Hello, Friends!

Moving toward the holidays, the weeks become jam-packed — have you noticed this?

This weekend, Claire and I are looking forward to joining Fruity Knitting for a live appearance, which will be available to their “Merino” and “Shetland” patrons via Patreon. Host Andrea Doig will be posing questions that patrons have submitted beforehand, and then we’ll open things up for an impromptu conversation. For information about how to be part of it all, take a look at their Patreon page. We’ve seen some of the questions, and it is bound to be an interesting chat!

And of course, as the calendar ticks down toward the 25th, Christmas knitting becomes an issue for those of us who celebrate the yuletide holiday.

Christmas knitting is a tricky thing.

If you want to have a hand-knit Christmas present ready for the big day, it’s best to start on it early. Like, in July. If you don’t (and I speak from experience), chances are you’ll be hiding in your bedroom on Christmas Eve madly knitting away while your family wonders why you aren’t enjoying a cup of egg nog by the fire with everyone else.

Thing is, even if you do get all your Christmas knitting wrapped up by Hallowe’en, as the yuletide season approaches, the urge to knit something warm and cozy intensifies. In the end, you’ll be knitting anyway. And this is where knitting for charity comes to the rescue. The good news is that there plenty of places looking for warm woolies for those who need them over the winter, and you don’t have to do this knitting in secret. In fact this knitting is best done in the presence of others — a chance to visit with friends, build community, make a difference in the world, and inspire others to do the same.

Hats off (or on — not sure what the appropriate salutation is here) to my good friend Sandy Takeda, long-term member of Morningside-High Park Presbyterian Church, for organizing this year’s Mitten Tree to benefit LAMP Community Health Centre. For the next three Sundays, Sandy and I will be hosting a Knit-Along following the service for folks who want to knit a little bit of love and care into something that will keep someone warm this winter.

Claire and I have both gotten in on the act. Claire wasn’t so sure about shaping and ribbing (what she calls “all that fancy stuff”) so she has opted to go with a classic scarf. I’m trying out the new-to-me “Barley” hat pattern, courtesy of Tin Can Knits. A big shout-out thanking Briggs & Little Woolen Mills for the yarn. You can check out our work in the photos below (along with a progress shot of the Christmas pennants I mentioned last week).

Looking forward to an egg nog in front of the fire…

the knitting pilgrim talks

We continue to release new episodes of The Knitting Pilgrim Talks, which explore the imagery of the Stitched Glass tapestries in conversation with faith leaders.

episode 114: balancing the past WITH the present

Balancing the Past with the Present

In Episode 114 of The Knitting Pilgrim Talks, I spend time with Imam Jamal Rahman of the Interfaith Community Sanctuary in Seattle discussing the section of the Islamic tapestry that features a set of scales with the new millennium on one side and the year of the Prophet Muhammad’s death on the other. We talk about Islam’s challenge in balancing the past with the present, and that the progressive anti-patriarchal ideas of the Prophet are very much in line with the modern world.

"[People ask me] ‘Why is it, in each of the (Abrahamic) traditions, there is so much exclusivity, violence, patriarchy, and homophobia?’"- Imam Jamal Rahman.

Episode 114 is available on YouTube here: KPT 114 Balancing the Past with the Present.

Or all of the podcast places, like KPT on Spotify, if you’d rather listen than watch

If you have any questions about any of my projects, would like to book a talk, workshop, The Knitting Pilgrim, or Spycraft, please reach out to me at www. kirkdunn.com