Here’s the latest and greatest from the knitting world, my friends.
- Another newspaper article (this time from the Washington Post) on the health benefits of knitting. I guess we can all give up our work-outs and all that healthy eating, and just pick up some Addi-Turbos instead (yeah, right). Seriously, though, the evidence is fairly conclusive about the benefits of cognitive and creative activities like crafting to help avoid the onset on dementia. Knitting doesn’t just help you stay sane, it also helps you stay sharp.
- Don’t let the knitting needles and the embroidery hoops fool you. While I agree we should see “knitting not as necessity, but art,” I disagree with the writer’s conclusion that it’s for “women who have just too much time on their hands.” That’s a fairly sexist assumption on many levels, and it’s right on par with the granny reference (shout out to my good friend, Stitch Bitch), but the odd thing is that it’s right in the middle of an article that claims that, historically, the needlearts have “been a potent symbol of power.” Why not now?
- Yarnbombing has been given the cultural theory treatment. At last my two loves — knitting and meticulously argued analyses of cultural phenomena — have found each other. I was really rooting for those two crazy kids to make it. Yesterday, Dr. Leesa Rittelmann gave a lecture at Hartwick College on yarnbombing as an example of Felix Guattari’s “micro-revolts” and Julia Kristeva’s “tiny revolutions.” I feel smarter just typing that out.
Photo courtesy of my friend Jeff, knitter extraordinaire, who just had to have it! - Speaking of knitting activism, here’s a piece about the historical connection between crafting and war. The picture on the left is of the American Red Cross’s Commemorative Knit Kit celebrating the “Knit Your Bit” campaign. The “Knit Your Bit” campaign dates back to World War I and it encouraged knitters to make socks for the troops. The kit (which is, sadly, now unavailable) even came with its own “Knit Your Bit” poster. Such a great idea — I hope they bring it back one day so I can get my own.
The Lyf So Short 