Sweater curse

The "sweater curse" or "curse of the love sweater" is a term used by knitters and crocheters to describe the belief that if a knitter or crocheter gives a hand-knit sweater to a significant other, it will lead to the recipient breaking up with the knitter.[1] In an alternative formulation, the relationship will end before the sweater is even completed.[2][3] The belief is widely discussed in knitting publications, and some knitters claim to have experienced it.[4][5][6] In a 2005 poll, 15% of active knitters said that they had experienced the sweater curse firsthand, and 41% considered it a possibility that should be taken seriously.[7]

Despite its name, the "sweater curse" is treated in knitting literature not as a superstition governed by paranormal forces, but rather as a real-world pitfall of knitting that has rational explanations.[4][8] Several plausible mechanisms for the sweater curse have been proposed, but it has not been studied systematically.

  1. ^ Stoller, Debbie (2004). Stitch'n Bitch Nation. New York: Workman Publishing. p. 120. ISBN 0-7611-3590-1.
  2. ^ Sarah Kerner (2006). "Having a ball with knitting". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 11 May 2007.
  3. ^ Lurie, Alison (28 August 2013). "The Sweater Curse". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  4. ^ a b Manning, Tara Jon (2003). Men in Knits: Sweaters to Knit that He WILL Wear. Loveland, Colorado: Interweave Press. ISBN 1-931499-23-3.
  5. ^ Roghaar, L; Wolf M (2002). KnitLit: Sweaters and their stories. New York: Three Rivers Press. ISBN 0-609-80824-9.
    Roghaar, L; Wolf M (2004). KnitLit (too): Stories from sheep to shawl. New York: Three Rivers Press. ISBN 1-4000-5149-5.
    Roghaar, L; Wolf M (2005). KnitLit the third: We spin more yarns. New York: Three Rivers Press. ISBN 1-4000-9760-6.
  6. ^ Welsh, K (Winter 2002). "The sweater curse". Knitty. 2.
  7. ^ "Who Are We? The Anatomy of a Knitter, As Revealed in the KR Polls". Knitter's Review. 2005. Archived from the original on 2007-12-19.
  8. ^ Pearl-McPhee, Stephanie (2006). Knitting Rules! The Yarn Harlot's Bag of Knitting Tricks. Storey Publishing, LLC. ISBN 1-58017-834-0.