This Golden Fleece by Esther Rutter - Paperback Edition
About "This Golden Fleece"
“A history of Britain’s long love affair with wool through a year of knitting garments from around the British Isles, from a captivating new voice in British non-fiction.
Over the course of a year, Esther Rutter – who grew up on a sheep farm in Suffolk, and learned to spin, weave and knit as a child – travels the length of the British Isles, to tell the story of wool’s long history here and its influence on our landscape and culture.
From Shetland to the Channel Islands, she unearths fascinating histories of communities whose lives were shaped by wool, among them the mill workers of the Border counties, the stocking knitters of Wales, and the inhabitants of the fishing villages of Britain’s coast. She finds tradition and innovation intermingling in today’s knitwear industries and in the hands of the many amateur knitters she meets. And along the way, she explores wool’s rich culture by crafting culturally significant garments – among them 19th-century patterned gloves, Highland walking socks, a delicate hap and a heavyweight fisherman’s jumper – reminding us of the value of craft and our intimate relationship with wool.”
...and from the back flap...
“Inside a paper bag were four balls of wool – peaty black, charcoal, dove grey, white. Banded with paper round the middle, this was Shetland Heritage yarn from Jamieson & Smith. Printed on the band was a line of tiny symbols: a shepherd’s crook, a hand dipped in water, an iron crossed through, and – my favourite – three tiny Shetland sheep with horns and curling fleeces, staring down the crook. Three renegades from Britain’s north-east edge, their horns a proud trumpet and a warning. My fingers prickled with the urge to knit them up. What would I make from this hardy wool?”
Want to hear more from The Golden Fleece! Listen to this really great interview with author Esther Rutter and Louise Scollay of Woolwork (f.k.a. Knit British) on Episode 121
Printed in the UK. Paperback 342pp
I have been eagerly awaiting the release of this book since the Summer of 2017 when I was lucky enough to meet the author, Esther Rutter, on the island of Berneray in the Scottish Outer Hebrides. We were both there to visit with Meg of Birlinn Yarns.
