A lot of knitters, not to mention yarn manufacturers, seem to be more interested in the environmental impact of crafting these days. If you want to make your knitting a little more eco-friendly but aren't sure where to start, Joanne Seiff's Knit Green: 20 Projects and Ideas for Sustainability can help.
The book provides an overview of many of the issues and considerations that go into knitting with less impact on the planet, as well as providing patterns you might want to knit with your eco yarn choices.
Greener Options
Each section of the book covers a different way that knitters can knit green:
- Supporting biodiversity
- Sustainable farming practice
- Vegan knitting
- Maintaining folk and indigenous traditions
- Promoting fair trade and fair work
- Organic and natural fibers and labeling use
- Reduce, reuse, recycle
- Buy local goods
- Changing our habits
Each section details some of the changes that could be made in that area, provides definitions of terms (like sustainable, fair trade, organic) and mentions companies you might want to support.
These overviews give you an idea of the issues that eco-conscious knitters ought to be thinking about when they chose materials for a project, such as how the fiber was produced, the working conditions for those who made it, the cost and how far the yarn had to travel to get to your home or local yarn store.
The book isn't preachy; it doesn't insist that you take all or even any of these issues into consideration. In fact, it might leave readers feeling a little puzzled or overwhelmed as to what they should be doing when it comes to greener knitting.
The end of the book suggests that readers think about each of the issues brought up in the book and decide which ones are most important to them, then develop action steps to ensure that future yarn choices fall in line with those values.
Sieff makes that sound easy but in fact it can be quite difficult to decide if it's more important, for example, to purchase a locally produced yarn or one that's organic but had to travel a long distance to get to you. The book doesn't make those choices much easier.
The Patterns
Knit Green also includes 20 patterns that show off some of the greener yarns Seiff talks about in the main text of the book. Projects range from hemp placemats to a security blanket made of vegan fiber and dog toys made with organic, naturally colored fibers.
There are sweaters, tops, home decor items, bags and mittens. There's a curtain knit from stash yarn and a bowl worked from yarn made from an old sheet (much like making T-shirt yarn).
Some of my favorites include the Gator Gaiter, a tapered scarf worked in a Blanket Rib; the Ploughed Acre Knee Socks, a toe-up design featuring an easy lace pattern; and the Spire Smock, a boxy cardigan with a lattice motif worked in organic wool.
Some of the patterns are suitable for beginners, but the more complex garments (there are only a couple) would be better for knitters with a little more experience.
Bottom Line
Knit Green gives knitters who haven't considered the ecological impact of their craft a lot to think about and a variety of ways they might start to knit greener, from working out of their stash and reusing materials to choosing organic yarn or materials from cooperatives that support the economic health of people around the world.
Knitters who have some understanding of these issues already might not find much new in the book, but they will find here a connection to other knitters who are making the same choices and an understanding that what one person does can make a difference, because if we all bought one skein of organic yarn or chose a locally produced product instead of something imported, it would not only be a positive for the planet but for the organic yarn manufacturers and local producers who so need our support.
Publication date: October 2009.
