Elizabeth Zimmermann

Well, most knitters have heard of Elizabeth Zimmerman–and if you haven’t, you should get to your local library as quickly as your feet can take you to check her out. She’s the original knitting maverick, and the embodiment of a Thinking Knitter. She was the first writer to really talk about knitting as important in and of itself, rather than just a means to a nice little sweater. She encouraged people to try new things, to experiment, and above all, not to allow themselves to be restricted by what was written in a pattern. Trying to knit a sweater in a yarn you love but your gauge is different than the pattern? Adapt! Want to add in cables to the basic shape? Go ahead! Have a crazy idea in your head? Give it a try and see what happens! Not only that, she encouraged Continental-style knitting, and knitting in the round whenever possible–both of which are my preferred methods. (Largely, no doubt, because of these two books.)