*

You know how sometimes books find you exactly when they’re supposed to find you? The Curse of The Boyfriend Sweater: Essays on Crafting by Alanna Okun is one of those books for me. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I stumbled on this book while trawling my favorite used bookstore months ago and recently picked it up while recovering from surgery. Memoir in essays is one of my favorite genres, and I have a long history with crafting myself. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Okun and I are close in age, and so much of her life experience resonated with me, whether she was writing about friendship, complicated sibling relationships, anxiety, trichotillomania (I have dermatillomania), grief, or the art of making something. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ CW: cancer, loss of a loved one, trichotillomania ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ID1: A hardcover copy of The Curse of the Boyfriend Sweater lays on top of a partially unraveled scarf, next to ball of yarn, knitting needles, and an embroidery hoop. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ID2: A close up view of the cover of The Curse of the Boyfriend Sweater. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ID3: The Curse of the Boyfriend Sweater on top of the knit hat reading this book inspired me to make! via Instagram https://instagr.am/p/CcSwUG8rnJZ/