(Mostly) Gross Knitwear from Movies

Speaking of knitting as it relates to popular culture, I recently came across this slideshow from Vulture called “Great Moments in Dystopian Knitwear.” Because every post-apocalyptic movie (and probably the TV shows, too, though we haven’t seen a lot of winter in “The Walking Dead”) seems to have characters decked out in ratty, torn, dirty knits of one kind or another.

As the writer, Margaret Lyons, says, “knit hats will be the most treasured of all hats when the decay begins.” Indeed. Better start knitting, just in case.

By the way, one of the knits mentioned is of course the funky cowl thing Katniss wears in “The Hunger Games.” You can knit your own with patterns from Lion Brand (free registration required), Woolf’s Clothing ($5), Lolly Knits and Red Heart, no doubt among others.

Do you watch the knitwear as much as you watch the movie? I know I do!

[Photo courtesy of Lionsgate, via Vulture.]

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Sometimes it can be hard to figure out what to knit, and what knits to wear, when the weather starts changing. The good news is that spring is relatively unpredictable, and can go back and forth between warm and cold in the same week, or even the same day.

If you’re heading into spring (or fall) where you live, now’s a great time to make a shawl. This one, the Blossoming Wrap from Purl Soho, is especially nice because the textured stitches look like spring blooms on a branch (or maybe fall berries?).

The arc-shaped shawl, designed by Hiromi Glover, is worked in a bulky weight superwash wool yarn, which makes it quick to knit and easy to care for. Of course you can use whatever bulky yarn you have on hand, or even use a lighter weight yarn and just make the project bigger (the stitch multiple is included in the pattern so it’s easy to do just that).

The pattern repeats are surprisingly easy to work, and the texture is made with popcorn stitches, which are a little less fiddly than bobbles because you don’t have to turn the work to finish them.

Instructions are given both fully written out and with a chart so you can make it in whatever way is easiest for you.

You can find this pattern at Purl Soho.

Looking for more fun shawls to knit for spring? Here are a few I’ve shared in the past: Vibrance a triangle worked with sock yarn | a garter stitch triangle with textured edging | Adrift, an allover eyelet rectangle | Scrappy Bias, a great project for using up all your leftover bits or unused mini skeins

Summer shawls are great for those days when it’s more warm than not, so if you want to get a jump on a project you can use when it’s warmer, check out my collection of summer shawl knitting patterns, too.

[Photo: Purl Soho]

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