Support BIPOC Designers with a #RhineBIPOCSweater

There has been a lot of talk in the knitting community this year about diversity and the need to acknowledge, promote and support designers and knitters of color and others from traditionally marginalized communities.

All that talk is good, but it means very little without action.

Which is why I love the #RhineBIPOCSweater project. Rhinebeck is one of the biggest events of the knitting year, and the Rhinebeck sweater is an important garment for anyone attending the festival because it’s what you choose to show off to your fellow knitters.

So the dyer behind Lady Dye Yarns and Jasmin from Knitmore Girls came up with the idea to promote a Rhinebeck sweater knitalong and crochetalong that encourages people to make designs from BIPOC designers and using yarn from BIPOC makers. There’s a list of potential projects (not all sweaters) on Ravelry, curated by the Black Squirrel aided by the work Jeanette Sloan has done to highlight BIPOC makers.

Lady Dye has also posted about BIPOC indie dyers to make shopping for yarn easier. The colors in the above picture are the suggested colors for the project.

Even if you’re not going to Rhinebeck (I’ve never been; it’s a long way from here and it always falls around my husband’s birthday) this is a fantastic idea. We can say we support BIPOC makers all day long but until we are giving them our financial support it doesn’t mean anything. Check out the list; you’re sure to find something you want to make.

[Photo: Lady Dye Yarns via Instagram.]

Next Pattern:

I’ve shared a lot of Christmas stocking knitting patterns over the years (see posts 1, 2, 3 for example) but what if you want to knit a stocking for a non-human member of your family. If you’re looking for Christmas stocking knitting patterns for your cats or dogs, this is the post for you.

These large paw print stockings are perfect for either dogs or cats, so they’re great to knit if you have both. They are worked in the round using DK weight yarn, and the stocking measures about 17 inches/43 cm from the top to the heel. You can get the pattern from nicolaluke.

The K4 Project has a super cute Kitty Christmas stocking pattern, which is worked in worsted weight yarn. They also have a dog version, or you can buy both and get a discount if you have both dogs and cats to knit for. Both projects have two patterns, showing how to work the stockings flat or in the round.

Put your dog into a Christmas scene with this stocking pattern from ifanhourChild. It shows a dog in a dog house in the snow, and has room for the dog’s name at the top. It’s worked flat using worsted weight yarn and the pattern includes charts for many small and medium dog breeds (there’s a separate listing for bigger dogs) so you can stitch a dog that looks like yours.

Annie’s Woolens has both dog and cat stocking knitting patterns that are worked in worsted weight yarn in the round. You can change up the colors to suit your pet if you want, and they come with an alphabet chart for personalization. Or you can stick with holiday colors and buy a kit to make the dog or cat stocking.

Waiting for Santa Paws is a pattern from Kate Agner on Ravelry that would be cute for a dog or a cat. It looks like a leg with a paw print on the bottom part of the foot and more paw prints running around the top of the leg. This is a great option if you don’t want to mess with a heel turn because it doesn’t have a heel, because dogs and cats don’t have heels so why would their stockings?

Book Review – 20 to Knit: Tiny Christmas Toys to Knit

Book Review – Knit Christmas Stockings

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