Fickleknitter

June 16, 2009

What Everybody Ought to Know About Knitting Washcloths

I love knitting washcloths. There are some people who use the term Washcloth Knitter as a pejorative. And to them I wave my finger. You know which one. A simple change in description and the washcloth takes on a whole new role. How about a gauge swatch? Or a blanket square? I can't think of many other things in life that bear the responsibility of the simple hand knit washcloth. Gentle enough for newborn skin. Washes away dirt from a kid's first mud pie. Or to clean up a newly skinned knee. A ritual cleansing of hurt and heartbreak all wrapped neatly into a small package. I could have used dozens of hand knit washcloths in the first years I spent after I moved away from home. Especially for the tears I shed as an undergraduate student studying physics.

If only I knew then what I knew now. That the path to becoming a Physicist is paved with gold and high praise. That my college professors who wrote "Michelle what in the hell are you talking about?" on my homework would know what I now know. That being a physicist means you'll be known forever, cast into high density plastic molds for the masses to greedily consume like so many french fries.

I'm certain that in the moments after Einstein derived his Theory of Relativity he wondered How will I be memorialized as one of the brightest minds in the 20th century? Well Einstein, you're now a Bobble Head toy that comes free in a Happy Meal. My kid uses you as a hammer. Congratulations. If only some of my old professors would reach that same acclaim. I have a few repairs to make that require the use of a good hammer.

Recently Lyssa asked about my interest in growing cotton. It's twofold. Ghandi believed that if people spun their own cotton it would reduce consumerism which helped the British government flourish. Or simply put manufacturing something as simple as clothing would help usher in the revival of village economies. I believe strongly that the existence and success etsy is a refleciton of that belief. A turning away from multi-national consumerism and embracing of craftmanship.

Secondly, I want to raise cotton because I can't have a goat. I want to develop a garment --or a washcloth-- from the seed all the way to a finished object. And since city ordinance (and good sense) prohibits me from raising a farm animal cotton seemed like the next logical choice.

In the meanwhile I'm hacking my aerogarden to grow cotton (and tomatoes).

If you're curious about how I'm doing it or how things are growing have a look at my Aerograden Hacks flickr stream.

Posted by Michelle at June 16, 2009 12:42 PM