Hard times are good times for the knitting business.
After 9/11, the craft saw a huge boom. Knitting shops -- heck, knitting cafes, in some cities -- sprang up and a veritable industry of knitting books and magazines joined them.
The craze calmed down a bit in recent years, but Becca Smith says the current economic climate is fueling another round of "knitting is hip."
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The group, whose members hail from countries such as Germany, Korea and India, meets weekly as part of a service program. Over time, the women have become, well, close-knit.
I thought knitting was a quiet hobby, pursued by little old ladies in solitude. A visit to the RSVP center in Hollywood showed me that I was only partly right.
The women seated around the table at the Thursday morning knitting club were senior citizens all right -- from 63-year-old Agavanoush Shakhverdian to Ida Capriole, three weeks shy of 92. But they were hardly quiet.
In the olden days, the adage “stick to your knitting” was a genteel way of telling someone to mind her own business.
Today, “stick to your knitting” isn’t quite as definitive, meaning also to stick with the craft because it is a universally recognized task of creativity, skill and patience.
So when someone tells me to take up knitting, I’m not at all offended for I would love to be able to have the dexterity and ability to knit sweaters and hats and purses and afghans of the quality that my mother was able to, and so many other knitters, are still able to produce.
I am not offended by being told to take up knitting because I envy anyone who has the ability to manipulate needles and yarn effortlessly into items that can be used for practical purposes or to be admired and enjoyed as pieces of art.
In previous columns over the years I have readily admitted my lack of expertise in all matters crafty, and with age, my crafting abilities have not improved, nor do I expect them to. There are some things that do improve with age — my knitting and sewing are not among those things.
Source: mjtimes.sk.ca
Knit one, pearl two.
Cast on, cast off.
Knit, pearl, knit.
There was a time when knitting seemed like a pastime only for Grandma.
And Grandma passed it down to Mom and Mom to daughters. It just never seemed to be a guy thing to do.
Meet Jack Bryant.
Bryant, 44, of Isle of Wight, not only flouts macho attitudes about male knitters, but he brazenly flaunts his liking for the ancient craft.
He might be seen knitting in a hospital waiting room or at the doctor's office. He's quite comfortable knitting while standing in a cashier's line or at the bank. "I'll knit, basically, anywhere and anytime I've got some free time," Bryant said. "It's artistic and very relaxing. I don't sit in front of the TV at home without having needles in hand."
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A woman from Oxfordshire has started knitting sweaters for rescued battery hens that have lost their feathers.
Jane Blaine, of Eynsham, said when a friend first asked her to knit jumpers for chickens she thought it was a joke.
Ms Blaine, who has previously made coats for dogs, said: "When I saw these poor battery hens without any feathers, I thought I'd give it a try."
The jumpers are made from eyelash wool and were specially designed after the chickens' measurements were taken.
Ms Blaine said measuring the chickens was problematic.
"Obviously they have quite small necks and big bodies," she said.
"And I had to make room for the wings. It was a bit like knitting a funnel."
Source: BBC
