since it's Friday the 13th...

I've decided to post some random facts about knitting and crocheting... enjoy :)

~ People magazine's "Insider" column reported in early 2001 on a very special baby shower for Camryn Manheim (The Practice) given by celebs and friends. The focal point of the party was a knitting lesson. Friends then each made a six-inch multicolored square for a baby blanket for Manheim
~ Younger women are picking up the craft. Since 1998, there has been a 400% increase in the number of women under 35 years old who crochet and knit
~ 1 out of 3 women knows how to knit or crochet. The number of women who do these crafts increased from 34.7 million in 1994 to 38 million in 2000.
(facts from http://iwpshopinfo.interweave.com/Knits/Judy%20Swartz/knittingfacts.htm)
~ The term sweaters began to be used for knitted pullovers formerly called ganseys or jerseys after they were used for athletic clothes. It is said they were called sweaters because that's what the athletes who wore them did -sweat!
(from http://escproductions.bizland.com/stonesneatstuff/knittingtreasury/index.html)
~ In the medieval Europe hand knitting was an important industry and had developed into an advanced craft by 16th century.
~ The oldest known knitting needles are double-pointed needles. They are normally used in sets of four or five as depicted in a number of 14th Century oil paintings.
(facts from http://www.purplekittyyarns.com/patterns/knitting.html)
~ During World War I President Woodrow Wilson allowed sheep to graze on the White House lawn. When the sheep were sheered, the wool was auctioned off and the proceeds went to the American Red Cross war relief fund.
~ American Red Cross knitters were still supplying the military with wool helmets as late as 1964. The men at remote arctic military outposts like Thule Airbase in Greenland and Goose Air Force Base in Labrador preferred the hand knitted wool helmets to the machine made synthetic varieties supplied by the army. The soldiers claimed that they kept your face warmer, longer in sub-zero temperatures
~ 1946 the North Atlantic Area chapters processed over 3,000 pounds of olive drab wool for the supplementary items for the military.
(facts from http://www.afghansforafghans.org/red_cross.html)
~ The Name "Crochet" comes from the word "crochet" meaning hook in the French language.
~ The Granny Square was orignally published by the Weldon company in London, as a pattern to use up leftover yarn.
(from http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/21758/crochet_facts_and_fun_filled_information.html)
~ Wool is comparatively stronger than steel.
~ Wool can absorb up to 30% of its weight in moisture, and is fire resistant.
(from http://ag.ansc.purdue.edu/sheep/ansc442/Semprojs/wool/wool_facts.htm)

Duke: O, fellow! come, the song we had last night.
Mark it, Cesario; it is old and plain;
The spinsters and the knitters in the sun,
And the free maids that weave their thread with bones,
Do use to chant it: it is silly sooth,
And dallies with the innocence of love,
Like the old age.

ShakespeareTwelfth Night. Act ii. Sc. 4