I picked up a copy of Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's "Knitting Rules!" yesterday, and while I love the book, there's one major point I disagree with her on. I'm not too far into the book, but I've noticed she keeps saying time and time again that "anyone can knit". She says at one point that if you can dress yourself, you can knit.
I don't really think this is true. Maybe I'm a snob, but I think it takes someting special to really be able to knit. I don't think just anyone can knit - just like not everyone can paint or rebuild an entire engine. I don't know what it takes exactly, but it has to be something beyond a human brain and two hands.
When I learned how to knit, I taught myself, and that worked for me. I know a lot of knitters take classes or learn from friends or family (I've taught a few). If you're looking at just knowing how to make a knit and a purl stitch, then yes, I guess it does just take a brain and two hands. I don't really consider these people "knitters" though. To me, being a knitter entails a certain passion for knitting, not just letting it be something you "learned a while back and gave up on".
I don't really know what I'm talking about anymore, but the point is, the idea that anyone can knit really bugged me. I don't think it's really correct to say to someone, "Oh, you can knit if you can dress yourself!". No! It's not that simple.
About Me
- Caitlin
- Austin, Texas, United States
- "I'm an atheist, and that's it. I believe there's nothing we can know except that we should be kind to each other and do what we can for people." - Katharine Hepburn
2 comments:
I loved that book, too.
I understand what you are saying - that people can knit, but not be knitters. But I wonder whether she was trying to say that anyone could be a knitter or simply that anyone could do the physical motions of knitting. I think it was the latter, because many people would look at it and think, "Oh, I could never do that!" and then never try. And who knows, maybe if they tried it, they'd become "knitters"?!?
But it's true, my definition of "knitter" contains that passion and I know quite a few people who can, and do knit, but aren't knitters.
I agree with you completely. I had a hard time wording myself in that entry.
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