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Knit one, purl two, hook one thousand
(Courtesy of Komunitas Rajut) Forget the image of a grandmother knitting while sitting on a rocking chair surrounded by balls of wool
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(Courtesy of Komunitas Rajut)
Forget the image of a grandmother knitting while sitting on a rocking chair surrounded by balls of wool.
Contrary to conventional ideas, knitting is not just for grandmothers or women waiting for their babies to be born. A whole lot of young people are hooked on the hobby as well.
Take a look at the gathering held every afternoon by the Let’s Knit group at the knitting supply store Miki Moko in Blok M Plaza, Jakarta. According to Linda “Nicegreen” Astuti, 28, one of the managers of the Let’s Knit mailing list, the majority of members are under 35 years old. “Many who have joined are senior high school students or university students,” she said.
The group was established in 2006 by two close friends, Dyah Dyanita, or Dydy, 31, and Safrida Purwati, or Frida, 31. Since then, the number of members on the Let’s Knit mailing list has increased daily. They also have a website, www.merajut.com.
“If we calculate the total number of members on the mailing list and the forum participants on the site then there are more than a thousand people,” said Frida.
The two women, who had the same hobby – knitting – when they were young, met in an Internet chatroom
“A long time ago we were angry because books about knitting were not being published in Indonesian,” said Frida, who works as an IT analyst. “We started sharing our ideas, then we both agreed to write a book about knitting, which was published in 2008.”
While writing the book, Frida and Dydy formed a mailing list and an Internet knitting site to reach out to more people with a love of knitting. All the preparations done from afar – at that time, Dydy was living in New York. By the middle of 2006, the mailing list and the Internet site were ready.
That was how the pair discovered just how many people have a fondness for knitting. Members on the mailing list, whom they call rajuters (knitters), even include people from remote areas of Indonesia and elsewhere in the world.
“There are some in Sumatra, Kalimantan and even Papua. Overseas, there are some who live in Malaysia, Singapore, the United States, Holland, Japan, the Middle East and Germany,” said Frida.
The members themselves are as varied as the countries they come from, including housewives, university students, shop assistants, technicians, journalists, lecturers, doctors and lawyers.
“Although the majority are women, many of our members are men,” said Linda, who works in technical administration with a telecommunications service company.
Asking questions and getting answers about knitting techniques and making knitting patterns is daily fare for the rajuters. They discuss a range of topics, from choosing needles and substituting yarns, through to making knitting patterns. To see the individual results of their work, just search their personal blogs.
A quick browse demonstrates that there are few limits to just what can be made from knitting: Household goods such as tablecloths, pillowcases and placemats; accessories such as handbags, cell phone holders and purses; and of course clothes: vests, cardigans, sweaters, shawls, beanies, socks, gloves and bandanas.
But there is no need for those just starting out to be daunted by the exquisite and sophisticated pieces the group members are turning out, the founders say. It’s easy enough to start from scratch. That’s because there are written instructions on how to knit, while the Internet site gives links to video tutorials.
“Or you can also ask to be taught directly by others members who you can meet in the real world,” said Linda.
Knitting itself is not too difficult to learn, but there are plenty of tricks to look out for.
“It needs perseverance and creativity; there are also mathematical calculations that are quite complicated,” Frida said.
“If you are wrong in making just a small calculation you have to reorganize from the beginning.”
But these die-hard knitters find that once they become engrossed in their activity, they can knit and knit all day. For example Frida, when she is working at speed, can make a shawl of up to 1.2 meters long in only two days, and can turn out an adult’s hat in one day. For Frida, knitting is not restricted to the home; she often knits in the train on her way to the office.
“Knitting can become an addiction,” said Frida. “Apart from eliminating boredom and calming stress, knitting is also good at training concentration. There is even research that shows knitting is useful to delay senility, and can be therapeutic for children with ADHD [Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder].”
Linda is just the same. After coming home from work, she often stays up knitting late into the night, even as late as 1 a.m. She not only spends her time making items for herself, but also accepts requests from her colleagues, such as covers for cell phones and Bible covers. She sells these for around Rp 50,000 (US$4.50)
Knitting can also become a source of a little money on the side. Frida calculates the price for her items based on the type (cotton, acrylic or wool) and the amount of material used, plus the cost of manufacture at Rp 50,000 per ball of yarn.
For example, big knitted garments such as woolen cardigans are price between Rp 500,000 (US$45) and Rp 800,000 (US$75).
“For cardigans, the amount of wool used can be considerable,” she said.
It doesn’t help that a ball of wool can cost Rp 120,000.
“If we uses other types of yarn the price can be lower,” she said.
Knitting also can be a useful way to express affection – by giving handmade gifts. To celebrate their birthdays, all members of the mailing list contribute a bag and pencil box that they’ve made to elementary school students in Bandung. “Last August we donated 29 bags. This mid-February we’ll donate again – 79 bags,” said Linda.
In celebrating world knitting day, known as WWKIP (World Wide Knitting in Public), in the middle of July 2008, the rajuters sat and did their knitting in public spaces. The knit-in, held in the Bogor Botanical Gardens, was attended by around 20 people. What they knitted that day, mostly baby blankets, was then donated to an orphanage.
Yet another benefit, the members find, is that knitting can also be a tool to explore and promote local culture.
“With this aim in mind, last year we held a knitting competition with the theme of batik and traditional Indonesian motifs,” Dydy said.
“After reading the book Knitting on Top of the World, I realized that knitting in other countries has special characteristics. There are many people, including the top famous designers in the world, who express their ideas through knitting. So there is no reason why Indonesia can’t become like that.”
