Knitting News

Hand-knit homes | LA Daily News

Hand-knit homes
LA Daily News - December 1 2006

Make your house a cozy home with hand-knits that liven up the decor of any room. Suss Cousins' latest book, "Home Knits: Luxurious Handknits for Every Room of the House" (Potter Craft; $32.50), combines easy home design with a knitting guide. The book is divided into three areas: living room, dining room/kitchen, and bedroom/bath. Each section features knit patterns and step-by-step instructions for knitters of all skill levels. [more]

Knit knack: UW-Madison exhibit pays tribute to woman who moved to Wisconsin and became the 'queen of knitting' | Wisconsin State Journal

Knit knack: UW-Madison exhibit pays tribute to woman who moved to Wisconsin and became the 'queen of knitting'
Wisconsin State Journal - November 10 2006

When Elizabeth Zimmermann came to the U.S. from England in 1937 with her German-born, brewmaster husband, she passed the time on the ship from Southhampton to New York by knitting en route.

It was just the beginning of a revolutionary journey.

Years later, Zimmermann would set up shop in Wisconsin, creating a mail-order business - and a benevolent cult following, really - that would influence the fields of textile crafts and fiber design, and the countless people who hold the patient art of knitting dear.

"She's like the queen," says Mary Jo Harris, president of the 400-member Madison Knitters' Guild. "When I think of someone who has influenced the knitting world, she is certainly No. 1 on my list."

Zimmermann and the multi-generational fruits of the knitting system she developed (not to mention her crisp and charming sense of humor) are the focus of "New School Knitting," an exhibit at the UW-Madison Gallery of Design through Dec. 17.

It's the largest show to date about a woman whom curator and UW grad student Molly Greenfield calls "truly beloved." The Oct. 29 opening drew the largest crowd in the gallery's history, close to 250 people, some of whom wore their own handmade sweaters inspired by Zimmermann's legacy. [more]

Crafters celebrate knitting legend | The Capital Times

Crafters celebrate knitting legend
The Capital Times - October 26 2006

Nine knitters and knitwear designers will share the stage with a knitting legend in an exhibit opening Friday.

"New School Knitting: The Influence of Elizabeth Zimmermann and Schoolhouse Press" features the Wisconsin knitter called the doyenne of the craft in America, her daughter Meg Swansen and the work of those they influenced.

[...]The British-born Zimmermann is credited with revolutionizing the modern practice of knitting. She did this through a number of books and articles, patterns, workshops and a public television series, "The Busy Knitter," which feature her no-nonsense, free-form instruction encouraging those who take up the craft to relax, take risks and be happy with the results.

While Zimmermann died in 1999, her ideas continue through Schoolhouse Press, the rural Wisconsin mail-order knitting business she founded. Swansen runs the business in Pittsville, offering books and patterns and dispensing Zimmermann's wisdom through a yearly workshop.

"She wanted people to explore the craft and not be afraid to make mistakes," Greenfield says of Zimmerman's philosophy. [more]

Exhibition celebrating America’s knitting doyenne to open | UW-Madison News

Exhibition celebrating America’s knitting doyenne to open
UW-Madison News - October 17 2006

All knitters seem to agree: Knitting is so much more than the dropping of stitches.

Molly Greenfield learned to knit from her mother. Now a master's candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the history of costume and textiles, Greenfield says that a long broad swath of American history can be seen through this craft.

"Knitting was and is a pervasive form of creative expression for women, and also an area in which women could be designers. This exhibition is not only about the history of knitting, craft and design, but also about women's history, the rise of the women's movement in the United States, the history of immigration in America and the migration of highly educated Europeans to America during and after World War II," she says.

The exhibition to which Greenfield refers is the one she is curating on the doyenne of American knitting, Wisconsinite Elizabeth Zimmermann. [more]

New School Knitting: The Influence of Elizabeth Zimmermann and Schoolhouse Press
The Design Gallery - on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus
October 27 - December 17, 2006

An Irishman's Home is his Castle | Ireland of the Welcomes

An Irishman's Home is his Castle [via re:knit]
Ireland of the Welcomes - July/August 2006

The master of Farney Castle in Co. Tipperary has much to do on a bright sunny morning. There are the peacocks and pigeons in the stable yard to be fed; there’s a leak to be checked on the venerable roof, while over breakfast he’ll discuss business and family matters with wife Margie, that is if they’re not interrupted by too many overseas telephone calls. The arrival of visitors means he must hurry out to welcome them and start guided tours. It will probably be late tonight before he can take a break and relax for an hour’s quiet knitting. What? Knitting? Well, yes. Because we’re talking about Cyril Cullen, international fashion designer, whose career to date spans forty years and whose unique knitwear has been showcased in New York, London and Tokyo. It’s been a long and fascinating road for the Fermoy-born lad who had every intention of becoming a concert pianist.

Cyril, the second of six children, was born into a very musical family. His father was in the Garda Siochána, and both ensured that their children got all the encouragement they needed to develop their interest in music. Cyril’s sister, Olive Cullen, was to become a renowned harpist, while he was sent to the Loreto Convent in Fermoy for piano lessons and spent many happy hours practising the music and melodies he loved. In Fifties Ireland, becoming a concert pianist wasn’t considered a particularly reliable profession, and Cyril duly took the appropriate examinations and became a civil servant. Moved from place to place, it was in Donegal that Fate took a hand. He was playing golf with some friends, one of whom was a woman who always brought her knitting along. He commented that she didn’t seem to progress very much, she queried if he thought he could do better, and a bet was laid. Starting from complete ignorance, he was to complete a sweater in exactly one week. Wool and needles duly provided, Cyril settled down after his day’s work to prove his point. After a couple of evenings in serious trouble (part of the agreement was that nobody was to help him in any way), suddenly everything clicked; the sweater was finished and the bet – ten shillings – was collected, but a more powerful seed had been sown. “I became fascinated by what you could do with wool and two needles. I wanted to go on and try ideas of my own. I discovered that, far from being a female hobby, in fact only men had knitted in ancient times – right up to the Middle Ages. It was thought that women weren’t clever enough to do it!” Thoroughly encouraged, Cyril gave full rein to his instincts and began to turn traditional Irish knitting on its head, creating new designs, patterns and blends of stitches that had never been seen before. Perhaps it had something to do with the very fact that he was a man: a new mind, free of all the rules and traditions of knitting imbued in women from birth, he saw things differently. Why not knit jumpers sideways? Make cabled trousers? Invent long luxurious fringing stitches? The Cyril Cullen hand-knit frill became one of the most famous features of his designs. [more]

Finally, light will shine where knitters need it | Chicago Tribune

Finally, light will shine where knitters need it
Chicago Tribune - June 25 2006

Edith Eig, who has become the go-to woman for Hollywood stars when they want to learn to knit, says the time has come for knitting in the dark.

"Knitters are like addicts," Eig said. "They knit everywhere."

And so now she and her husband, Merrill, have come up with a way for all those addicted knitters to do just that by inventing a device they call The Knit Lite.

It is a plastic knitting needle that has a light on the tip. Powered by three hearing-aid batteries, the needles come in various colors, but all have clear tips.

"It is a fairly classic design," Merrill Eig said of their invention. "You close the circuit, and it lights the LED from the batteries."

The couple developed the idea with the help of one of Edith Eig's knitting friends, Monica Dremann, and her husband, Michael Rosenberg, who is president of Imagine Entertainment, the production company of director Ron Howard and his partner, producer Brian Grazer. [more]

5 Questions For Debbie Stoller | Charlotte Observer

5 Questions For Debbie Stoller
Charlotte Observer - May 12 2006

Debbie Stoller is an ambassador, armed with yarn and needles, navigating the divide between knitters and crocheters. With her latest book, "Stitch `N Bitch Crochet: The Happy Hooker" (Workman Publishing, $15.95), Stoller shares tips and patterns for those of the one-needle persuasion. Stoller, 43, is editor-in-chief of Bust, a women's lifestyle magazine. She also has written two New York Times' best-sellers, "Stitch `N Bitch: The Knitter's Handbook" and "Stitch `N Bitch Nation."
Who/what got you into crochet?
"I learned to crochet when I was a kid. Six years ago I picked it back up, just before I got back into knitting. We wanted to do crafts in Bust magazine, and needlework wasn't getting respect. As a feminist associated with a women's magazine, I wanted to make that better. I crocheted a headscarf as a test, and it was a gateway craft. It turned into a full-fledged addiction." [more]

Off the hook | Star Tribune

Off the hook
Star Tribune - April 26 2006

Elizabeth McElligott, an eighth-grader at Northview Junior High in Brooklyn Park, just finished an ambitious crochet project -- a pink, yellow and orange afghan that matches the color scheme of her bedroom.
"It's really cool that you can pick out the colors that you want," said the 13-year-old. Elizabeth and her sister Allyson, 17, started crocheting about six years ago when mom Nancy was teaching Allyson for a Girl Scout project.
"Crocheting is something cool to do with yarn," said Allyson, a junior at Osseo High School. "A couple of weeks ago, I made a little round bag in an afternoon. I was just messing around with the yarn and created my own pattern."
The 200-year-old craft isn't just for grandmas making baby booties and doilies anymore. People in their 20s, teens and even 'tweens are hooking up with the craft through multigenerational classes and clubs, as well as the through explosion of hip new pattern books such as "Cool Crochet," SweaterBabe.com's "Fabulous and Flirty Crochet" and "Stitch 'N Bitch Crochet: The Happy Hooker."
You only have to look as far as your nearest department store or glossy monthly to understand why: Feminine crocheted fashions are all the rage -- dusters, shrugs, hats and bags -- often carrying hefty price tags. Design houses Prada, Chanel and Marc Jacobs have featured crocheted pieces in their collections. Doing it yourself is an economical way to achieve the latest look. [more]

Crocheter draws crowd at bookstore | Lincoln Journal Star

Crocheter draws crowd at bookstore
Lincoln Journal Star - April 26 2006

Most Tuesday nights, Neal Brickner knits on the third floor of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Student Union.
He knits with the Uppity Knitters Unite, which was founded in October 2004. Every Tuesday at 7 p.m., they meet in the Women’s Center.
This particular Tuesday, though, Brickner, 24, brought his knitting needles and his project (leg warmers) to Lee Booksellers.
There, he and the other Uppity Knitters listened to Debbie Stoller sing the praises of crochet.
They petted the soft alpaca sweater Stoller passed around.
They examined the crocheted scarves and bags, and teeny tiny bikini Stoller brought along, all of which are patterns featured in her latest book “Stitch ‘N Bitch: The Happy Hooker,” which she was there promoting.
[more]

Attention Knitters | New York Times

Attention Knitters [via]
New York Times - April 23 2006

There you are in a theater watching the promos, when, if only you could see, you could be finishing that adorable little sweater you've been working on. Monica Dremann, the wife of Michael Rosenberg, the president of Imagine Entertainment, mentioned this sad state of affairs to Edith Eig, an owner of La Knitterie Parisienne in Los Angeles, and Mrs. Eig's husband, Merrill, a retired engineer, got on the case. The resulting partnership yielded Knit Lite: knitting needles with glowing L.E.D tips, which allow you to purl away not only in the movies, but also at night on the lawn under a starless sky or maybe even in an amusement park tunnel of love. [more]