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Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Subversive Knitting
I love the idea of subversive knitting, knitting to "subvert the dominant paradigm," as one of my favorite bumper stickers says. I can hear some of you asking, "What the heck does that mean?"
The dominant paradigm is the popular mode of thinking, and to me that can be summed up in one word: consumerism – the idea that my main purpose in life is to be a consumer, to buy things, to put my money into the economy, to fill someone else's pocket.
My computer’s thesaurus gives these synonyms for subversive:
- Dissident
- Rebellious
- Revolutionary
- Insubordinate
- Seditious
I suppose these are considered negative traits by many people, but I don’t see them that way. I see rebellion against consumerism as a high road to generosity and personal satisfaction. Making things turns us into producers instead of consumers.
As every knitter knows, making something from scratch is immensely satisfying.
And making something to give away is the ultimate in generosity.
Earlier this year, I read "Knitting Socks for the Revolution" by Sigrid Arnott in For the Love of Knitting. Sigrid is an addicted sock knitter. She loves her hand-knitted socks so much, that she mends socks. One day she casually mentioned this while standing on line at the fabric store and shocked everyone out of their own socks. "Why would you mend socks," they asked, "when you can get five pairs for less than five dollars at Wal-Mart?" Sigrid explained that she only mends the socks she's knitted herself. This caused even more derision. Why on earth would anyone knit socks these days? It can take weeks to knit a fine pair of socks, and time is money. Or is it? Making socks by hand takes so much time, it reduces your hourly worth to pennies. But the results cannot be bought.
If you've never tried on a pair of hand-knitted wool socks, you are
missing a comfort that cannot be explained in words. Sigrid claims that
by ignoring the availability of cheap socks, she is being revolutionary.
By making things ourselves, whether simple socks, cabled sweaters,
felted bags, or fair-isle hats, we are opting out of capitalism.
Although most of us buy our yarn (my mother spins most of hers!), we
support privately-owned
local yarn shops instead of multinational retail giants. And if we join a
local stitch-n-bitch group, we build community instead of disappearing
into anonymity.
Tomorrow is the Winter Solstice and this coming
Sunday will be Christmas and the first day of Hanukkah. I recently read
Handknit Holidays by Melanie Falick and Betty Christiansen. The
book is full of gorgeous patterns for gifts, holiday decorations,
garments, and accessories for year-round holiday knitting. While the
book includes patterns for many different holiday traditions, one
refreshing theme throughout its pages is the idea of celebrating the
Winter Solstice as a way to focus on family and friends instead of
frantic commercialism. This was my favorite part of the book.
For the past several years, I have been sending home-made gifts to my family and friends. From jams and pickles canned from garden produce, to hand-knit chenille towels and hand-made, herb-scented soaps, I have been trying to spend time during the year thinking about my loved ones as I create special gifts that come from my heart instead of from the nearest discount store. I found enough wonderful gift-knitting ideas in Handknit Holidays to last at least a decade.
I have celebrated Christmas for my whole life, but this year the hostility of the religious right toward anyone who says "Happy Holidays" or "Seasons Greetings" instead of "Merry Christmas" has totally killed the Christmas spirit for me. What once was a cheerful greeting has been co-opted as the war-cry of extremists. Instead of spreading peace and joy in this season, too many people are spreading anger as they try to force everyone else to celebrate their version of the Christian winter holiday. This is something that touches all of us, including knitters. Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, Yarn Harlot extraordinaire, has even received hate mail and death threats for supporting an international winter concert held at her children's school on her knitting blog.
With all of this hostility heaped on top of the already distasteful commercialism, I have lost all interest in celebrating Christmas. This year I'm skipping the holidays completely, but I think in the future I will enjoy the solstice and celebrate the cycles of the seasons with my loved ones.
Although the holiday season is almost over for this year, I hope you will consider making some of your own gifts next year. Whether we celebrate Kwanza, Hanukkah, or Christmas, or choose to abandon the more commercial holidays and enjoy the season by celebrating the Winter Solstice,
let's spread peace and joy through the works of our hands.
Pattern: Subversive Sock Pattern
This simple sock pattern is one I use all the time to make soft &
cozy socks for myself as well as rough & sturdy work socks for my
husband. You can change the size by using smaller or larger needles
and thinner or thicker yarn. You can change the style by using a
different ribbing pattern for the leg. After you make a few pairs,
you'll memorize the basic structure and techniques of sock making, and
you should be able to add or remove stitches to adapt the basic
pattern for using stitch patterns with different repeats. It's really
easy to make a sock, but the isntructions look confusing. The only way
to figure it out is to make one. If you don't want to make a pair as a
test, use extra bulky yarn and fat needles and knit a Christmas
stocking.
Tools and Materials
Yarn: 200 yards light worsted weight yarn.
One 560 yard skein of Toasty Toes superwash merino from Interlacements will make 2-3 pairs of socks, depending on how high you knit the leg portion. This yarn is so soft and cozy, it's like putting your foot into a cloud. I also like Hifa sock yarn for strong hiking socks because it has nylon spun in with the wool. It comes in 2- and 3-ply versions. I use the 2-ply for myself, and the 3-ply for super strong work socks for my husband.
Needles: One set of four or five double-pointed needles size 3 US (or size required to obtain gauge).
Notions: Blunt tapestry needle for weaving in ends and sewing toe.
Gauge
6 st = 1 inch (10 cm)
Knitting socks at a tighter gauge than normally recommended for the yarn creates a denser fabric that will be stronger than a looser fabric.
Because gauge is different when knit flat or in-the-round, use the beginning of the leg for your gauge swatch. If it’s right, you are that far ahead! If it’s wrong, just rip it out and start over. You haven’t spend more time knitting than if you’d knit a separate gauge swatch.
Size
Women’s medium (shoe size 6 ½ - 9).
Finished foot circumference = 8 in. Foot is knit to desired length.
- To make a larger sock (9.5 in. around), use worsted-weight yarn and size 4 US needles to get a gauge of 5 sts = 1 in.
- To make a smaller sock (6.75 in. around), use sport-weight or sock yarn and size 2 US needles to get a gauge of 7 sts = 1 in.
Stitches
Ribbring stitches (knit in-the-round)
Single rib: K1 P1 around for all rounds. (Multiple of 2 sts.)
Double rib: K2 P2 around for all rounds. (Multiple of 4 sts.)
Elastic rib: K3 P1 around for all rounds. (Multiple of 4 sts.)
Eyelet rib: (Multiple of 7 sts.)
Rounds 1, 2 and 4: K5, p2 around.
Round 3: K2tog, yo, k1, yo, ssk, p2. Repeat around.
Repeat rounds 1-4 for pattern.
Baby cable rib: (Multiple of 4 sts.)
Rounds 1, 2 and 4: P2, k2 around.
Round 3: P2, work 2-st twist. Repeat around.
Repeat rounds 1-4 for pattern.
Work 2-st twist as follows:
- k2tog leaving the stitches on the left needle.
- Knit the first stitch again, then slip both stitches off the needle.
Heel stitch (knit back-and forth)
Row 1 and all RS rows: (Sl 1, k1), repeat across.
Row 2 and all WS rows: S1, p across.
That is, on right side rows slip one, knit one, slip one, knit one, etc. (slip every other/odd stitch). Since you have an even number of stitches, you will end with a knit.
Then, on wrong side rows, slip the first stitch only, then purl across the rest of the row. The stitch you are slipping is the last knit stitch from the end of the previous row.
Instructions
Cast on 48 sts (round up or down a few sts if necessary for your pattern stitch multiple). Distribute evenly on three or four double-pointed needles. Join in round, being careful not to twist stitches.
Leg
Work in the ribbing stitch of your choice for 6 in., or desired length of leg minus 1 in. (2.5 cm).
If desired for a looser ankle, change to Stockinette stitch (St st). Work even for 1 in. (2.5 cm).
Heel
The heel is worked on half of the stitches:
Work across 12 sts, turn and work across 24 sts on the WS.
Place remaining 24 sts on holder to work later.
Work heel flap back and forth using heel stitch for 24 rows, or until heel makes a perfect square. End after working a WS row.
Turn heel
This is the curved part at the bottom of the heel. Don't forget to turn the heel or you won't be able to pick up sts properly for the instep. I forget this all the time, and then wonder why my sock looks so funny!
Row 1 (RS): Knit across 14 sts. SSK, k1, turn.
Row 2 (WS): Sl 1, p5, p2tog, p1, turn. (This creates a space between the stitches)
Row 3: Sl 1, knit to 1 st before space, ssk (stitch before and after space), k1, turn.
Row 4: Sl 1, p to 1 st before space, p2tog (stitch before and after space), p1, turn.
Repeat rows 3 and 4 until all heel stitches have been used up, end after working a WS row.
14 sts remain on heel.
Instep
Work in St st, or with the sts on the top of the foot continuing the ribbing from the leg. The sides of the instep and the sole are always worked in St st.
Knit across heel stitches. With same needle, pick up and knit 12 st from side of heel.
With second needle, work across 24 instep stitches (previously put on hold).
With third needle, pick up and knit 12 st from other side of heel, and knit across half of the heel stitches.
Round 1, dec 2 st as follows:
- Knit to last 3 st on needle 1, k2tog, k1.
- Work across all st on needle 2 for instep.
- On needle 3, k1, ssk, knit to end of needle.
Round 2: Work even.
Repeat rounds 1 and 2 until 48 st remain.
Foot
Work even until piece measures 7 ½ in from heel, or 2 in. shorter than desired length.
Toe
Work in St st.
Round 1, dec 4 st as follows:
- Knit to last 3 st on needle 1, k2tog, k1.
- On needle 2, k1, ssk, knit to last 3 st, k2tog, k1.
- On needle 3, k1, ssk, knit to end of needle.
Round 2: Knit
Work rounds 1 and 2 until 12 st remain.
Finishing
Cut yarn leaving and 18 in. tail.
Option 1: Gathered toe
Thread tail trough all st, pull tight and fasten off.
Option 2: Woven toe
Keep sole stitches on one needle, arrange instep stitches on second needle. Weave toe with kitchener stitch. Fasten off.
Weave in loose ends.
Subversive Knitting Links
Here are a few fun links for ways to use your knitting to shake up the status quo a little bit!
The MicroRevolt web site includes the KnitPro software program that will turn any digital image into a knitting chart. You don't need to install any software. You just upload a GIF, JPEG, or PNG file, and the software makes a chart for you. It's very cool. If you're not careful, you'll spend hours uploading different photos just to see what the charts look like!
CitiPaper Online has an article about "countercultural knitting" with photos of some very unusual knitted items made by the Baltimore Stitch-n-Bitch group. The Baltimore Art Museum's contempory art curator, Chris Gilbert says, "In making, creating, doing, farming, even consuming, one is engaged in a political act."
The Knitty Winter 2005 issue features an article by David Demchuk called "The Only Boy." That alone makes his knitting subversive in the United States, where well over 90 percent of knitters are women.
Last January, The Guardian had an article about Debbie Stoller, editor of Bust magazine and author of the best-selling book, Stitch-n-Bitch. Debbie's work shows how knitting, once shunned by modern women as a relic of an older age, is being used by young women today as a declaration of newfound feminsm. No more the hobby of gray-haired grannies, today knitting is popular with college students, actresses, and women of all ages.
The KnitKnit Sundown Salon, held at Fritz Haeg's LA-based "Sundown Salon" in February of 2004 won a prize for being the "most subversive" because of its "monumental appreciation of handcrafted knitwear... The repetitive creative process of knitting, offset by the dramatic unraveling of labor so symbolic of forces in life and nature, and the depiction of neoprimitive knit costumes in action actually dare to suggest a new social order, to hint at some secret truth to be discovered in the knit and purl." You can order a video or rent a DVD of the event on the web page.
We Make Money -- NOT! is a very cool website that features several
articles about knitting, including one about knitting for penguins (if
you can't believe it, here's a picture. Click the photo for more info).
Just put "knitting" in the search box to see what other fantastic
knitting stories they have.
The Royal College of Art in London has a bio of Freddie Robbins and some photos of her unusual knitting projects. On her Shockwave website, she compares knitting to using the internet. Freddie considers her knitting subversive, because she takes the traditionally tame and feminine craft, and turns it on its head by making bizarre and macabre art objects.