Yarn Harlot: The Secret Life of a Knitter

More than 50 million people in America knit. The average knitter spends $500 to $1,700 a year on yarn, patterns, needles, and books. No longer just a fad or a hobby, knitting has advanced to a lifestyle.

Knitting is no longer a hobby just for grandmothers. Since the upsurge of knitting began in the early '90s, the number of young women who knit has doubled. Magazines targeted specifically to 18 to 35-year-old knitters are now on the market. It is not uncommon to see daughters knitting alongside their mothers, or hipsters knitting at coffee shops or bars. Transcending all age groups, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's Yarn Harlot: The Secret Life of a Knitter (Andrews McMeel Publishing, $12.95) reveals the purest elements of knitting: obsession, frustration, reflection, and sheer enjoyment. Comprised of 37 essays, this memoir demonstrates knitting's role in the true devotee's life that every knitter will be able to relate to—and laugh at.

Stephanie's poignant and entertaining narrative finds humor in knitting an enormous afghan that requires a whopping 30 balls of wool, having a husband with size 13 feet who loves to wear hand-knit socks, and earning her "yarn harlot" title with her love and fickle adoration of any new yarn—she'll quickly drop an old project for the fresh saucy look of an interesting new yarn. And it doesn't stop there. Yarn Harlot delves into the many confessions knitters everywhere are bottling up:

• "The System": Stephanie admits to a condition known as "startitis," in which she starts a project, but then sets it aside for a new one. Years later, she will be delighted to discover these half-finished projects so that she may give them as Christmas gifts.
• "Nothing in My Stash": The ever-growing stash. Stephanie goes so far as to divide her stash of yarn into four groups: the "core stash" that is irreplaceable and never gets used, existing solely for the purpose of nostalgia and admiration (a.k.a. the monument to knitting); the "souvenir stash," which Stephanie describes as the postcards from her life containing yarn from Newfoundland, Hawaii, or Italy; the "sale stash" purchased only because it was 50 percent off; and the "transient stash," the yarn that actually gets used.
• "Moth": As most knitters are, Stephanie is in complete denial about moths. She decided that the moths flying around her kitchen were "cereal moths." By the time she couldn't handle her own denial anymore, she had to completely de-moth her entire yarn stash–a process that took weeks and was comprised of several rounds of beating, heating, and freezing.

While humorous, Stephanie's Yarn Harlot reaches a soft sentimentality revealing how knitting can encompass all parts of one's life:

• "One Little Sock": Stephanie is what is known as a knitter-doula. Not only is she a labor companion during childbirth, but also while waiting, she knits the newborn's first socks, then a matching hat, and if there is time left (which most mothers pray there isn't), she crafts a matching sweater.
• "Parents and Knitters": One of the 10 ways in which being a parent is like being a knitter: "No matter how much time you spend at knitting or parenting, you are still going to wish you could spend all your time at it. Which is odd, since both activities are occasionally frustrating enough that you want to gnaw your own arm off."
• "What She Gave Me": Stephanie never quite understood her grandmother, nor did her grandmother understand her. In the end, however, despite their forced relationship, Stephanie recalls the day in which she held her first ball of yarn and pair of needles. It turns out knitting would be the lasting, invaluable gift passed down from her grandmother.

As Stephanie explains: "Knitting is magic. Knitting is an act of creation and a simple transformation each and every time." Each knitted gift holds hours of one's life. It may look like a hat, but really it's six hours at the hospital, two hours on the subway, and four hours alone at two in the morning. Yarn Harlot celebrates that knitting is love, looped and warm.

Knitting sets goals that you can meet. Sometimes when I work on something complicated or difficult—ripping out my work, starting over, poring over tomes of knitting expertise, and screeching "I don't get it!" while practically weeping with frustration—my husband looks at me and says, "I don't know why you think you like knitting." I just stare at him. I don't like knitting. I love knitting. —Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, Yarn Harlot

About Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

A knitter for 30 years, Stephanie is also a celebrity amongst knitting circles known for her unique and witty writings on the craft at yarnharlot.ca. She is the author of At Knit's End: Meditations for Women Who Knit Too Much. She lives in Toronto where her best yarn is hidden in the basement freezer.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — Contact: Jennifer Collet, (800) 851-8923, ext. 6675, jcollet@amuniversal.com

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