dry Felting Methods by Patricia Spark.
The felting needle is a great aid to the hand feltmaker. By combining this tool with traditional felting techniques, you can greatly increase the creative potential of this medium. The needle has small notches along its edges which push fiber along to intermix with the fiber lying below it. Thus, the fibers are tangled together creating felt, without the need for soap or water! With the needle you can be very precise, attaching small amounts of fiber just where you'dlike them to be. Three-dimensional shapes can easily be added to a surface, increasing the potential for sculptural form. The possibilities are endless.
WATERCOLOR FELT WORKBOOK: A Guide to Making Pictorial Felts . . . by Patricia Spark.
This workbook is intended to help you learn the technique developed by Pat Spark, called "Watercolor Felt". Ms. Spark calls her method by this name because she uses concepts from painting, and applies those concepts to feltmaking. The result is felts that are visually similar to watercolors, but which are totally made of dyed fiber.
ASHFORD BOOK OF CARDING: A Handspinners Guide to Fibre Preparation, by Jo Reeve
This is a practical and inspirational guide to carding fleece, slivers and exotic fibres. Written for the hand spinner and felter, and everyone who loves fibre.
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