The Alleynian 705 2017

THE UNION

Woolly thinking

Harry Taylor, the founder of Knit Soc

Every year at Dulwich brings a crop of new societies to join those already established. By far the most intriguing recent newcomer has been a knitting society – Knit Soc. Harry Taylor (Year 13), its founder, explains how the new group arose, while below Andrzej Fanner Brzezina (Year 13) describes its attractions

A fter taking up knitting again in the Michaelmas term, I quickly became aware of the desire among my fellow students, not to mention a number of teachers, to learn the skill. In response to this demand, I decided to found the College’s first Knitting Society. With the help of Ms Wang, a venue was arranged and funding acquired from The Union to get the project underway. The dozen attendees of our first meeting were accordingly supplied with needles and standard-issue purple yarn to commence our woollen adventure. In contrast to other societies, which merely promise ties as rewards for attendance, Knit Soc uniquely offers the opportunity to craft one’s own, with all the pride and satisfaction that comes with that, as well as a truly individual result. With the aid of YouTube and much perseverance, we eventually had a complete set of cast-on pieces ready to learn the fundamentals of knitting and purling over successive Thursday lunchtimes. As the weeks have gone on, substantial improvement has been made in technique and people have begun their ties. This delay is necessary due to the step up required to attempt a design according to a specific pattern. Although attendance has been slightly reduced (perhaps the rigours of the discipline have proved too much for some), we do maintain a good core of members who soon, hopefully, will be proudly wearing their creations around the school. Overall, Knit Soc has been a thoroughly worthwhile enterprise that has added a creative and relaxing outlet to the Union list. HT

Armchair attractions I t is important for those of us in the Upper School to have a break from work and revision – and what better way could there be to relax on a Thursday afternoon than sitting in an armchair, knitting needles and wool in hand, listening to The Archers on a portable radio? The slow and gentle pace that would come to characterise the Knitting Society was evident during our first meeting when we spent 40 minutes just attempting to ‘cast-on’. By the end of the Lent term, the more dexterous of us had knitted something with the semblance of a tie. As for me, well, my efforts thus far bear more resemblance to a purple stick-on moustache than any article of clothing. Nevertheless, I have thoroughly enjoyed my time spent with the Knitting Society and it will surely live long in my memory as a reminder of the delightful eccentricity that can be found at the College. AFB

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