Most of us, knitters included, want to do our part for the planet, but it can be hard to know what that means. What makes a yarn organic? Are natural dyes safer than chemical dyes? From selecting organic yarns to reusing yarns to knitting warm projects (and turning the heat down), there are a variety of ways to knit green.
Leading knitting industry figures, including designers French Girl Kristeen Griffin-Grimes and Kristin Nicholas, yarn company creative director Pam Allen, and writer/editors Amy R. Singer (Knitty) and Clara Parkes (Knitter's Review), offer their perspectives on integrating green principles with their work and lives.
In addition to the articles and personal essays, Knitting Green includes 22 contemporary projects from top designers for garments, accessories, gifts, and home furnishings, all designed to use earth-friendly yarns or to serve an earth-friendly purpose. In addition to Ann Budd, designers include Pam Allen, Mags Kandis, Deborah Newton, Vicki Square, and more.
The collection has a wearable but fashionable feel (similar to Interweave's Style series) projects are current without being trendy. These appealing, innovative designs give knitters a sense that they are helping the planet while making beautiful and useful knits.
Each designer interprets the challenge of "knitting green" in her own way: reducing disposable plastic bags, facilitating an alternative to chemical detergent, using fiber that would otherwise go to waste, and keeping wearers warm or cool without using energy.