Hey there=) My name is Jess, and I spend most of my time knitting, thinking about knitting, and talking about knitting. So I thought I should create a place where I could do that and dialogue with others about my favorite things. Et voici, the Amoral Fiber knitblog.
Basic biographicals: I’m 23 and graduated last year from UC Santa Cruz with degrees in Literature and Feminist Studies. I’m a geek, with numerous fandoms and obsessions. I live in Santa Cruz with my partner of (2? 3? 4?) years, Taylor. I obviously don’t believe in anniversaries–every day should be celebratory. I read quite a bit when I can get away from my needles, and sometimes even when I can’t–I’ve been known to use incredible creativity to prop a book up and open so that I can knit and read at the same time. I love a challenge, and my favorite part of knitting is the design and problem-solving processes involved in getting an object just right.
I don’t believe in conformity, in knitting or any other part of my life. And on that note,
the amoral knitafesto
I believe in knitting to your own standards, not to anyone else’s. Sometimes that means bastardizing someone’s pattern, using the wrong decreases, the wrong needle size, the wrong fiber…wrong, wrong, wrong. Thing is, there shouldn’t be a right and wrong for fiber arts. That’s why when I went to create my knitblog, I thought of the term “moral fiber” and turned it into the neutral “amoral fiber.” Many people mistakenly think that “amoral” is the same word as “immoral,” that it means “‘bad” or “wrong.” Instead, it means that it is something unconcerned with a proscribed code of morality. In this sense, I’ve always thought that all art should be amoral.
I can’t count the number of times that I’ve talked to someone who’s panicked because someone has told them that they’re doing something wrong, even though there’s no visible mistake. Most of the time, they’re not doing anything wrong at all–they just have a different technique for getting the same result. A similar thing is true of yarn selections–many people are hesitant to go with what they really want because they’re sure that the color is wrong for the season, or that the yarn police are going to arrest them for substituting a cotton blend for a wool. While it’s important to be aware of how different colors and fibers react, I just wish more people would remember that you’re putting all this energy and creativity into something for yourself, and what matters is that it makes you smile–not that whether or not the editors of Vogue approve of your color choice this season. Besides, it should all start with love of the yarn. Everything else will fall into place, if you’re willing to take the time and risk to make it.
I also believe in mistakes–some of my favorite stitch patterns have resulted from misreading a pattern or not paying enough attention. While this can create disaster (why do I have 108 stitches instead of 36??), it’s also your best opportunity to study how knitting works. The best way you can understand why a pattern works or how techniques are constructed is to fuck it up a few times. So go ahead. Fuck up. Before you frog, look closely at what you did and try to figure out why it didn’t work. Then go ahead and tear the bastard out, content in the knowledge that you’re a better knitter than you were a few minutes ago.
So, my knitting philosophy, in fifty words or less, is this:
1. Trust yourself.
2. Be willing to tear it out a few times to get it right.
3. Be willing to not tear it out if you’re the only one who can see the mistake.
4. Do whatever the hell you want to do=)
Always, Jess
