
Beaded Wrist Warmers from Lithuania by Irena Felomena Juskiene is a great example of a book that has a very narrow topic but covers it in depth. The title tells you what you are going to get, and then it delivers.
The book begins, as books on folkloric crafts often do, with some backstory. The author discusses the origin and uses of wristwarmers, beaded and plain, in Lithuania and surrounding countries. Popularity for these items has come and gone over the years, and seemed to be making a comeback at the time the book was written (2008). This history section is interesting and well illustrated, with lots of photos of wrist warmers in use both in the past and currently.
Then there is a big pattern section. The knitting itself is pretty straightforward. Its the beading patterns that lend most of the differences between the different options. They range from very straightforward to pretty complex.






Then there is an appendix with photos of historical examples of wrist warmers from various collections.

All in all, if you have an interest in Lithuania, ethnic costumes, or just wrist warmers, I highly recommend this book. Whether you want it as a reference book or want to try your hand at making some plain or fancy wrist warmers, this is a good book to have.
Have you read any good craft books lately? Do tell!

Aha – when I saw the photo of the white-bloused arms wearing wrist warmers, the whole logic of this little accessory fell into place for me.
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Yup! Although they can be also worn just by themselves, kind of like fingerless gloves.
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To tag onto the comment from Laura – I think the wristwarmers would come in handy to keep your white sleeves clean – plus it added some pizazz and individuality when everyone had the same outfit – ha!
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Very true! It would be a great personalization for those costumes 🙂
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This looks neat! I love seeing the variety in little accessories like this.
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It really is interesting how different they can look with just a few changes 🙂
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Yes! And how different it is to pair the wrist warmers with different clothes, too. They go from being an accessory to the main defining piece of the ensemble.
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Very true!
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