My husband and I support ourselves by our on-line http://www.jennyjune.com mail-order, and “brick-and-mortar” needlework shop in Randolph, Vermont. Just this week, we read about embroidery cafe’s springing up in Japan, where men and women go to drink coffee, eat pastries, and stitch! Wow!!! How cool is that! We’re hoping to get that started here in New England.

Our sales increased a full four-fold during the months following 9/11, as women scrambled to embroider something for posterity, something they could stay safely at home and do, something that would comfort them as they listened to the news on T.V. Sales have dropped back to pre-9/11 levels now, and the Embroiderers’ Guild of America reports its membership is hemorraghing, but this is not due to lack of interest.

All needlework has a rhythm to it which is soothing, while the satisfaction of making something is comforting in itself. We all need this, but particularly during stress-filled times. And with embroidery, even a small, simple project, if done well, provides this. What is a deterrent to learning and becoming more adept at embroidery, though, is the poor-qualilty supplies that most American manufacturers produce! We all recoil with horror when we see those ghastly orange, yellow and brown owls or mushrooms from the 1970’s, or the goofy, cutesy, country cross-stitch of the 80’s! Poorly designed kits, poor-quality materials, with insufficient instructions led to the decline in the popularity of embroidery here in the USA.

Embroidery is decidedly low-tech, but the feel of the fabrics, the appeal of the colors, they rhythm of the stitches, and the beauty of the work are all rewarding to the human spirit, which is also low-tech.

Knitting is wonderful — thank you for an outstanding program.

Finally, I want to recommend “The Twisted Sisters Sock Book” to anyone who is interested in getting started with small scale dyeing and spinning. It is one of the best how-to books I have ever seen. Takes you right through the process from dyeing the roving, through spinnning, and finally knitting socks.

Flangum, don’t worry too much about the current knitting fad lacking spirituality – there was an article in the NYTimes a couple of years ago (excerpt can be read on the Making Light blog archives, as the NYTimes would charge you a fee to read it now), about children at a New Jersey elementary school learning how to knit with chunky #9 needles and getting that “serene buzz”.

When I listened to the show last night I caught something that was cut off during my call. Elise attempted to comfort me by saying that a lot of the new knitters are moving down in needle sizes to nines and tens. The niceness police are gonna catch me on this one, but PUH-LEEZE! Nines?!? That’s like knitting with telephone poles! I just bought another set of one and a halfs! And one of my best knitting friends (a psycho that I want to be just like her) made her own needle case for five sets, 000, 00, 0, 1, 2. We don’t have to go _there,_ exactly, but let’s not pat ourselves on the back for “progressing” to nines, for godssake.

Okay, off my soapbox. Thanks Chris for a wonderful show. I’ve been your fan for almost as long as I’ve been knitting.

i completely agree with you about the spirituality of knitting, and that there are a few too many publications touting “quick and easy” projects in novelty yarns for the fast-paced, multiple social-event-focused person who dabbles in everything (which is not to say that those people never become dedicated knitters!). my favorite things about knitting are the process and the learning that comes along with it, and the time it takes, the time you HAVE to take to create something. the problem you are addressing, however, is one not just related to knitting, but to our society as a whole–it is entirely too fast-paced. i could not agree with you more about that.
although there are a lot of new knitters who may not want to take the time to knit a longer, more challenging project, and may stop after one iPod cover or scarf as you say, it sounds like you are lumping all new knitters into this category and it is perhaps not nearly as common as you think. every person i have taught to knit in the past few years has surpassed me in project difficulty within a matter of months, and is completely addicted to knitting more and more challenging projects and new techniques. new knitters have to have somewhere to start, and they may start with a scarf, or an iPod cover, but for the most part what I am experiencing is that from doing these first projects, they fall in love with knitting and it becomes a passionate part of their daily lives. if you have doubts, i would encourage you to read more knitting blogs (which you may already do)– remember, many of these knitters are “newbies” too. everyone knows that people have been knitting for centuries, and it is ok for things to become more popular; it makes for more yarn accessibility for everyone, and adds an element to people’s lives that enriches them, whether they will make only one small project and move on, or adopt knitting as a part of their life forever. i don’t mean to quote martha stewart, but, embrace the fad, it’s a good thing.

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by the way–well said, allison, on all counts.
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This was the late 1980s and early 1990s. The women I saw at the yarn stores were my age, and some amazing stuff was being created by them, and many of those women were way too hip for my humble mode of existence. Still, they were my inspiration to make up my own stitches and patterns, which I still do (although I could do with some help figuring out a border for my currently stalled project).

The point is that knitting felt like it had fad quality back then, and I certainly remember the fads for knitting and crocheting during the 1970s as well. My sister’s 4th grade class all knit projects together. In the early 1980s I knew some women who went head-over-heels for knitting machines, and progressed from there to knitting with needles.

I can’t remember seeing a person a generation younger than me knitting, so I’m just not convinced that this is any more of a fad than it ever was. Your 19-year-old guest sees a lot of people coming to her store, and I hope the trend keeps up, but I wonder if it’s the increasing contacts she makes through knitting that make it feel like a fad to her. The ladies I see in the yarn store around from the corner from my software company in Cambridge are all my age or older, and longtime knitters. My feeling is that this “fad” is just a modern twist on a craft that never disappeared.

(For reference, I am the caller who inherited the lacy afghans from her great-great-grandmother.)

In response to my own search for great patterns, I recently started a business called The Knitting Vault. We sell downloadable knitting and crochet patterns at http://www.theknittingvault.com. Joe Wilcox’s patterns, as well as those of other talented designers, are available and sold throughout the world!

Fredda

I know it is difficult to remain connected to those in such a seemingly different place. I don’t see you as disconnected because you have walked away from the mags. And I certainly didn’t intend to make you feel alientated. I don’t find much in them myself. Designing your own is at the heart of it all. And you can certainly do this while others are doing their thing. What happens is that we become the inspiration. I find that folks here are relieved to see me make mistakes, get frustrated, pull things out, try again, abandon ideas and projects and finally to see creative results. It frees them from the cultural expectation of looking like all is perfect all the time. Of course, I think all is perfectly, perfectly flawed and messy, all the time, but it is a different vision of how we can be together.

I highly recommend that you keep knitting on your own path and see where it takes you and where you take others.

Warmly, Allison

I am SO sad to hear about Susan Gordon Lydon. I loved The Knitting Sutra. It’s one of the few knitting-themed books I recommend. Her writing just flows and she captures every aspect of the knitting experience perfectly.

You should definitely open up a discussion about her book.

While I don’t think the Ipod cover knitters “detract” from what we more experienced knitters are doing, the fad of knitting is influencing knitting publishing in a way that, you’re right, must grow with the large number of newbie knitters out there. I stopped subscribing to ALL knitting publications about four years ago, because as an experienced knitter I just couldn’t take the ugliness any more. Does that disconnect me from a community, because I no longer buy a magazine? I just can’t see identifying myself with what passes for “knitting fashion”. So I design my own.

Moving the new knitters along is going to take persistence and a commitment I’m not sure the knitting publishing world has or maybe is even capable of having. Whether the apprentice knitters take the lead and indicate to the publishers their desire for ever more complex patterns, or those publishers gently push the apprentices to greater art, remains to be seen.

I have to agree about the slowing down. We talk about that a lot here at Circles. You can’t speed up the knitting. You can do smaller, easier, projects, but the stitches themselves are only going to happen at a certain pace.

As for the ‘dumbing’ down, I think it reflects a common entry point for the overwhelming numbers of people who are picking up needles for the first time. I, too, am 42 and I love looking back at the knitting patterns from the 40s and 50s. I see some of that detailing seeping into the industry again, but I am concerned that people will mature as knitters faster than the industry is prepared for. I have a vision of a new approach to pattern design and more comprehensive type of knitting magazine that links the craft, the materials, the people and the fact that we knit garments that must fit our style. I am tired of patterns that would only be appreciated by other knitters. (Or no one at all because its simply ghastly)

I would be greatly saddened to see all these new knitters walk away because there are only so many super bulky sweaters they can wear and only so many scarves they can stand to knit. They are starting to move on and we must move with them. It might soothe your soul to know that I find fewer and fewer knitters interested in novelty yarns. We carry almost none in our shop now. We have carefully nurtured an appreciation for yarns coming from U.S. farms and hand dyers. I have more and more customers asking for classes and workshops with more advanced skill sets.

And for those who will always knit scarves or ipod covers, we must let the knitting be for them what they need it to be. It doesn’t detract from what we experience with our knitting. These voracious novelty yarn knitters have revived an interest, but also a respect for the craft of knitting. We wouldn’t have this dialogue here on Open Source today without them.

Another topic suggestion – the generosity of fiber crafters. We knit, sew, craft for any number of charities, from Caps for Kids to Warm up America to knitting helmet liners for our troops. I could easily donate money to these groups. Instead I donate my time and my prayers, knit into every stitch, to help others – and get so much more in return. This knitting centers me and takes me out of myself into a special place.

I do spend more on yarn then I ever would on a ready made sweater. The making, the process is the important part to me. The feel of the yarn, the rhythm of the pattern, the continuation of an age old process of covering myself (although most finished items are passed on to others) in a thing that is uniquely me are what keep me me.

I have been knitting for over 22 years. The recent development of knitting as fad has some of us shaking our heads, as we’ve known all along just how fun knitting is. And while I would never deprive the youngsters their discovery of the joy of knitting, I have noticed a “dumbing down� of knitting over the past decade which displeases me. Many, many of the patterns published today reflect an impatience with the process. They are either very easy, very small, or very large-gauged (few stitches per inch).

I was struck when I acquired an issue of Vogue Knitting magazine from 1958 with how difficult and time-consuming the projects were at that time. (I was also struck that some of the models in the magazine were actually smoking, but I digress). Times have changed and all of us have less time for the pursuit of the domestic arts than we did, perhaps, in the 1950’s. But the great appeal of knitting is its ability to slow down the fast pace of life in the twenty-first century. We cannot appreciate the meditative and indeed, spiritual qualities of this wonderful handicraft if we are rushing to finish that tiny cell phone holder on big needles.

The other trend in knitting is towards what are called novelty yarns. While radio cannot do justice to the colors and textures that are out there today, suffice it to say that the technology of yarn making has come a long way for the orlon acrylic days of Carol Brady. There are old-time (and young too) fiber purists who knit only in wool and cotton. But these wild flashy yarns with lots of fringe and glitter are very popular among the fad knitter set, and I think reflect the trend in our society toward letting technology do the work for you. The novelty yarns allow a very dramatic effect in knitting without a great deal of sweat equity from the knitter. They even hide mistakes in your knitting. Think about that.

Yes, there is definitely a learning curve to knitting and beginner projects have their place. But the knitting trend seems to this old timer (I’m ONLY 42!) toward the trivial and way too easy craft, rather than towards apprenticeship and gaining mastery of an art. That’s a shame, for the young knitters out there and for the world of knitting artists that longs to embrace them.

Here is my prayer for knitters everywhere:

Dear God in Heaven,
Allow us to knit.
Let us become old women knitters.
Take away our ability to rush and to worry,
but allow us to become old women knitters.
Preserve our hands and our eyes.
Let us die knitting.
And if there is knitting in heaven
let us knit in heaven as we have on earth,
and let our colors and textures and creativity
forever glorify You.
Thank you for giving us knitting.
Amen.

I still have my various needles in a leather bag and a bowl full of the most gorgeous soft turqoise wooly mohair waiting for me for someday again. What I miss about knitting is it’s portability. I could not throw a pot anywhere. I did take some clay with me when I was nursing my late father, but you can’t do this on the go. For me it is about centering and gaining control. And it’s all about the making ( I exist, I did this, I was here) and then the giving away. And it’s about the materials, the love of materials. You love the clay, the earth that it comes from. With the wool, you love the smell of it, especially the natural undayed stuff right from the sheep. Those are the aspects in common. With knitting you learn patience. With clay you learn perserverance and acceptance.

Thank you for the lovely compliment. Yes, I know Susan’s book. I read it many years ago and have given it as a gift or leant mine at least 50 times. I found it so inspiring. I am very saddened to hear of her death. May she knit in peace.

We must absolutely talk about her book. Her exploration of knitting and how it impacted her life, the connections she made, the journey she took and the personal growth she attained exemplify the power of this craft. It is a craft of transformation. For me, and the over 1200 women who are part of the community here, this is the compelling aspect of knitting. People discuss the low-tech versus the high-tech, the making of things versus the buying of the things and these are indeed a part of the draw. But they are avenues to the core; the experience of bonding and transformaion.

How do I sound? I couldn’t say. Don’t really know what my voice would sound like on air. This topic, though, probably brings out a different voice. As long as we get past how pretty and soft the yarns are and beyond the attempts at vernacular politics. Perhaps we could speak this afternoon and you could decide whether mine is voice worth hearing.

Most of us have jobs that consist of a lot of time spent on the computer. There is something very satisfying about leaving that computer world behind and making a cozy little scarf or sweater. Of course, we then turn around and snap a digital photo of it and upload it to the web so we can share that cozy little scarf with the world on our blogs or on sites like Flickr or Craftster.

At the core, the reason we are willing to put so much time and money into it is the sense of connection. Connection to a lost time when people made so many things for themselves. Connection to the first person who ever picked up a stick and some string and figured out how to manipulate the tools to create a fabric. There is a connection to the land through the purchase of fibers brought to us by self-sustaining fibers. There is a connection to others as we sit together, make things together and share our lives together. Deep bonds are developed amongst knitters who spend time together regularly. In our fast-paced, over-popluated urban environment it feels essential to pursue something slow and sit with others without an agenda. A knitting circle is the ultimate in open source contact.

Perhaps the deepest connection, however, is to oneself. I’ve watched so many knitters self-observe. The motion of knitting and the movement in and out of concentration creates a rhythm where there are quiet moments. And the work product so clearly reflects our inner state of being. When we are anxious, our knitting is tight, when we are relaxed it is loose. As we try to figure out some set of instructions or correct a mistake we can watch how we handle a challenge or adversity. When we allow others to witness our process, we find acceptance and often very gentlel loving assistance or guidance to a new perspective.

So, while knitting to produce clothing is a luxury, the experience of knitting and what we gain from it may be life supporting. The sharing of the sensual aspects of knitting, the joy of transforming, the embrace of others is all very soothing to the soul. It is nothing short of healing. I have watched knitters help each other through every gritty aspect of life: birth, death (to illness, accidents, murder), abusive relationships, and the list goes on.

They don’t set out to be this for each other. They come together to knit. They are old, young, gay, straight, many races and ethnicities and religions, but in time their lives are knitted together and they care deeply for each other. Then the healing comes organically. Joyous applause when someone has left an alcoholic partner. Silent circles to allow someone to re-enter safely after a loss to murder. They become unafraid to share everything and offer all that they can. When you see this, you know why the knitting is a passion. You cease to care why knitting is now popular, whether it is elitist, whether it should be basic skill set. All these things don’t matter when people find something to pursue that leads them to so much rich exchange with others. Where all the artificial social constructs of separation of erased and healing just happens. Of course they never want to live without that again. Of course, the knitting is a passion. What knitters experience with one another is something lacking in our society. When they knit in a circle, they find their heart’s desire: to connect.

I like the idea of kits, and using an online tools like a blog, wiki or message board to monitor progress of working with a tactile medium. I can’t tell you how much I wish this was around in the ’70s when I was building Heathkit radios.

Which brings me to an interesting parallell for me between my electronics hobby and my new found interest in sewing and Knitting. I’m not sure if people recall Radioshack and how it got its start as Tandy a store chain of do-it yourself leather crafters selling leather projects. (do some radio shacks still have these leather craft projects?) I wonder if the vibe in the ’60s and ’70s was similar to what you find in Knitting stores now where people come and just knit, hang talk about knitting or what what ever else…