Knit for Peace Day

March 21. 2007 is the official Knit for Peace day. [tag]Randy[/tag], an American knitter living in Sweden, has a list of ways this was done in 2006. Also at this website is a list of groups that knit to keep people warm.

[tag]Full Thread Ahead[/tag] in Los Altos, CA is having a Knit-in and knit for peace. This year they be spending the day, from 11am to 6pm working on warm woolies projects and projecting peace (no specific political statements, just a general agreement that a peaceful world is a better one). If you stop by, please provide your own needles and wool for the project.

[tag]Peace Fleece[/tag] is is a yarn company run by [tag]Peter Hagerty[/tag] and his wife Marty Tracy who started buying [tag]wool[/tag] from the Soviet Union back in 1985 in hopes that through trade they could help diffuse the threat of nuclear war. Since then they have worked with shepherds in Russia, Kyrgyzia, Israel and the West Bank, as well as in Montana, Ohio, Texas and Maine. By working with people who tend livestock every day, they hope to find a common ground that slowly leads to mutual understanding and economic interdependence. After twenty-one years, their goals remain the same. They have a page dedicated to [tag]Knitting for Social Change[/tag]. On this page you will find information and links provided by Peace Fleece that they hope to directly introduce you to the people with whom they work that are using woolens and yarns as a tool for social change.

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Knitwear designers can get inspiration from almost anything when it comes to re-creating a color scheme, an image or a texture in stitches. Sometimes the inspiration isn’t always obvious in the finished project, but sometimes it’s more literal.

That’s the way it is with the Tin Ceiling Blanket from Purl Soho. Not just because the inspiration is in the name, but if you’ve ever seen one of these old ceilings you can see that the design of the blanket is quite similar to the pattern of the tin tiles.

This is also a good example of the idea that you don’t have to use fancy stitch patterns or lots of color to make a big impact with your knits. This single-color blanket (designed by Gianna Mueller and inspired by a washcloth and towel set designed by Sandi Rosner) is made completely with knits and purls, other than slipped stitches at the beginning of rows to make neater edges.

The pattern is written out row by row, but there’s also a chart, which means this project is a great opportunity to practice reading a chart where you can check your work against the written pattern if you need to.

It comes in two sizes, a crib blanket and a throw. The yarn used in the sample is an organic cotton sold by the cone, which is a great way to get a large quantity of yarn and have fewer ends to weave in. In fact, you can knit either size of the blanket with just one cone of yarn, which isn’t inexpensive but makes you a great, sturdy, heirloom quality but still washable blanket you’ll use for years to come. (Of course you can use any sport weight yarn you like to make this blanket.)

Check out all the details and grab the free pattern from Purl Soho.

[Photo: Purl Soho]

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