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Do Penguins Really Need Jumpers?

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penguin sweatersThe story has been all over the Internet the past few days. A story out of Australia said that the Penguin Foundation was putting out a call to knitters for wee sweaters for penguins.

It said they use the sweaters to protect the animals after oil spills. It also said they only need about 20 a year, and that they have a good supply right now.

But that hasn’t kept the story from going viral, and no doubt caused lots of knitters to pick up their needles for a cute cause.

This is a story that seems to come up every couple of years, and it was even the topic of a web comic back in 2012, which noted that the sweaters aren’t actually all that helpful, because they use heat lamps to keep the penguins warm after a spill, and putting a sweater on an injured penguin more distress than just leaving them alone.

The Penguin Foundation, to be clear, says on its website

Please know that we do not urgently require little penguin jumpers for rehabilitation, we have a good supply of these which we use on any rescued oiled penguins and in the event of an oil spill, these jumpers are also sent to other wildlife rescue centres if required.

It also notes that excess jumpers are sold to raise funds for the important work the foundation does to rehabilitate penguins and for their research and conservation efforts.

So if you want to knit to support penguins, you certainly can, but know that there are other causes with more urgent needs that you could direct your needles to. And always check the source and check with the recipient to make sure there’s actually a need before you cast on.

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Knit a Classic Aran Cardigan with this Free Knitting Pattern

Not too long ago I did a test knit for another designer that was for a cabled cardigan. It’s really cozy and nice but it just about broke me in a ton of different ways. I couldn’t get gauge, which I suppose is my own problem, but mainly I was somehow both bored and forced to pay attention at the same time. 

Because it used the same cable all over, I always had to know what row I was on, but nine out of ten of those rows, nothing in particular was going on. So I couldn’t stop paying attention, but what I needed to attend to was boring. 

It may have ruined me for knitting cabled sweaters, but maybe I just need something that’s more engaging. Like this Modern Aran Cardigan pattern from Lion Brand Yarn. 

This is a reworking of an old pattern from their archives, and you can tell that form the classic look of the cables and the oversized feel (nothing cropped about this one!). It has allover cables, but like a classic Aran sweater it’s not the same cable, so you’ll have to pay attention to what row you’re on and what cable turns happen for which cables on that row. 

Because of this, it’s considered an intermediate knitting pattern, but if you’re comfortable working from multiple charts at once it shouldn’t be a problem for you. There are three different charts and seven different cable moves. 

Also because the pattern is so big and boxy there are only two sizes available, with a finished chest measurement of either 49 or 63 inches (that’s 124.5 or 160 cm). It’s up to you to decide how much ease you would like and whether that will work for your body. 

The pattern uses worsted weight yarn (and calls for another classic, Lion Brand Fisherman’s Wool). It calls for six buttons and includes pockets to make it extra cozy. 

This one looks like a great winter project to make and to wear if you’re up for a bit of a challenge. You can grab the free pattern or buy a kit with the yarn needed direct from Lion Brand Yarn. 

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn]