Vegan Knitting
Hooray for Meatless Monday! Rather than focusing on our plates, we’re taking a look at our knitting needles today. The holidays are around the corner and who doesn’t love receiving a new scarf or pair of cozy mittens made by a loved one? Knitter, blogger, and vegan, Emily Kearney is here to give us the scoop on cruelty-free yarn and how to get started with this super cool hobby! Read on to learn how to create wonderful handmade gifts, join a vibrant crafty community, and pick up this meditative activity while caring for the animals.
Photo by Bittersweet Blog
Four years ago, I began to work as a paraprofessional at a public school based on the Waldorf philosophy. My job was to support a child with a disability through first grade, which is the point at which Waldorf students learn to knit. As an assistant, my job was to help my student lend a hand to others. This meant, naturally, learning how to knit myself.
It’s difficult to describe the way I felt when I learned to knit. It was as if my hands had been meant to move according to the rhythms of knitting all along. Indeed, there’s a fine knitting tradition in my family: many of the women in my extended family (then and now) have made beautiful items with fiber crafts. Although I never had a chance to meet some of them, I can get to know them through the heirlooms they left behind.
As a vegan, knitting is more challenging for me than it is for typical knitters. I usually have to figure out an appropriate substitute yarn when the yarn suggested for a pattern contains animal fibers. I have to pay attention to the drape and stretch of plant fibers (depending on the type of garment) so that I don’t end up with a sweater that reaches my knees after it’s washed. I often have to purchase yarn online when local stores don’t stock a lot of vegan yarns. And inevitably, I deal with questions such as “But conventional cotton is so much worse for the environment than wool – aren’t you worried about that?” or “You don’t use wool? I can’t knit with cotton – it’s so rough on my hands.”
So I decided to start a blog, Vegan Knitting to share the knitting projects I work on and share information with others who want to use animal-free yarn for ethical or health reasons.
Luckily for us, these days there are a whole variety of yarns out there to choose from that can satisfy both the vegan and the environmentally-minded. Vegan yarns can be made from cotton, linen, soy, bamboo, rayon, nettle, acrylic, microfiber, nylon, and elastic. A number of companies—such as Blue Sky Alpacas, South West Trading Company, and Crystal Palace—feature a line of vegan yarns.
In current economic times, many knitters are following the theme featured in the last series of Brenda Dayne’s Cast-On podcast – Make Do and Mend. This motto was used in the UK during WWII to inspire households to use less new materials and find ways of reusing those on hand. It is possible to be a prolific knitter without spending a lot of money on yarn. It’s also possible to find an animal-fiber yarn, if necessary, without contributing to the animal industry at all.
Here are some surefire strategies:
-Talk to family and friends – they’ll often have knitting materials from a relative or an abandoned try at knitting languishing in a closet.
-Look at your local charity or thrift shop – you’re almost certain to find enough some needles and yarn at very low prices. Scan through sweaters at the shop to look for solid colors with non-pilly yarn. These can be unraveled, washed, and reused. Clear instructions can be found at Neauveau Fiber Arts.
-Search for “recycled yarn” on both Etsy and Ebay for colors and fibers at very low prices.
-Join the “ISO and Destashing” group on Ravelry to see what members are selling. You can post for donations for charity – which is how I made all of the necessarily animal-fiber projects I made for Afghans for Afghans.
-Look for these brands at your local craft or yarn shop: Lion Brand, Berrocco, Takhi, or go to Knitpicks. And look for rescue farms that sell the animals’ fleece and handspun yarn, such as Homestead Wool and Gift Farm.
If you are interested in knitting but haven’t done it before, there are several things you can do to make it successful:
-Get a copy of Stitch n Bitch by Debbie Stoller. For professional video guides of basic stitches and techniques, check out Knitting Help. For videos of more specific stitches and tricks, search for the terms on YouTube.
-Start with a project you like. A 50 stitch wide scarf on size 5 needles with skinny cotton yarn will never get finished. You’re much better off starting with something manageable in a short amount of time, such as a potholder, coaster, skinny scarf, or a small bag. Choose a pattern that demands size 8-10 needles, not too big, not too small.
-I can’t emphasize how important it is to knit with others. Find a local knitting group and start going. Don’t be intimidated about bringing your garter stitch scarf on big needles when other people are knitting intricate lace shawls on teeny tiny needles. Others will be happy to help you with your knitting, and you’ll learn a lot just listening to them talk about their projects. You can look for a local knitting group on the Stitch N Bitch website or within the Ravelry groups.
-Join the knitting social network website, Ravelry. You can list your completed projects and those in progress, browse the largest online collection of patterns and yarn, and see what others have made with the patterns or yarn you like. On the forums, you’ll be certain to find someone to answer your “I dropped a stitch!” questions at 3 am.
I am proud to be part of the vibrant and supportive virtual vegan knitting community. Through groups on Ravelry and inspiring blogs like Bittersweet Blog, Vegan Craftastic and Blind Purls, I hear about new products, get great advice, and participate in fun swaps. Knitting socks without wool is even trickier, so check out Vegan Sock Knitalong, and my comprehensive list of vegan sock yarn.
When I’m knitting, I feel like a different person. It connects me with people I love, connects me with new friends who share my passion, and is an important part of my efforts to life a sustainable and cruelty-free life.
Emily Kearney is a special education teacher who lives in Portland, OR with her husband and new kitten. She loves to spend time in her garden, read, knit, watch film noir, and cook. She’s been vegan for nine years.
- Posted by Guest Blogger on November 9, 2009 at 5:00 am
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Tagged as: Animal Rights, community, knitting, meatless mondays, vegan
Other posts by this author:
I’m ashamed to say that, even though I follow a vegan diet, I’ve rarely considered how I feel about wool in my life, and didn’t even understand that vegan knitting necessitates different materials.
…Until I read this post. Thanks, Emily, for sharing!!
I love knitting, but haven’t done it in years. I find it to be very meditative and calming. Thank you for sharing all of these fantastic resources so that I can align my future knitting projects with my vegan lifestyle!
What an eye opening post! Although I am a committed vegan, it hadn’t even occurred to me that my knitting wasn’t vegan. Several companies are making wonderfully soft and luxurious bamboo yarn and sturdy bamboo knitting needles now. I’ve also always wanted to buy a vintage sweater from a thrift store, unravel it and knit something else with the yarn. This post has inspired me to finally do it. Thanks Emily! ^_^
Like Gena and Angel, I never really considered that knitting would present a potential challenge as a vegan! I’ve been thinking more and more about knitting lately, and may have to take the plunge after reading this post. Thanks!!
I understand the problems with factory farming and I am committed not to have anything to do with them. I am not however, a vegan. I do believe in local, organic, sustainable farming. I am fortunate to live in a community where farmers raise animals humanely, with great care, gratefulness and I do believe even love. Much food is produced by folks that are not only farmers but artisans. Raising food on small local farms produces not only healthful sustenance but also sustainability for the community. What could possible be so wrong about a small farm raising sheep with the greatest of care for wool that clothes a community? Best to read those labels and you may find that organic bamboo yarn your knitting with is produced by slave labor in India, not to mention all the fossil fuel it takes to ship it all around the world. I think it is critical to not participate in the utter cruelty, waste and sheer disgusting practices of large scale factory farming but I am not sure that total abstinence from all things animal is the answer or even possible for that matter. I would be curious to know how vegans feed their pets for one thing.
I add this comment respectfully for the purpose of discussion.
Well Here comes the big stupid question. I have been lucky enough to travel and see how some yarns are made and used. I have not seen cruelty in these places. So is there cruel factory yarn producers? I have never even thought of this concept. I love the idea of being animal friendly and no cruelty and defintely am a vegan.. but I am confused by this but willing to learn. If bamboo is a plant that is destroying the enviorments in lands that it is not indigenious to and it is cruel to use animal fibers, it seems that we are stretching our resources and I am completely willing to admit I am confused. I love your article. I think that you have something here I would just like to know more. Have we stretched veganism into an almost impossible lifestyle to follow and when does it become as counter productive as other ways to farm supplies. I hope this does not come off as anything but serious. Looking forward to learning more.. Here is the dilema.. if we harvest honey from bees, beeswax for candles and body care, furniture care and the like.. when do we begin to say we are disrupting the bees or harming them. It is all so curious. Thanks. Callie
Just to answer a question in the replies.. I feed my Siberian Huskies.. organic salmon and elk,and venison. Her body is not meant to run on veggies she does however eat brocalli stems for treats and carrots.. she loves her greens and apples. But she is a dog that needs a large supply of animal protien and it needs to be what she would have eaten in the wild. I wonder what everyone else is feeding thier pets too not to get to far off the mark. I love the post about cruelty free farming. I am a vegan but my family is not so we frequent farms that raise thier animals with love and grace and treat them with care to supply the needs that are not met by my diet. Then I have the question as too the products that come as a source of this farming. Should we have thrown away the hides, or use them.. I say use them.. the feathers.. use them.. the corn husks use them.. we should never waste.. But the whole moral issue is very clear to me but I may not be in line with everyone. Many Blessings this is a great conversation. callie
The posting vegan knitting gave me the urge to just throw in the towel. Can’t you just buy from local or small farms who are compassionate? My 72 year old neighbor shears her sheep and it never seems cruel. It is always when the warmer weather is coming so I figure the animals are actually cooler. I used to keep bees and the bees were always left with enough honey stores to live through the winter. The wax comes from decapping the honeycombs. It is surplus. The bee population is so low these days that I almost feel like I should get my hives going again to help in the effort to save the honeybee.
This vegan knitting topic reminds me of a post I recently on thekindlife site where Alicia talks about her favorite plastic shoes (http://www.thekindlife.com/tlc_units/filter/2/25/1). Having visited shoe factories all over the globe, including ones that manufacture plastic footwear,these places are so toxic. And the work conditions in many of these places are abysmal. There seems to be a disconnect between animal compassion and common sense sometimes. Maybe the whole vegan community just needs more time to evolve.
I am monitoring this site for all post I am so interesting in this converstation. I ordered a hive kit for bees for the new house.. oh I pray I dont kill them. I kept bees in texas and my garden and pantry were better for it.. anyone else reading these post..??Callie
Kris always says, “worst, better, best” when I’m mulling over a decision and I don’t always choose “best”. But I do like to know all of my choices so that I can make educated purchases. Now that I’m aware of all the resources out there, I feel empowered to make an animal (and worker) friendly choice at the store. Whether it’s yarn, the clothes we wear, or the food on our plates, we can make choices that will be kinder to the planet, animals, and our fellow human beings. We posted this blog to share the amazing websites out there and let people know that even the yarn we use can affect animals in a negative way. It’s all about knowledge! Knitting is also a great hobby to pick up. Let’s not forget about the fun, relaxation, and joy this activity can bring to our lives. I love the community I discovered when I started knitting:)
Oh Corinne you are a doll you are right.. I am loving this discussion. You learn alot. Knitting is fun.. and we cannot forget that. This is one of those subjects that keep us challenged and that is good no matter what side you come down on it is good to challenge your ideas and thoughts the blog is good. No offense meant. I think we are all just wanting to learn more and learn the limits of it all or learn ourselves a bit better, I for one am still mulling over what is best. It is confusing to me but the blog is lovely I have visited the sites today and they are good. The resources are amazing. Go Figure.Hugs.. Callie
As a new vegan (since Jan 1) and a new knitter (since Sept 1), I’ve struggled with this question. My knitting friends assure me it’s “only a haircut” but I’ve seen some evidence to the contrary. Thanks for starting this discussion, I’ll be checking out your blog too!
Hi everyone, the author here, thanking you for all of your comments and thoughts! I plan to reply to them but have to run out for a few errands.
In the meantime, let me say first that I had quite a few other ideas but was limited by the length of the post. I will return with info on using wool from “humane” farms if you don’t want to stop using it, and also more about the environmental impact of plant fibers as well as crafting in general.
As someone very familiar with animal industry, I’d like to share what I know about wool production. I don’t believe there to be such a thing as “humane” wool production. I live in a very rural community, where all of the farms are small, family-owned, and what people would consider humane. Unfortunately, sheep used for wool are still not people’s “pets” in any way – they are production animals (no matter how few they have). Their tails are docked without anesthesia to prevent the fly strike they will get because we have bred domestic sheep to have too much skin, because this equates to more wool. Also because they have so much skin, they are more difficult to shear, and often suffer injuries during this process (imagine trying to shear a sharpei – some skin is bound to come off no matter how careful you are!) The process of mulesing is also still legal in many places (definitely in Australia, and I believe in the US, though I think it has been banned in Canada, which of course doesn’t mean people still do it – animal agriculture laws are among the least enforceable). In the end, of course, these sheep are not retired to some pasture, they are slaughtered for meat. It is not difficult to live without wool, I promise! And there are always thrift stores selling wool clothing second hand.
Nic- Thank you so much for giving us your first-hand knowledge! This is why the comment section is so important. Your words have moved me. Thank you again for sharing this information.
Emily-Can’t wait to hear more from you!!
Callie- You are always such a bright light at CSL:) Thank you for chiming in with your thoughts!
I also live in a rural area and in fact my neighbors around the corner form my have sheep that they raise for wool. I have visited their farm many times and have help with the sheering of the sheep in that I helped shirt the fleece after wards, inspecting its’ quality. This farm is a very small operation, the sheep are raised with the greatest of care, they each have names. They are sheered by hand with great skill, I saw no injury. I strongly disagree that there is no such thing as “humane wool production”, I have witnessed it first hand.
I too have seen humane wool production first hand.
I am a painter and I sometimes paint using the encaustic technique. Encaustic painting, also known as hot wax painting, involves using heated beeswax to which colored pigments are added. This technique was notably used in the Fayum mummy portraits from Egypt around 100-300 AD.
Does encaustic painting lack compassion for a living thing?
I am knitting bamboo yarn and soy silk thread socks for all the fellows I know for Christmas – they are so soft.
I did buy Wool from Scotland this summer as I wanted something my father would have had as a child – a connection thing…which is now a cozy sweater for me and to pass on to my children.
Lynda, I’m curious – did these sheep not go for slaughter once they were sick/old/not producing good quality wool? I would be so impressed if that is the case. I have never known of such a farm. Also, were their tails not docked? I’m not trying to be argumentative, I’m really interested – I’d be happy to know there exists this kind of wool production, even if it is far (far!) from the norm.
Oh and thank you for the support and kind words, Corinne!
Great article and thanks so much for mentioning my blog!
Thanks for this wonderful article. I am a keen knitter and a vegan, and I am so happy to rethink what I am doing with my wool!
I have had experiences similar to Lynda’s. I spent a great part of my childhood in northern Michigan and had neighbors with sheep. I helped them to shear many a sheep, each of whom was well loved and stood still, seemingly not minding the shearing (i.e. it was not a struggle). They truly can overheat in summer if they aren’t shorn during spring. In addition, I’ve seen many yarns (wool and not) produced in China and other places that have questionable labor standards. Chemicals are used to treat many kinds of yarn (wool and non-wool alike), and as another poster said, there is the additional factor of yarn being shipped from halfway around the world (vs. from your local farm or spinner). Like most conscious consumer purchases, even yarn isn’t easy these days!
I’m glad I read this article and all the posts. Reading the article I had many questions, which were answered by the posts below. I’m a crocheteer soon to be knitter (hopefully, lol) and have been doing it with plastic blends of yarns. It’s always worried me because of the plastic industry, even those yarns that say “recycled” or “post-consumer” plastic, I wonder what the percentage is and how they are produced (or what’s the environmental effect of those factories turning the materials into yarn). I’ve also been wanting to learn to spin my own yarns, eliminating “middle-man”, but this too means I need to buy wool or alpaca from producers. I never saw back in South America, the alpaca producers being anything else other than kind and humane to the animals, but that doesn’t mean that this industry hasn’t gone the way all others have, loosing the sense of “gratefulness” for the product given by the animal and humans loosing all “humanity” in the process. So, I heard about cotton and linen, is there any fiber spinners here that can tell me about it? I thought it was rather difficult to find organic cotton to spin (since it’s a delicate plant they LOAD it with pesticides and junk)and I also hear that shorter fibers are harder to spin (meaning it’ll be hard to learn with those, they’re for intermediate spinners). What should I do? I’ve also always wanted angora rabbits, to spin my own fiber, only intending to “give them haircuts” but if there is suffering in the process I wouldn’t want to do it. What are your thoughts on it? Thanks and everyone have a wonderful day!!!
I’m finally back to address some of the comments. I’ll start with the positive comments and move on to the criticisms and questions.
I’m glad that this post has been helpful to many of you! I know quite a few dietary vegans who use wool, either because they hadn’t thought
about that aspect of the lifestyle, or because the food is most important to them and they are using the wool they already have. Generally,
once people do decide to stop buying new wool, they still have a lot of previously-purchased animal fiber in their stash. It’s up to each
person to decide what to do but most people either work through what they have left without buying new animal fiber, or give away/sell that
yarn and purchase new yarn. My opinion is that you might as well use what was already purchased since I feel that not contibuting to the
industry through new purchases is most important. For example, although I would never purchase new leather shoes, I do have several pairs that
I purchased before going vegan, as well as several pairs purchased at thrift shops or used since then.
I have taken several breaks during my four years of knitting but I’m always happier when I come back to it. It’s such a great craft because of
its portability, use of a small amount of materials, and can be so inexpensive. There are many ways to buy used, recycled, and new but
unwanted yarn that you can be a real knitter without ever buying yarn or needles at a store. And if you feel sympathetic to the animal issues
but really like or need to knit with animal fibers, again it’s possible to do it without ever buying new yarn and contributing to the industry.
Which brings me to the criticisms and questions.
Initially I began to respond to each comment individually, but realized that many of the issues and questions raised are part of larger
philisophical questions, and felt it was best to write out a comprehensive reply. First I’ll address the issue of the “humane farms”, and then the idea of all or nothing.
There are some “humane” farms out there. Clearly that word is variable in definition. Generally, people think of humane as treating the animals with more respect than they’d get at a factory farm – the animals don’t have procedures done for convenience’s sake, people handle them gently and quietly, the animals’ natural food and habitat needs are respectd, and slaughter is done as quickly and painlessly as possible. When I think of what I’d consider acceptable for wool production, I’d personally need the farm to abstain from slaughter at all, do as little breeding as possible (or not sell the lambs), and abstain from tail docking, tying sheep up to shear them, and other unecessary procedures. There are definitely farms that meet these standards but certainly not enough to sustain the amount of yarn needed for typical knitters. So I prefer to avoid it altogether and leave that wool for people who would use wool anyway.
Other comments brought up two all-or-nothing points. The first being that you can’t really be vegan, so why bother with wool, and the second being the idea that vegans are supposed to care about all issues just because we’re vegan.
Yes, it’s true that it’s virtually impossible to be 100% vegan. Animal products are used in a wide variety of products that we use, in tires, glue, photography, medicine, particleboard. However, that doesn’t affect my decision to be as vegan as I can in terms of what I can control. Condoms aren’t 100% effective. Does that mean we shouldn’t bother using them at all? No, of course not. As vegans, we do our best to limit our impact on the lives of animals. When I take medications or supplements in capsules, I buy veggie capsules and move the powder over. I use digital photography instead of printing with gelatin. I buy hardwood furniture instead of furniture with particleboard. And then I let go what I can’t control: I take medication that I know was tested on animals, and some that contains animal products. I have a car. I have a computer. But I know that I’ve made a difference in the decisions I’ve made and I’m at peace with that.
The idea that a group of people passionately supporting a cause needs to support all causes or they’re not good people seems to apply specifically to vegans. I never read comments about people fighting against domestic violence such as “Oh, but what about the environment! You drive a GAS GUZZLING CAR! to the shelter where you volunteer!” It seems to be an instinctive defense mechanism that prompts people to attack what you aren’t doing because they aren’t even doing what you ARE doing.
I’m not required ethically to care about every issue out there. I care about some more than others and I put my energy into those. If I tried to support every cause equally, I’d never have time to work or play or sleep. So I choose a few and do my best, and make a difference about those. A friend of mine answers a domestic-violence hotline, another friend helps the homeless, I make hundreds of choices everyday that affect both the lives of animals and the environment. I am also very aware of global labor issues, and to that end, I purchase all of my clothing except for underwear and socks from used sources – thrift and vintage stores, garage sales, ebay. Even my shoes have been bought used or “as new” but already worn. To me, that is enough. Most of the knitters I’ve met use both yarn made in factories in other countries (most yarn of any fiber is not made in the US with labor laws) as well as wearing new clothing, most of which is made in sweatshops in other countries. So I’m already doing a lot more before you take into account the small amount of yarn I purchase, again, most of which is purchased from other people’s yarn stashes. Therefore, even the new plant fiber yarn I’ve bought, that may have been made with chemicals or spun in a sweatshop, is so miniscule compared the the amount of new products that most knitters purchase that have been made that way. Most people I know buy new clothing and new yarn. And most new yarn, whether wool or bamboo, is not made in the US.
On top of that, I do more than almost anyone I know for the environment in my household choices and while that really has nothing to do with my veganism, the assumption that I don’t care about the environment because I buy bamboo yarn occasionally is rather insulting. Heck, I even use cloth menstrual pads! I bet none of the people commenting on the environmental impact of yarn do that.
And lastly, to answer a few questions, I do have a cat, and I feed her what cats naturally eat. I don’t believe it’s right or healthy to change her diet although I’d have no problem doing it with certain dogs. I do use a combination of one food that is wild-caught fish and vegetable-based, and one food that is poultry not from factory farms.
Honey is not vegan. It does affect the bees to have their honey replaced with sugar syrup, being smoked out of their hives to obtain it, and kept in larger than natural hives that can help spread diseases very easily. I am a strong supporter of small farm-based hives, but not the larger companies that keep huge amounts of bees and take all of their honey.
I’ve been involved in the care of angora rabbits as pets and I don’t see any suffering.
I’m not a spinner but I know there are many handspinners on Etsy that use cotton and linen with great success, often mixed with other plant fibers. You might want to look at some of the spinner groups on Ravelry for answers about how easy it is.
I hope that I’ve addressed all your points thoroughly, and please let me know if you have any other questions.
Sorry for the formatting errors in my post above! I originally wrote in Notepad and I can’t edit it now.
Thanks for post and the follow up. Great discussion. A bit off-topic, but Diva cup might work even better that cloth menstrual pads. Check it out : )
I am a crocheter and hoping to transition to knitting as well. I was inspired by Etsy to take up crocheting again, and I plan to chrochet most of the Christmas presents. So far, I have only used cotton or synthetic yarns. I understand that it is possible to purchase more “humane” wool yarns as long as you know where it is coming from. But as long as I am using larger craft department stores, I guess it is better to stick with non-animal sources of fiber.
Thanks, Lisa! I have a lot of friends who use the Diva cup but I’ve refrained due to a history of bladder issues, and I don’t think my body would like the pressure.
I’m so glad you’ve gotten back into yarn crafts! They are so much fun. I agree that there are certain farms that I wouldn’t have much ethical exception with, but it’s much easier just to use plant products and reused animal ones than to do all of the research.
emily, congratulations on a great, informative article and very positive responses to the difficult issues raised in these here comments.
i’m also a vegan, who tries to avoid animal-sourced yarn and i deal with the same comments. like you, i live as environmentally sustainably as possible. we gave away our car last year and i’m wearing three sweaters right now instead of putting on the heating on a dreich scottish day.
however, i have been contemplating rescinding on my no-animal-fibre policy due to the issues surrounding bamboo yarn production, and the eternal debate i find myself getting into with people who prefer to criticise my efforts at living a lower-impact life, rather than praise the intentions and investment of time and emotion behind them. your article and comments are encouraging to me – i’ll keep on fighting the good fight, then!
Hi Mirella,
Thanks for your comment! I hear how frustrating it can be to hear criticisms about how you aren’t doing enough from people who aren’t even doing as much as you are.
Please stay strong and remember that just because there are certain items that aren’t as great environmentally as you’d like, such as bamboo, that doesn’t mean you have to scrap the whole thing. If you have an environmental objection to bamboo yarn, don’t use it – there are many many other fibers out there. Or just buy it used.
Hello everyone! Thank you so much for mentioning our sheep here on your blog- what a great place to learn from others! There are so many questions mentioned that I may not even have considered!
I understand there are concerns about animal welfare and fiber/yarn, however, I hope you will stop at our website and visit our sheep.
We do not eat, breed, adopt out or sell our sheep. Once they find their way to us, they are here to safely graze their lives away- their comfort and happiness our utmost concern. We use all the latest pain meds, supplements for our older crew, etc.
I have written about a lot of the questions/thoughts mentioned here on our site and blog. I hope you will stop in, meet the sheep- and please email me ANY questions, I am always happy to talk sheep!!!
I recently wrote on wool and veganism in my own blog; my own position is that it is possible to raise sheep ethically and use their wool. I realize this is not a typical vegan position on the issue and that there are problems in the wool industry. It is, indeed, hard to be 100% vegan. Certainly a logical starting point is to use far LESS wool (there are lots of other fibers that I often use, mostly cotton and bamboo). Another logical course of action is to write to yarn companies and pressure them to be open about what they know about where their wool comes from and how the animals are treated. (I’ve been writing to the yarn companies I have bought yarn from; so far I’ve only heard back from one, and the response was..anemic and unconvincing.)
One thing that is very clear to me: most sheep DO need to be sheared and, like all domesticated animals, do rely on people for key aspects of their care (their hooves, their food, and their wool coats).
I have been wanting to get back into knitting. I learned when I was a kid, but I totally need a refresher. Spending $50-60 at JoAnn’s to take a class was a bit cost deterrent. These are great tips and leads that I have bookmarked for those long cold winter nights after the holidays!
i love to knit! it is so exciting to make something with your own hands. i absolutely adore animals. knitting and animals… *sigh*….two of the best things on earth. i usually go to the hobby lobby store and i just look at the yarn label and see what its made of. i havent had much trouble finding good yarns. right now im using lion brand homespun (acrylic and polyester), and it is quite pretty.
What a great discussion and information-sharing forum you have started here, Emily. I followed your link over from Ravelry and will definitely be back to learn more on this lovely website. As you know, I am a die-hard knitter as well as a vegan. I do use animal fibers (wool, alpaca specifically) in my knitting and I do believe that it is possible to have farms that do not harm the animals that they gather wool from. I attend the Sheep and Wool festival in Maryland each year and talk to the farmers about their techniques before I ever buy the yarn. It seems like communication is the key there. Like many knitters, I have a pretty large stash of yarns that have all sorts of fibers – plant-based and animal fibers. I plan to use these fibers in my future knitting projects.
Thanks for the informed article and the great comment discussion. Pleasure to meet you all~