what we can do today

knitting for charity - if you're interested, click the links below to find ways you can start knitting for the public good

Knitting 4 Charity
Wool Works
Knitting For A Better World

what we did yesterday

looking back at some of the reason's people used to knit...Why We Knit is an intersting take on why we used to knit "During the Civil War needles were picked up to heed the call of soldiers requesting socks. Later, the armies of World War II requested mass amounts of knitted mittens and cap-mufflers to be sent to them from overseas. In the sixties knitted wear was a leading fashion trend (202). And after a large decline in the eighties, knitting slowly popularized and has now, in the new century, become all the rage."

knit events in new york

these all take place at New York's Museum of Art & Design
40 west 53rd street

Air is fulid
4/19: 6:00 - 7:30 pm
Janet Echelman, exhibiting artist at radical lace & subversive knitting, will discuss her transformation from a painter to a sculptor who makes the choreography of wind visible to the human eye, in works such as 'she changes', a 500-foot diameter, 150-foot tall knotted lace sculpture in Portugal. she'll show her newest works, including a 400-foot-long shadow drawing commission in Florida, and her winning design for the Hoboken 9-11 Memorial competition, a new free-standing island in the Hudson River. reception following.

Knit Night
5/17: 6:00 - 10:00 pm
In an event of knitting and crocheting projects for all levels of skill, the activities will include the Unraveling Gathering (old sweaters become new yarn), a Knitting Circle and personal projects. During the event, the museum will also be an official site for speed trials for The World's Fastest Knitter, and international competition sponsored by the Craft Yarn Council of America.

Performance by KNITTING NATION, Phase 4: "Pride"
6/16: 12:00 - 5:00 pm
KNITTING NATION, exhibition artist Liz Collins' ongoing and collaborative performance and site-specific installation, consisting of an army of uniformed machine knitters, stitchers, and manually operated knitting machines, will set up at MAD for an afternoon during which they will create a giant banner. KNITTING NATION explores aspects of textile and apparel manufacturing, laying bare the process of making knitted fabric and offering commentary on how humans interact with machines, global trade, fashion, and iconography. this phase of the project will examine the rainbow flag as a symbol of gay pride.

staying cool & keeping warm

these are rad: skull & cross-bone wrist warmers. i joined a knitting group ('snb-nyc', found via the link in my posting 'stitch-n-bitchers unite') & have been getting emails from the group - it's great fun. anyway, this just came through this morning from a member - she's donating all of the proceeds from the sale of this pattern to KittyKind

lego knits

someone created a knitting machine out of LEGOs...wow. they must have a lot of time on their hands. the video's pretty boring, but i suspect the contraption was pretty fun to make.

the knitting revolution

the knitting revolution, by sue green, suggests that the resurgence of crafts is a direct result of the fast-paced techno-culture we live in, which makes sense to me. in a world where we are further and further removed from other people because technology can automate a lot of what people previously had to do, plus the fact that there's no need (or time) to hand-make anything anymore it makes sense that a craft-revolution would bubble up in response.

i've posted excerpts from sue's article below - of course, if you'd like to read the article in it's entirety click here.
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Says leading trend forecaster Faith Popcorn: ‘Smooth, shiny and uniform is now equated with crude and cheap, especially when compared with the individuality of hand crafted products.

'We are hungry for things that have touched human hands...any craft as applicable and pragmatic as knitting has a great future.'

Knitting's popularity has been growing for several years-a response to the pace of life and mass market consumerism. But with September 11 came not only reduced demand for air travel, but more time and enthusiasm for home-based activities. It heralded a renewed concern for home and family, translating into greater interest in crafts and unlocking creativity.

With a 400 per cent increase in the number of American knitters aged under 35 between 1998 and 2000, knitting groups with names like Yarn Divas and Stitchin’ Bitches are springing up on US university campuses. The popularity of handknitting has been boosted by celebrities who knit and extol the joys. Madonna and Julia Rogers are doing it, Harry Potter is wearing it and exponents range from former US secretary of state Madeleine Albright to model Kate Moss and singer Eartha Kitt. Actor knitters include Sandra Bullock, Cameron Diaz, Hilary Swank, Brooke Shields, Daryl Hannah, Goldie Hawn, Uma Thurman and Mary-Louise Parker (now knitting hats for boyfriend Billy Crudup). Even ‘our’ Russell Crowe has been pictured with needles and yarn.

stitch-n-bitchers unite

interested in starting or joining a subversive knitting group in your area - or going on holiday and want to stitch-n-bitch while your there? click the link below to find a stitch-n-bitch group by country, or city (us only) name.

http://www.stitchnbitch.org/snb_groups.htm

the Point has a group that meets every Tuesday night from 7-9pm. Currently we are meeting at The Point in the West Village: 37a Bedford Street Between Carmine and Downing. All are welcome!

peace out

i mean...um...peace knits!

craftivism

speaking of subversive knitting...i found craftivism, a site self-described as being "based on the idea that activism + craft = craftivism. That each time you participate in crafting you are making a difference, whether it's fighting against useless materialism or making items for charity or something betwixt and between. It's about the not-so-radical notion that activists can be crafters, and crafters can be activists."

craftivisim running an 'artist / crafter documentary project' & i'm interested in seeing the results. i've been thinking of starting a similar project because it's interesting that crafting is finding it's way back into popular culture. it used to be that people knit because they had to. now they knit because they want to, and also in some cases because they have something to say. crafting's a serious time investment - and these days time is hard to come by.

radical lace & subversive knitting

if you're interested in seeing what kind of work this exhibit featured, but were (like me) unable to attend, here's an hyperlinked list of the participating artists. it's interesting to see their work, and also how (or if) they present their work online.

Participating Artists

Bennett Battaile - Portland, Oregon
Dror Benshetrit - New York, New York
Hildur Bjarnadóttir - Reykjavik, Iceland
Dave Cole - Providence, Rhode Island
Liz Collins - Providence, Rhode Island
Annet Couwenberg - Baltimore, Maryland
Françoise Dupré - London, United Kingdom
Janet Echelman - Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
Carson Fox - Trenton, New Jersey
Katja Gruijters - Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Sabrina Gschwandtner - New York City, New York
Elana Herzog - Brooklyn, New York
Hilal Sami Hilal - São Paulo, Brazil
Yoshiki Hishinuma - Tokyo, Japan
Sheila Klein - Bow, Washington
Cal Lane - Putnam Valley, New York
Ruth Marshall - Bronx, New York
Edward Mayer - Delmar, New York
Cat Mazza - Troy, New York
Althea Merback - Bloomington, Indiana
Sheila Pepe - Brooklyn, New York
Freddie Robins - London, United Kingdom
Piper Shepard - Baltimore, Maryland
Niels van Eijk - Someren, Netherlands
Erna van Sambeek - Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Eugène van Veldhoven - Den Haag, The Netherlands
Shane Waltener - London, United Kingdom
Anne Wilson - Evanston, Illinois
Henk Wolvers - Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands
Barbara Zucker - Burlington, Vermont

knit art

was cruising the galleries this weekend & found a business card for an artist who makes dolls (creepy dolls). the doll on the business card was wearing what looked to be a crocheted dress & got me thinking of knitting as an art form.

there was a 'radical lace & subversive knitting' exhibit at the museum of art and design in new york January 25 - June 17, 2007. (this is the date on the website but my sister went a few days ago and it was still up-March 28th)

and a similar show in london in 2005: knit 2 together at the crafts council gallery

there is something interesting in juxtaposing a craft traditionally associated with stodgy old ladies & appropriating it for political or social expression...i'm also interested in why youth culture's recently glommed onto it as a hipster thing to do.

Knit your own purse grenade:

Abbreviations

k = knit, p = purl, st(s) = stitch(es), inc = increase, dec = decrease, rep = repeat, slp = slip onto needle without knitting, tog = together, nxt = next, yrn = yarn, fwd = forward, cont = continue, pat = pattern, ss = stocking stitch: one row k, one row p

Materials

Should be knitted in chunky army green and gunmetal grey on 4mm needles. Grenade is fastened with a kilt pin and keyring.

Grenade body

Cast on 40 sts and work in box stitch for 32 rows.

1st row. k4, p4, to end.

2nd row. k4, p4 to end.

3rd row. k4, p4 to end.

4th row. k4, p4 to end.

5th row. p4, k4 to end.

6th row. p4, k4 to end.

7th row. p4, k4 to end.

8th row. p4, k4 to end.

Rep rows 1-8, 4 times.

33rd row. k.

34th row. k1, *yrn fwd, k2tog. Rep from *to end.

35th row. k4 more rows.

Cast off.

The Top

Pick up 30 sts along the 32nd row of the grenade body. Do this by starting and finishing 5sts in.

Commence in gunmetal grey.

1st row k.

2nd row p.

Rep these rows 3 times, dec 1 st at each end of p row.

9th row k.

10th row p.

Rep these rows 3 times, inc 1 st at each end of p row.

Cast off.

Press, fold along shortest row, and hem into 32nd row of body.

The trigger

Cast on 4 sts.

1st row k, inc1st at each end of row.

2nd row p.

3rd row as 1st row.

4th row p.

Cont in ss for 16 rows.

Then dec 1st at each end of every p row until 2sts remain.

K2tog (1 st remains), now make pin loop as follows:

1st row. Cast on 1st.

2nd row. Cast off 1st.

3rd row. Cast on 1st.

4th row. Cast off 1st.

Rep this until loop measures 4cm.

Cast off, and st into a loop.

To finish

St up side of grenade body.

Gather the bottom of the grenade by running stitches through row 1 of body and pulling tight.

Fold trigger in half lengthwise, press, and st on to side seam of body, leaving loop at the top.

Gather opening of grenade by threading ribbon through holes made by row 34.

Put pin through top and loop, and then back through top.

You are now ready to throw your grenade.

random ideas

I won’t claim these are all my own, because in surfing the world-wide-web of knitting blogs & sites I’ve stumbled across a bunch of ideas I think I might be able to tackle (meaning, they’re all pretty much variations on a square). Listing them here so as not to forget:

• vase cozies
• cup cozies (so i can drink tea & coffee out of glasses & it'll stay warm)
  
• cozy for my coffee press (bodum glass, that gets cold way too quickly)
• coin-purse
• clutch
• yoga bag
  
• granny square throw

if I get good enough I might foray into cardigans…and I’d love to dress rudy up in matching leg-warmer, headband sets – but I’m sure he’d have none of it.

born slippy

this is sip stitch - pretty, right? i think it'll make for some good looking pillow covers. of course, i'm interested to see how the back will look. my only experience with multi-color knitting ended with a web of loose, crossed-over strings on the back-side.

happy accidents

I inherited a bunch of knitting needles from a friend’s mom, about 4 or 5 years ago. She went through a knitting phase, which obviously ended…wonder if that’ll happen for me.

Anyway – the needles have been sitting in the back of my closet for years. After I bought my ultimate source book of knitting stitches I thought I’d practice by knitting little blocks of each stitch. Starting with the ‘easy’ stitches and working my way towards the ‘intermediate’ slipstitch color patterns that are honestly what inspired me to buy the book.

I picked two 8’s out of my bag – same size, but different colors (one’s silver, the other’s yellow). Thought they’d be pretty to look at – but turns out it's very helpful to use different color needles when working a pattern, because it helps indicate if you’re working an odd or even row, which helps clue you into which stitch combinations you should be doing. I’m working ‘moss stitch’ a very easy pattern, but the combination of stitches you’re doing depends on which row you’re on (1 & 4 are different than 2 & 3). Knowing that my yellow needle = even rows, and my silver needle = odd rows helped a lot. (note: i've been told that 'lush' yarn is great for slipstitch.)

I don't want to buy two sets of needles each time I need a new size, and don’t think I really like knitting with metal needles (which I think are the only one’s that come in colors). Circular needles are easier to maneuver in tight quarters like an armchair or sitting next to someone on public transport (those obviously come attached and matching). But I like being able to tell my needles apart. So maybe if they’re wooden, and not attached I can wrap a rubber band around one, and if they’re circular…maybe I can paint one, or put a tick of nail polish at one end.

first project down

Finished my first project! A digital camera case…which is essentially a rectangle sewn together into a sock. Digital camera slides in & I pulled the rope handle through so I can hold the camera while it’s covered, then slide the cover off (with no risk of loosing it) when I want to take a picture.

I’d been stuck on finishing it because had no darning needle & per my first post ‘knitting’s hard’ went to The Point looking for one, but they were out. Cool thing is ‘Harlem Purls’ left me a note about ‘Knit NY’ selling darning needles for a buck at the register. Took the train over Sunday afternoon – bought a needle (and some buttons for a project I have yet to dream up). Knitting stores are dangerous...I go in for 1 thing, and come out with a few more…that I don't need, but that are darn purdy.

Knit New York is my favorite knit store/cafe hybrid i've discovered. The only other place I've been is The Point, which is nice, but a little hectic for my taste. Knit NY felt comfortable & relaxed by comparison. Like someplace where I could sit down, relax, have a snack & and knit. Funny coincidence that I essentially named my blog after it...before I'd heard of it...

we the people

okay - not totally related, but sort of related to knitting - was browsing nature knits looking for contact info & came across the best 'about' section i have ever seen:

http://www.etsy.com/about.php

(because in addition to bloging about knitting, i think i'll use this blog also as a way to keep track of things i find that i like, or that inspire me.)

another easy pattern

more good news on the easy knitting front - cowell's are in as fashionable alternatives to scarfs. easy to knit, easy wear...perfect. think i'll add that to my list of projects. found the above tip (and photo) on the making things blog by andrea tung. good news i think, because scarfs can be a little difficult (to wear, to wrap, to hang, to keep from flapping of in the wind...)

easy projects

and...if i get really good at this pattern stuff, i can make (in addition to pillow covers) other square / rectangular projects like purses! check these out - just found on Pibiones by Antonello...and i do need a new clutch...maybe i'll use my new pattern book to make one like the little beauty on the top left.

books

figuring i should get a little schooling in this subject, to save myself from spending too much time ripping things apart, i decided to buy a 'how to' book. was looking for 'knitting without tears' by elizabeth zimmerman but couldn't find it. instead, i bought 'the ultimate sourcebook of knitting & crochet stitches'. there are so many fun patterns! not patterns for things to make like hats, sweaters that no one will wear, etc., but stitching patters (as shown on the book jacket above). there are some really cool ones. looking forward to trying some out. will probably still be knitting or crocheting in squares for a while, but now they'll be more interesting looking squares. stripes are getting a little tired. maybe i'll make some pillow covers.

also - in flipping through the book, i discovered that my baby blanket was crocheted in the 'catherine wheel' stitch (my full name's katherine). i got a little warm and fuzzy when i saw that. threw the ratty little rag out in college, but i slept with it almost every night until then...

punk's not dead!

Alyce Benevides, Martin Gore of Depeche Mode, Jaqueline Milles

found this on knit-head and my music shuffle had literally landed on a depeche mode tune less than a minute before. thought that was a pretty fun coincidence. in any event - the two lovely knit-heads above mailed martin the hat & he loved it enough to wear it on stage. following the show knit-head was profiled in a number of publications. you can read the blurbs here: http://www.knit-head.com/buzz.html

fuzzy earings

stumbled across these & had to comment - they are so pretty, & unusual. not knit, but related to knitting. i wonder how they'd feel on your ears - super light i expect. found on nature knits, a very nice blog.

webrings for knitters

interesting learnings on the webring front. there are a number of webrings dedicated specifically to knitting. i don't qualify for any of them yet. the most common qualifications are that your blog is at least one month old, that it relates to knitting, and that you post at least once / week. smart for a number of reasons i suppose. no one wants to be associated with a dud, the more traffic your partner sites get the more traffic you'll likely get - and search engines love active blogs (as we've learned).

they've also come up with some very cute little icons...fitting for such a crafty community, and guaranteed not to ugly up your knitting blog. here are some of the knitting webrings i've found, and hope to join once i'm qualified. you can click on any of the images below to read their rules.

'crochet to go' by alicia bergin

oh - and i have to mention my friend Alica Bergin. she's more into crochet than knitting. and she's very very good. we learned to knit & crochet at the same time...in berkeley a few years ago. and she's gone on to publish a very smart book: Crochet To Go. it's a book / deck of easy (and perhaps more notably > easily transportable) crochet patterns. each pattern is published on a card: the picture's on the front & the pattern is on the back. Alicia also keeps a blog on crochet: http://crochettogodeck.com/

knitting's hard

...i thought Easy Knits would be a great idea. The premise: easy little knitting projects (I’m starting this blog as a class project (“from blogs to buzz”, at nyu continuing education). The requirement is 3 posts a week for 6 weeks. I figured knitting would be an easy enough subject. My first post every week would describe the week’s knitting project. I’d show a printable pattern & a photo of the required supplies.

The second posting would show the work in progress and the third…the completed project. It’d be a great system, except for the fact that I’m not a very good knitter & being new to new york have a hard time rounding up all my supplies. Oh yea, I also insist on knitting without a pattern so it takes me a while to finish anything (read: I start over a lot while I figure out my guage, and my pattern)

The project I’m working on now is a cozy for my digital camera (the Panasonic lumix fx30. note: they have one of the worst sites I’ve seen in a while). It’s been about 4 weeks, I’ve started over about 6 times, and I’m almost finished. I spent the first week trying to find a knitting storethat carried cheap, machine washable yarn, and the second 2 ripping my work apart and starting over. This last week I've made a half-ditch effort to find a yarn needle to sew the piece together. I only looked one place, The Point Knitting Cafe, and they were out.

Maybe for now, I’ll just blog about my experience knitting (and blogging)...interesting knitting supplies...stores ...knitters...blogs that I encounter while figuring all this out.