Why Pink Yarn Is Going to Be Hard to Find Until Inauguration Day
If you’re looking for pink yarn between today and Jan. 21, you might be out of luck. Knitting and crafting stores across the country are running low on the hue as a result of the Pussy Hat Project, which launched Thanksgiving weekend and is encouraging knitters to knit pink cat-eared hats for women to wear to the Women’s March on Washington, taking place the day after the inauguration of Donald Trump.
Why pink? As the Pussy Hat Project founders state on their website, “Pink is considered a very female color representing caring, compassion and love — all qualities that have been derided as weak, but are actually strong. Wearing pink together is a powerful statement that we are unapologetically feminine and we unapologetically stand for women’s rights.”
Churchmouse Yarns and Teas in Bainbridge Island, Wash., and Purl Soho in New York tell Yahoo Style that they are close to being sold out of pink yarn. On its website, Lovely Yarns of Baltimore announces itself as a “proud partner” of the Pussy Hat Project and says it will “happily hook you up with some pink yarn” if you are in need.
Virginia Johnson is a film costume designer and the owner of Gather Here, a crafting studio in Cambridge, Mass. She tells Yahoo Style that her shop has also “officially run out of the neon pink yarn in a bulky weight.” Johnson adds: “We still have some neon pink yarn in worsted, sport, and fingering, but most people are knitting their hats with bulky yarn because it’s so much faster. We’ve reached out to our vendors to see what we can get in quickly because Pussy Hats have been a very popular project for the community.”
Through Gather Here, Johnson has been actively promoting the Pussy Hat Project; on Jan. 5, Gather Here hosted its first knit-a-long (KAL) to make hats for it.
“The place was packed,” Johnson says. “Some people were avid knitters, others needed a refresher, all were enthusiastic. We offered a discount on yarn and needles, handed out patterns and assisted with casting on, adapting the pattern, and casting off. By hosting these KALs, we hope to also collect Pussy Hats for those people marching on the 21st that may not know how to knit.”
The pink yarn shortage has also provoked some interesting conversations about the idea of femininity, identity, and bodies, Johnson reflects.
“We have had many conversations about how pussies aren’t all pink, and we’ve seen hats knit up in blush, maroon, and raspberry,” she says. “It’s been great fun to hear customers chat about the various hats they’ve knit or crocheted.”
Johnson adds: “I’ve also had a few conversations with other knitters and pattern designers about the impact of the Pussy Hat. Some women find it juvenile. Others hate the connotation of hot pink. I, personally, have really loved this bold color choice and reclaiming the word ‘pussy’ after the comments made by the President-elect.”
Gather Here will be hosting two more knit-a-longs for the Pussy Hat Project leading up to the Women’s March on Washington.
“We’ve started to receive hat donations,” Johnson says, “and I look forward to wearing my Pussy Hat on the 21st in D.C.!”
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