Making a Stement With Yarn

Lately, it has been obvious, that yarn can be used to make a statement .... we have seen the political statement pussyhats against Donald Trumph's politics - I never forget the expression of a Danish new reporter when he saw and commented the pink hats in Washington DC at the Women's March - his expression: priceless.

 

But what about other statements: puppies to remember war veterans - pink ribbons and pink bras honoring the breast cancer awareness cause - hats for chemo patients - blankets for shelter animals, blankets, scarfs, hats etc. for the homeless - hats for preemies..... the list of causes and statements are endless - but this caught our attention due the vast number of hats around the globe on the heads of protesters worn on the same day in January. You might see more of them today as it is International Women's Day.

 

My mum - a lady of 70+ years - used to be a crafter - on the internet for 17+ years - only speaks Danish. She was curious: Had I heard about it? How did people know how to make the hat? Who organized it? So I told her and made her realize what a powerful tool the internet can be.

I heard about it via creative/knitting friends just a week after they launched the idea in the US. A friend of mine knitted a couple of hats for Americans unable to knit.... I found a skein of leftover yarn and knitted a hat as was curious about the shape etc. Never worn as I finished it while I was on sick leave. Have later played a little with the pattern making other kinds of hats with som details on it.....

Have read some cool statements from independent yarn shops across the US, that truly warmed my knitting heart.... They might not all agree with the political statement of the hat, but some of them experienced mid December, that their sales have gone up so much, that they were secured until at least March. Normally, they were worried each months about breaking even due to competition from big hobby stores and supermarket chains also selling yarn. They even experienced a larger interest from people wanting to learn how to knit and in the process realising how calm they felt while being creative. It was crazy reading about pink yarn being sold out everywhere.... "All because of a knitted hat?!" Knitters not politically involved started following news about yarn shortage.... even non-knitters could not believe it and started following the news.

The New Yorker updated a known iconic image

Even "old fashioned" news sources - printed magazines - had knitted hats on their covers.

Time Magazine

So am I making a statement? Yes - several!! Pink ribbons and pink bras honoring the breast cancer awareness cause - hats for chemo patients - blankets for shelter animals - hats for preemies - mini hats to support Red Cross work with elderly......

 

Are you a knitter?

I Just Spent a Year With the Gilmore Girls

I just spent a year with the Gilmore Girls..... well just a night watching the 4 new episodes back to back on NETFLIX ..... well years if you count all the episodes from the original series which I watched on TV and later on DVD..... Yes I am a fan.

 

I have had it marked on MY LIST for a long time on NETFLIX - I will admit it: was a big anxious about if I would like this sequel or not. Well I enjoyed it... it is obvious that it has been years since we left them in Stars Hollow, but returning was just like coming home :o)

A year ago, I stumbled across Entertainment Weekly in an airport news store with the girls on the cover - excellent read when spending hours on a plane home across the Atlantic. Think it is cool, that a lot of book lovers have taken the Rory Gilmore reading challenge (she reads 340 books during the original series) - and even more cool, that we see Lorelei reading "Wild" by Cheryl Strayed which I read last year....

Yarn

Yarn - an Icelandic documentary about yarn. Yawn??!! No it was funny and colorful - yarn in the hands of circus artists, fiber artists, artists making kid's play space, yarn bombers and sheep... lots of sheep. Yarn poetry... statements...

source

This is what it looks like when you gather knitting people to knitting cinema - light not dimmed as usual, as you like to be able to see your knitting - people knitting while watching the big screen - the screening was part of the North Atlantic House's (cultural center) filmfestival North Atlantic Film Days. The event was sold out, so have suggested that they show it a couple of times more, as more yarn lovers would like to see it. One of the festival organizers just had to take a photo - prior to the screening he had been doubtful about the concept, but afterward he was convinced (cinemas across the country organizes monthly knitting cinema events with new movies).

The event was sold out, so have suggested that they show it a couple of times more, as more yarn lovers would like to see it. One of the producers was there to talk about the documentary and was one big smile when he saw the knitting audience.