Crocheter draws crowd at bookstore
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By CARA PESEK / Lincoln Journal Star
Most Tuesday nights, Neal Brickner knits on the third floor of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Student Union.
He knits with the Uppity Knitters Unite, which was founded in October 2004. Every Tuesday at 7 p.m., they meet in the Women’s Center.
This particular Tuesday, though, Brickner, 24, brought his knitting needles and his project (leg warmers) to Lee Booksellers.
There, he and the other Uppity Knitters listened to Debbie Stoller sing the praises of crochet.
They petted the soft alpaca sweater Stoller passed around.
They examined the crocheted scarves and bags, and teeny tiny bikini Stoller brought along, all of which are patterns featured in her latest book “Stitch ‘N Bitch: The Happy Hooker,” which she was there promoting.
They laughed when Stoller, who is also the co-founder and editor of the feminist magazine “Bust,” described a small purse as having “just enough room to hold your smokes, your flask and your crack pipe.”
Stoller knits and crochets and does other crafty things that not so very long ago were associated mainly with grandmothers. And certainly, there were grandmothers in the audience Tuesday evening.
But her book, which contains patterns for modern shrugs and potholders with skulls on them, appeal to younger knitters and crocheters, too.
“We all love ‘Bust’ and love Debbie Stoller,” said Jocelyn Lippincott Reiss, a senior art major at UNL and the founder of the Uppity Knitters Unite. “This is like church for us.”
Some of the several dozen women (and two men, including Brickner) brought projects to work on while Stoller spoke. Some just listened. Some wore knitted and crocheted projects they had made.
They pumped Stoller for information, learning that:
* Her first project was a lopsided stuffed panda completed when she was still in elementary school.
* Her favorite yarn store is anyplace with lots of yarn and lots of stuff on sale.
* Her favorite yarn varies from project to project, but she is a fan of Brown Sheep, which is made in Mitchell.
“I do have an affinity for your homies here,” Stoller said.
* She has more knitting and crocheting projects in the works.
A more advanced Stitch ‘N Bitch book will come out in the near future, Stoller said. And this summer, she’s releasing a page-a-day calendar with patterns, pictures of yarn and knitting and crocheting history.
Next Tuesday, Uppity Knitters Unite will be back at the Union, working on hats and scarves and leg warmers and other projects.
Sometimes, said Lippincott Reiss, they knit and crochet in bars. Last summer, they took their projects to Jazz in June, too.
That is exactly what Stoller had in mind when a few years back she released her first knitting books, which spurred needlecraft groups to meet in coffee shops, restaurants and living rooms across the United States and beyond.
“I’ve always wanted more people to enjoy and value it.”
Reach Cara Pesek at 473-7361 or cpesek@journalstar.com.
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