Inactive

Red Sweaters is currently inactive. However, you are still welcome to send in sweaters. Any package received since 2007 has been safely stored away, waiting until this project becomes active again. Maybe once the war is officially over and there is a final death toll, I will be able to really finish the project. I have yet to come up with a permanent solution, or final resting place, for the sweaters. Hopefully the answer will present itself when it is needed.

Happy Knitting
-nina

22-May-2007 Site Maintenance

Hi,

I did a little site maintenance today. I updated the Runway (thanks to Lauren at the Curiosity Guild who counted up the sweaters and typed up the names for me), fixed a few broken links, and added some more things to the Promotions page.

If you happen to see the Red Sweaters project mentioned somewhere, please email me to let me know. Very few people actually contact me before they mention this project, and most of them describe the project incorrectly! Everyone is tired of hearing me say "this is not a memorial", but I feel compelled to do so everytime I see someone else write about Red Sweaters without talking to me, and they get it wrong.

Anyway - people are still dying, we still need more sweaters. Please keep sending them in. The sweater count is pretty accurate right now, I only have about 5 or 6 unopened packages and they are small packages. Not like the boxes I used to get in 2005 with as many as 80 in one box!

The Red Sweaters are going to leave CCSF in September and will need a home after that. If you have space available, please let me know. The sweaters can travel outside of California, and do not have to be exhibited in a tree.

Thanks
-nina

Red Sweaters still in action - CCSF, photo shoot, book appearance

The Red Sweaters are currently on display at City College of San Francisco. Here are some details about the exhibit from the curator, Katherine Connell:

The sweaters are up and getting lots of attention. They are part of the
exhibition "Yarns of Rebellion, Women Needling History." We've installed them
in a 5 foot high case, in piles, with strings of sweaters coming off the top
and appearing to pour into the ajoining case. The sheer amount of stacked,
knitted red is powerful. Thank you so much for lending us the project. The
exhibition is in the second floor atrium of the Rosenberg Library. It is
accessible M-F, 7:30 am-8:45 pm, F 7:30-4:45, Saturday 9-4:45, Closed on
Sunday. The show is running from Feb'07 - May'07 (possibly extended til Sept'07).

Also, the sweaters were recently part of a photoshoot by a local photographer, Claudia Goetzelmann, who is doing her own project of a similar vein. She was inspired by the widows of the dead American soliders, so she is doing a group of photos of wedding gowns with the red sweaters in the background to call attention to some of the people who are directly affected by the war, but may not be at the forefront of our minds. No news yet when or where these photos will be on display, but I'll post again when I know.

I recently received an email from someone writing a book about Knit-a-longs, and the Red Sweaters project may be featured in there.

I am still receiving sweaters, but have no time to open the packages and count them up and update the website. I'm looking at some vacation time in April, so maybe then...

-nina

Site is finally updated

Hi,

Thanks to Derek and Lauren at The Curiosity Guild for tallying up the sweaters received in 2006! Now the sweater count is up to date, and so is the Runway! Check there to make sure your name is listed if you sent in sweaters Aug-1-2006 or earlier.

Looks like we are below the count, so please continue to send in sweaters! You can still send them to me, and I will direct them to the current location of the sweaters until their tour is over.

Derek and Lauren have worked out the details for the new installation - the project has a new life, new coordinators, and a new space. It is now called "The Red Sweaters Deployment Project". They will be on display at The Hardware Store Gallery in SF for a couple months (thanks to Doug and Sheri for the space!!), then The Curiosity Guild will try to find a new home for the sweaters, and each person who takes in the sweaters will then be responsibile for tallying the sweaters and finding the project's next new home - until there is no more need for sweaters or for this project.

This is a pretty exciting new development for the Red Sweaters!
I hope you will continue to participate, and keep up with the news!
-nina

Red Sweaters hit the road

Today I'm taking the Red Sweaters to their new temporary home at The Curiosity Guild in San Francisco.

We haven't worked out all the details yet, but it sounds like the sweaters will be on display for about a month. I'm not sure if they will also take over management of the website or maybe of parts of the website. We'll try to work out those types of details in the next week or two.

I am giving them all of the sweaters and letters I have received so far. That includes any sweaters received in 2006 - all of which are still neatly tucked into their envelopes and boxes, and all enclosed letters yet unread. I want to let you know that those letters will be read by the people at The Curiosity Guild.

I'll post more details once we figure them out.
-nina

CORRECTION NOTICE AND REPORT

6/29/06 Code Section PWC184.57b

We've received a complaint regarding a sign attached to a tree in front of this address. When I arrived I found a wood sign and red sweater garlands strung through a city maintained tree. This signage and garland is illegal. You cannot attach anything to city property that doesn't meet code requirements.

Please remove within 7 days.

...

The sweaters are coming down today.
I'll put them up somewhere else, once I find a home. If you have space or a vacant non-city tree, please send me an email.

I did call the city before I put the sweaters up, and the person I talked to could not find anything that said I couldn't do it. I really thought it was legal, but I suppose I didn't ask the right person. My mistake that I didn't get permission in writing.

-nina

Documentary Filmed

Today we filmed a short documentary about the Red Sweaters project. It will be a 5 minute spot on Current Tv. It should be available for view on their website in a month or two. I'll post a link as soon as it's available.

I basically say the same things that you can read in this blog and on this site, but now you'll be able to see it on tv!

Thanks to Kevin and Jordan for filming and making me feel comfortable with a camera in my face.

-nina

ABC 7 news got it wrong

My boss came into work today and was very excited to tell me that my Red Sweaters project was mentioned over the weekend on the ABC 7 news. I am really upset about it for the following reasons:

1) ABC 7 did not contact me about it. I never would have known if my boss hadn't turned on the tv at that moment. And I was given no opportunity to clean up the front of the house before they taped it! (I didn't even know they were out there)

2) ABC 7 gave the impression that the project is a "memorial" - This project is NOT a memorial. I really wish they would have called and talked to me to explain the project before airing a story about it.

3) ABC 7 news gave the impression that I knit all of those sweaters on my own. I only knit about 9 or 10 of them. The rest were knit/crocheted and donated by hundreds of people nationwide (and a few world wide)

I did not even see the clip on the news. If anyone has a copy, please send me one!

I couldn't find a phone number for ABC 7 news on their website, if anyone knows how to contact them, please email me their number.

-nina

Now it's personal

It is official. I now know someone who is in the army and in Iraq. A friend from high school with whom I randomly exchange emails.

I haven't figured out yet how this changes my perspective on things, but I am sure that it does, somehow.

-nina

1 year anniversary, of sorts

It was about a year ago when I first started this project. After all this time, I ought to actually finish it...

I was sitting outside on my front step having lunch today, and while I was out there I saw 2 people stop to photograph the sweaters, and one couple stopped and asked me some questions about it. That was within about 15 minutes. I wonder what happens on other days? Could the tree possibly get that much attention daily?

My break is almost over.
-nina

I took some time off

After working on this project for 10 months, I took a little break after we hung more than half of the sweaters.

I still plan on hanging the remaining 600 or so, and I still plan on adding more as the death toll climbs.

Just wanted to let you all know that the project isn't over, I'm just taking a breather...

Please continue to send sweaters, and shoot me an email if you'd like to help prepare sweaters for the tree. It will probably be the middle or end of February when we hang the rest of the sweaters.

-nina

Stats Dec-30

For those of you who like statistics:

I estimate that 250 people contributed sweaters for this project.

I received approx. 310 packages from 36 different states and 2 countries outside the US.
I received no packages from 15 states.

California sent the most packages, approx. 80.
New York sent the second most packages, approx. 56.
Massachusets sent the third most packages, approx. 24.
The remaining 33 states sent less than 12 packages each.

I received an average of 222 sweaters per month for 10 months.
I received the most sweaters, 329, in December and the fewest, 24, in March.

Let me know if there are other stats that interest you.
-nina

FAQ

There are 2 questions that I hear most often about this project.

1) Why are you only representing the American Military Casualties? What about all of the Iraqi military and civilians?

A: As I explain in the "About" section of the website, I had originally intended to represent all deaths associated with the Iraq war. However, I can not fit that many sweaters in my tree. Instead, I chose one number that is symbolic and feasible for the scale of this project. I encourage others to carry on the project, and invite anyone to coordinate the effort to knit some 30,000 sweaters to represent the entire casualty count.

2) Why not spend your time doing something more worthwhile, like knitting sweaters for needy children in war-torn Iraq?

A: There are many volunteer organizations currently knitting sweaters, afghans, hats, socks, etc for needy people. Volunteers who contribute to those efforts are motivated by a desire to help others. My motivation for this art project was different.

My motivation for Red Sweaters was to inspire other people to think and reflect about how this war is affecting their life. This project may, for example, inspire hundreds of people to volunteer to knit those sweaters, afghans, hats, and socks. People who otherwise would not have thought to do so. It may inspire others to join rallies or listen to the news, or bike to work instead of drive, or put a "support our troops" magnet on their car, or talk to their children about war.

I feel that the donations and actions I could make on my own are nothing compared to the donations and actions from hundreds of inspired people.
-nina

Sweaters are up!

Today we hung 1500 red sweaters in the tree. That is the number of American casualties from the Iraq War when this project began in Feb/March. I will continue to add sweaters to the tree until the number of sweaters is equal to the current number of casualties.

Click on the image below to see a gallery of images of the installation, or go to www.redsweaters.org/gallery







-nina

Big Day Tomorrow!

We reached our goal yesterday. We now have as many sweaters (plus a few more) than the current number of American casualties from the Iraq War.

Tomorrow we will hang about 1500 sweaters in the tree. That is the number of casualties there were when this project started back in March. The remaining 600+ will join the installation as they are ready. I will continue to add sweaters until the total number is in the tree, and after that, as more Americans die in the war.

I'll be taking pictures all day of the installation process, and the final out come. Check back here for the link to the Installation Gallery.

Please continue to send in sweaters. We have reached our goal, but the casualty number continues to rise, and I am not going to display every single sweater that I receive. Please make sure you are using Red Heart Super Saver Medium Weight yarn, preferably in Cherry Red color, to guarantee that your sweater will hang in the tree.

Special thanks to Alice, Catherine, and Lisa for contributing so much time darning and tying sweaters together in preparation for the display!

Hope to see some of you at the installation tomorrow. Bring a crochet hook and a scissors and you can help prepare more sweaters for display :)
-nina

Sketch

I did a quick sketch of how I think the tree will look (more or less) once a few of the sweaters are tied to the tree. I'll show this sketch to the climber so he has a rough idea of how I want the sweaters to look in the tree. I thought you might be interested in seeing the sketch, too.



-nina

Special Thanks

Special thanks to the 4th grade students at Highline Elementary School in Aurora, CO for participating in this project!

Teacher Bruce Lilly and a parent volunteer Sheila Sanchez taught the children how to crochet, then helped them to make a red sweater. Lilly writes, "I have a classroom
full of future crochet lovers thanks to this project. They also have a more personal understanding of the casualties in Iraq."

Thanks guys!
-nina

We have a climber!

The installation date is set - Thursday, Dec-29.

It took a while to figure out how to get the sweaters in the tree. The best option I found was to hire a professional tree climber.

Keep sending in those sweaters! I'd like to hit 2000 at least by Dec-29.
-nina

3 weeks til showtime

Hi,

I updated the sweater count today. We still need just over 200 sweaters to tie today's number of American casualties.

Please send in the sweaters that you have complete. I am going to hang as many as I have on New Years Eve and New Years Day, and need all the sweaters I can get between now and then.

I also need help getting the sweaters ready for display. If you are in the bay area and can help, please email me! All you have to do is tie some knots :) But I have a special way of tieing them, so no need to send in your sweaters pre-tied together.

Thanks for your contributions!
-nina

You have a lot of thoughts!

Later today I am going to post a new update to the "Thoughts" section of this website.

As I re-read all of the letters you all sent with your Red Sweaters, I realized that many of you have included e-mail addresses and requests for me to contact you and send updates. As much as I would love to do that, I really just don't have the time to send individual email updates, and I would hate to add you to a mailing list if you did not want to be on it.

Instead, please stay updated by visiting the website, or join the Yahoo group.

If you have specific questions or concerns, I try to answer those as best as I can.
Also, if you send me an email, I respond to those fairly promptly.

I'm sorry that I can't reply to each of you personally, but please know that I appreciate your participation and I hope that you check this site once in a while to stay updated. If you want to be sure that I received your sweaters, look for your name in the Runway section.

Only 49 more days until Red Sweaters is installed!
-nina

2000+

I guess I knew it would happen, but I didn't ever want to say out loud that the death toll could rise above 2000. I wonder when it will stop? I wonder at what point do we officially stop counting? I imagine there will always be some amount of American forces left in Iraq.

This morning on NPR, they interviewed a couple of mothers who lost their children in the war, and it was really hard to listen to. I thought I was desensitized to most of it, but for some reason the stories I heard this morning got to me.

...sad day
-nina

Gallery is full!

As many of you know, it was my intent to photograph each sweater submission and post pictures on this site in the gallery section.

Well, the gallery has reached max. capacity. Also, I need to focus on preparing the sweaters for their debut, so I, unfortunately, will no longer be able to photo every single sweater.

I feel bad about this because I want each individual sweater to have the opportunity to be individually recognized, but at this point in the project it just is not possible.

I will continue to credit and thank each volunteer for their submission on the Runway page, so check there to make sure that your sweaters were received.

I'm traveling a lot less the next couple of months, so I will have more opportunities to update the website.

Thanks for understanding
-nina

Vogue Article is great!

Thank you thank you thank you to Michelle Wiener for writing such a wonderful article about Red Sweaters in the Holiday'05 edition of Vogue Knitting. This issue is really beautiful, so if you don't already have a subscription to this magazine, run to your local book store (places like Barnes'n'Noble will have it) and pick up a copy. There are a lot of great ideas in this edition - and the article about Red Sweaters (on page 44) is a great read.

I welcome all of you who are joining the project after reading this article! We need your help, as we still have over 600 sweaters to knit.

Thanks Michelle!!
-nina

Final Stretch!

We are 11.5 weeks away from deadline - I want to install the Red Sweaters on New Years Eve. We only need about 650 more sweaters, so I am hoping to rally our supporters to knit just a few more sweaters this month so we will be ready for Dec 31!

If you have some sweaters that are complete but just need their side seams sewn - send them! I'll sew them.

If you have some sweaters that are only half complete - finish them! Then send them!

I know right now that there are a lot of other very worth while charities that can use your time and support knitting useful goods like blankets and hats and scarves. I am hoping that you will have 45 minutes to make just one more sweater - maybe in between your other charity projects?

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita really took the spotlight off the war in Iraq (which, yes, is still going!). There have been fewer news stories about Iraq in the headlines. So I think this installation will be available to the public just in time to remind them that - yes - even though you are not hearing about it daily, there is still a war going on, and - yes - we still have people dying. And - yes - the war is still affecting you in some way, and you need to think about that and how the war is impacting your life.

Thanks for your continued support
-nina

Mention in "Family Circle Easy Crochet "

I am happy to announce a new article about the Red Sweaters project! You can find it in "Family Circle - Easy Crochet" magazine. (Not to be confused with "Family Circle - Easy Knitting (and crochet)".

However, there is one line in the short article that I want to clarify, as it isn't quite correct.
"But Rosenberg found her inspiration: mini red knitted and crocheted sweaters, meant to represent the human form and honor each American soldier who has given his or her life in Iraq."

It is misleading to say that the sweaters "honor each American soldier who has given his or her life in Iraq" because it makes the project sound like a memorial and as though honoring the soldiers is the only purpose for the sweaters.

While the sweaters do represent lives lost, this project as a whole is not a memorial or a protest. My main purposes for this project are to spread public awareness, encourage thought, and inspire discussions - not to memorialize the deaths - just to draw attention to them.

Each volunteer who submits a sweater has their own personal reason for doing so. Some knit in honor of soldiers, some to protest the war, others to show support for the soldiers who are still fighting. The article limits the meaning and purpose of the project by saying only that the sweaters honor the soldiers who sacrificed their lives.

I welcome all volunteers, for whatever reason you choose to participate (including to honor soldiers or protest the war), as long as you know and understand that this project as a whole is not a memorial or protest.

Thanks for your understanding and contributions!
and for the article!
-nina

We're getting there!

As of August 27, 2005 we have 1274 sweaters submitted, 1872 deaths, so 598 sweaters more to go.

I've set a goal/deadline for installing the sweaters on New Years Eve. People tend to do a lot of self reflection on New Years, and that is what I am asking people to do by showing this installation - to think. Think about themselves, their relationship to the world, to war, to current events, to neighbors, to life, to death - everything.

I hope some of you will be here to watch me put the sweaters in the tree...
-nina

Heard it on NPR this morning

I was listening to Morning Edition while I drove to work this morning, and
there was a short commentary about the war, more specifically about
publicizing the return of coffins draped in the american flag.

The commentary had echoes of my exact sentiment and purpose for the Red
Sweaters project. Have a listen:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4801425

wow wow wow

I finally counted the last few weeks of sweaters - WOW - 259!! that brings our current total to 750... but 23 more soldiers died today which makes our goal farther off.

But anyway, the sweaters are looking great! Good sizes, good colors, good yarn, good tails, good variations in textures... I'm really impressed with this lot! You guys are doing a really good job.

Just for fun, I took some pictures of the mess that is my living room. We're swimming in red sweaters. (right click on the image and select "view image" to enlarge...)


(above photo) counted, documented, and photoed - I keep all of the packaging and letters you send...


(above photo) counted, documented, waiting to be photoed

My cat, GG, really likes to help me sort the sweaters. She really... gets into.. it. haha?


:)
-nina

Life gets in the way

When I started this project, I told a friend of mine that I wanted to photograph every single sweater I received. He said to me "That will not scale". Now he is saying to me "so, when are you going to give up on taking pictures of each sweater?"

Well, I have about 200 sweaters waiting to be tallied and photographed, so it is very tempting. But I do still think it is important to photo document each sweater - it's as close as we'll get to having pictures of the soldiers.

So I guess I'm writing this note to let you know that I may be slow in processing all of the sweaters, but eventually I will catch up. Life keeps on getting in the way, but I still have every intention of seeing this project through according to my original vision.

I haven't done any real marketing of this project in a long time, but the sweaters continue to roll in. So as long as I continue to receive about 50 sweaters a week, I don't feel a need to do a lot of advertising. The Yahoo group has gotten very quiet this past month, but I think that's because everyone is busy making sweaters :)

So, keep them coming, and email me if you have any questions.
-nina

Size Matters

Many of you are getting very creative with your sweaters! I love to see the variety.

Remember that when you use a decorative stitch, the ratio of rows/sts has to change to keep the sweater the right size. For instance, if you knit in garter stitch (knit each row), and you follow the basic pattern, your sweater will turn out short and wide. To correct this, experiment with adding a few extra rows (to increase length) or using fewer stitches (to reduce width).

Remember that the sweaters should be 3" wide, 3.5" long, with sleeves 3" long x 1" tall.

Keep 'em comin'!
-nina

KnitNet Article

KnitNet, an online knitting magazine (www.knitnet.com), published an article about Red Sweaters in their Spring'05 Edition. You do not have to be a member to read the article - just follow this link, or click on the "new or just visiting" button off their main page to see a sample!
The article is in the "Notes in the margin" section, about halfway down the page. Enjoy! And thank you, Sharon Airhart, for the article.

Coming soon - an article (or blurb) in a major knitting magazine!! (ever hear of Vogue Knitting?!)
-nina

........Tails..........

After looking at over 300 different sweaters, I am still amazed at some of the creative things you guys are doing. And I don't mean experimental stitching - I mean the ways you all interpret the directions - specifically, the sleeve tails.

I have seen tails range in size from 1/4" to 3 feet long. I have seen tails hanging from the top or bottom of the sleeve, from shoulders, neck, and bottom. I have seen some with no tails, some with as many as 8 tails. Some tails neatly gathered into little bunches, some wrapped around the body 10 times, some secured with bag ties, others tangled loosely into a web within the envelope. One sweater has a very cute 1" loop at one end, and no tail at the other.

I know that no matter how many times, no matter how clearly I explain, I will continue to see this variety. And that's OK. It's all part of working on a project of this scale. But I'll explain the tail in detail anyway, for those of you who are curious :)

The long tail at the end of the sleeves will allow me to tie the sweaters together so they can be easily suspended in the tree. Imagine this: 4 sweaters lay on the table next to each other. Take the tail from sweater 1 and pass it through the sleeve and out the neck hole of sweater 2. Take the tail from sweater 3 and pass it through the other sleeve and out the neck hole of sweater 2. Tie sweater 1 and 3 together. Then take the tail of sweater 2 and pass it through the sleeve and neck hole of sweater 3, then tie sweater 2 to sweater 4 inside sweater 3. Continue this procedure for as many sweaters as you have, continuing to tie the odd sweaters together inside the even sweaters, and even sweaters together inside the odd sweaters. This will create a chain, or garland, that can drape or wrap or climb around the tree.

The ideal tail will be approximately 1 foot long (so there is enough room to pass the tail through the neighboring sweater and tie a knot), and it will emerge from the sweater at the TOP of the sleeve opening. That means that after you finish sewing your side seam, you need to weave the tail along the outside edge of the sleeve opening until it reaches the top of the sleeve - then secure it in place with a knot. The sweater will not hang correctly if the tail starts at the bottom of the sleeve.

I hope this explanation helps. If not, don't worry about it. I'll fix your sweater when it gets here :)
-nina

Tons

I'm back and sorting through piles and piles of sweaters! It's going to take me some time to catch up with website updates (runway and gallery). But I'm going to try to at least keep the counter up to date.

Lots of deaths in the last 2 weeks. We're up to 1605 dead, and as of today I have accepted 331 sweaters. That leaves 1274 sweaters still to knit.

Please keep sending in those sweaters!

Remember - to guarantee that your sweater will be accepted, use Red Heart yarn in color Cherry Red. I am accepting some other brands and shades of red, but not all of them. If you want to be sure that your sweater is accepted, email me privately if you are unsure of your color or brand choice, or just use Red Heart yarn in Cherry Red. I hate having to reject sweaters :(

Keep on knitting! and crocheting! and thinking about current events!
-nina