So I stumbled upon an article today that you can read here. All of a sudden, while reading it my world started to spin. What was the author trying to say? That knitting is not tough enough to be a female pursuit in today's world?
Obviously this is someone who does not knit, and is a total Muggle about it. The writer then made her next big mistake in choosing The Yarn Harlot as a blog to link to, with the idea it would show how "girlie" knitting truly is. Never mind the fact that The Harlot is one of the best examples of a woman who is making a difference in this world while not giving up the fact she is very much a woman. Makes me wonder if anyone edits these articles before they go live.
But I regress. Why would someone think that knitting is not something a forward thinking woman would do today? Knitting takes talent. Yes, it is just 2 stitches, but by using those together with some yarn overs, increases and decreases, one can make something that can take ones breath away. Or it can be the article of clothing that will keep away winters chill in subzero temperatures. Knitting is a different as the people who practice it.
What would make one think that knitting is "girlie" and to do it you are not tough? Apparently this person has never stayed up Christmas Eve to finish that sweater the child wanted so badly. Or been madly knitting that last row during a knitting challenge. One has to be tough to keep going even though you have been bored to tears with the pattern and you want to be done, yet you have 600 more yards of lace weight to knit.
Knitters are anything but weak. They have been known to knit in the most trying times. I still have the pair of socks knit while my husband was having valve replacement surgery, and the pair of socks knit while my Father had by-pass surgery. I have knit when stuck in traffic for 45 minutes due to weather, when stuck in construction, while working the poll booths during elections, at football games while watching child in band, at pro baseball games, on trips. Instead of buying a souvenir, my knitting becomes part of the memories.
I can look at a knitted article, and remember where and when it was knit. I learn from each project, and take that lesson with me in my life. Patience and perseverance is something that will be rewarded with a finished project. Just like saving and planing for a trip.
Knitting is tough. You have to be to keep knitting, and knitting, and knitting to get to the end of the project. You learn so much about math while knitting, how much to decrease, what the stitch count is for the lace row you are on. Which decrease will give the right effect you are looking for. What patterns you like, and what you don't.
When I was young, and in college taking the certified occupational therapy assistant program, I had to look at many different crafts. Not for fun, but to think about how that could be used to help someone recover movement after a surgery, injury, or when they have a disease. Its amazing how easier it is to get someone to do something if they are enjoying it, rather than just doing a movement.
Knitting is not "girlie" nor is it "non-feminist". It is very much a choice of someone who is very particular on what they want. The knitter does not follow the stream, they are the ones going the wrong way. They appreciate the craftsmanship, the fact that this pair of sock they are making today will be around for many years beyond what the commercial items will be.
It takes time, energy, ability and most of all part of the knitter to create a object. I have yet to see a Television set hand you something other than 42 min of semi entertainment that someone else has decided you should watch, with many plugs from items you don't need.
I take offense to that article. Yes I knit, I cook, I bake, I spin my own yarn, I enjoy creating things for others. I also love being a female, and I would hate to have to fit into the authors idea of what a modern feminine woman should be.
Oh yes, one more thing, probably the biggest reason I knit....
I knit ---- So I don't kill people.
You have been warned.
11 years ago
