Page 11 - Lindsey Philpott "The Ultimate Book of Decorative Knots"

getting started 5

credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty

A picture frame by Charlie Bell, Westminster,
California.

Decorative knotting is my unbridled passion – I
cannot get enough of it! Along the way, I learned
several techniques when I had no idea what this
passion might involve. I have found new and
exciting tools to use. I have come across cords and
twines in the most unusual places, and a visit to a
museum usually involves me traipsing off to look at
some example of knotting that I might find, whether
it is made of stone, brass, iron, silk, leather, ribbon,
cotton, or just plain manila or hemp rope. When I
visit a town that is new to me, I try to find the place
that has cords or twine, perhaps a grocery store,
a hardware store, or a craft store. I also look for
the museums in town and the ideas they may hold,
whether it is an agricultural museum, a car museum, Keira Knightley at the Golden Globe awards in
a textile museum or a natural history museum. 2006, sporting a handsome four-leaf clover knot
on a dress by Valentino.
Finding that there may be someone in town who
shares this passion is a heaven-sent opportunity for
me to learn and absorb more of the lore that draws I now own more than 1,600 books, magazines,
me into its web (pun intended!). Last, and by no pamphlets, serials, journal articles, and other pieces
means least, whenever I find a book about knotting of written material about knotting. It really is my
or a related subject I try to add it to my ever-growing favourite subject. It is my sincere wish that you will
collection (one of my latest acquisitions is a book find the same joy as you browse this book or delve
about goat roping – don’t even ask). I estimate that into its detail.