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October 15, 2007
Blog Action Day: Knittivism
Thanks to whipup.net for mentioning glittyknittykitty in their post today on crafting for the environment.
Today is Blog Action Day, when the blogosphere attempts to make a difference by encouraging as many fellow bloggers to write about the environment as possible. It should. in theory, have quite an effect.
What does it mean to us here at glittyknittykitty?
Well, we did write the definition of knittivism up there in the top right corner, and we do see the act of knitting in itself as a political act. We do have dilemmas from time to time mind. It's not all plain sailing over here in gkkland.
If making gifts and knitting garments is really a snub to consumerism, then I do feel that we should be spinning and dying ourselves, with materials we find in the hedgerow, from fleeces we have reared ourselves, if we are really to be 100% true to the anti-comsumerist stance. When you live in a conurbation as I do, that really isn't possible.
However, we can all make a small difference. And that's where our take on knittivism comes in.
By making, giving and receiving hand made things, you can say No to mass production. You can embrace individualism, and you can create something imbued with love. By choosing materials sourced locally, as we both do in our food shopping (we both try to eat and cook seasonally), then you can say clearly that you are supporting local small producers rather than big impersonal conglomerates, out to fit us all into the same little tins.
By doing this you are advocating slow production, which has not travelled far to get to you. I honestly think this is a no brainer. Eating from the area you live in and trying to stay seasonal is better for you, better for the land, better for the animals and better for the environment.
As well as making stuff, cooking from scratch, and sourcing locally, I try to clean safely (white vinegar and baking soda are my best cleaning buddies) and have been trying to eliminate as many chemicals from my daily routine as I can. If we all did this, we could very quickly make producers take notice of what consumers want.
There was a fantastic programme on telly the other night, called How Toxic Are You? which pointed out in graphic detail how many chemicals the average Briton puts on their skin, in their mouth and in their homes every day. It was scary. I was feeling rather pleased with myself that I had started some of these challenges some time ago. However, Sarah Beeny pointed out just how much more I could be doing. Small things, one at a time mount up quicker than you think, and it is difficult to change everything at once.
Go and have a look at the How Toxic website and you may be surprised at how much you can do with very little effort to reduce your personal toxicity. If you do that you are by definition making a difference. So go on, make a difference, make a change today. You know you want to.
Posted by glittrgirl at October 15, 2007 07:07 PM
Comments
Yes, definitely. I am burblingly convinced that if I can keep out of posh yarn shops, and only knit with stuff that's recycled, my life and the world will be a mite better for it.
Good reminder.
Posted by: brendadada at October 19, 2007 04:00 PM
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