Michael and I had to travel unexpectedly this last weekend, and I ended up having to take a lot of work with me, as I had several design calls and patterns to finish up.  This meant I ended up packing several parts of my library, for reference.  I’m not sure what took up more space; the yarn, or the books.

I thought I’d share some of the books I took with me.

Around the Corner Crochet Borders by Edie Eckman:

I love this book for the fun colors and variety of orders, and how each of them is shown going around a corner, so I can think about how I’d adapt things for curves.  I love this one for the inspiration.

Crochet Edgings and Trims, edited by Kate Haxell

Another great reference, this simmer volume I use to supplement the previous one.  Between the two of these they’ve got most of the more complicated trims represented.  I occasionally come across something new, but these two make for a solid edgings collection.

Power Cables, by Lily Chin

Again, great for inspiration, though I rarely use anything in it without modifying it myself, it gives me some good thoughts on how to use texture, if the stitch is a cable or not.

The Essential Guide to Color Knitting Techniques by Margaret Radcliffe

I love her use of color, and I love the variety of stitches featured in here, especially the slipped stitch section.  I love just paging through this book when I need to refresh my brain.

The Principles of Knitting, by June Hemmons Hiatt

Whenever I need a different perspective on how to explain something, I go here.  There is truly very few things missing from this book, and I love how it’s laid out.  It’s a tomb to carry (and there’s a kindle version, but I find that I like the paper).  If you don’t own this book and you love learning the why things work, you should get it.

What do you have in your library and love to refer to?  It doesn’t have to be knitting or crochet related!