Recently in Periodic Table of Knitting Category

 (Also on Flickr)

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.

It's been 2 weeks since I blogged about the project. Just to show you I'm no slacker, this is a screenshot of it now.

Yeah, it needs arranging, doesn't it? And a bit of final tweaking. And sourcing out for products, that kind of thing. Don't worry, I'm working on that...

I need help in the category of most influential knitters. Those, past and present, who have made significant contributions to the craft. So far I have Elizabeth Zimmermann, Alice Starmore, Kaffe Fassett, Barbara Walker, Christine Duchrow, and Herbert Niebling. And I know there are more, but I would love to hear who you think should be on the list! Who would be in your top 10 most influential knitters of all time?

I'm happy to say that news of this project has been making the rounds online! (blushes) First was Whip-up!, then Craftzine and The Point. CraftGossip featured the cable category, and The Pimpformation Architect featured the knit stitch. This makes the work so gratifying, a personal accomplishment for me, considering that the last two weeks have been really awful. It's all good now!

(Also on Flickr).