May 2009 Archives

I apparently never posted this one but it's been up on Flickr for the last 5 days.

Earlier this month I opened a topic on Ravelry asking members to name significant knitters. I knew my knowledge of the craft and of important knitters was limited, and I didn't want to exclude anyone who contributed a lot to knitting. It turns out, there are quite a few names out there, not just pioneers in all the different categories; entities such as publishing houses, design magazines, and groups such as Ravelry were mentioned as well. It got to be a longer list than I thought (so many notables I'd never heard of), and at some point the scope of my inquiry went farther than I expected.

And in the end I realized all these names couldn't be added to this one.

Copyright just about sums it up: these people and entities should have the right to how their names are used. (Read this.) I know, it sounded like a fantastic idea in the beginning, having a periodic table with great knitters in there, because after all, we refer to some of the best in shorthand: EZ, KF, AS, BW. But I'm aware that while some of these knitters may be enthusiastic about having their names on this, others might not be. This project could possibly become a minor income stream for me, and there is the possibility that some knitters would object to my using their name for a business venture.

I could obtain permission from each and every single person mentioned (or their decedents). I could do that. I'm willing to bet that most of them would say yes, but somehow I think that good things could go wrong. I certainly don't want to deal with legalities when I'm in residence elsewhere. Ick. Can you imagine the logistics for that?

I finally decided to drop Noble Knitters. But just when I made that mental "No" in my head, another idea popped up.

And in the end I realized all these names could have their own periodic table. Oh yes!

Stay tuned on that development. For now, enjoy EZ: she was truly one of the greats.