Sweater curse
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The Sweater Curse states that if you lovingly knit a sweater for your significant other, they will break up with you.
Although counter-intuitive, the Sweater Curse is supported by the personal experience of many knitters (but not all). Knitting other garments (scarves, socks, etc.) as gifts can also invoke the curse, but this appears to be a weak effect.
The Sweater Curse is treated here as a simple name for real phenomena connecting knitted gifts with personal relationships, rather than as a mere superstition (such as spilling salt or encountering a black cat). The word beneficiary is used for the person who receives the knitted gift.
Suggested mechanisms of the curse
The mechanism of the Sweater Curse is unknown, and a systematic/statistical analysis of contributing factors has not been carried out. However, several hypotheses have been advanced:#redirect [[Template:Fact]]
- Unlucky timing. Knitting a sweater takes a long time, and the relationship dies of natural causes during its making.
- Rescue mission. The knitter senses subconsciously that the relationship is about to end, and knits a sweater as a dramatic gesture to save it.
- Overly generous. Knitting a sweater may seem too intimate, too domestic or too binding to the beneficiary. It can make them realize that the relationship is not reciprocal, that they would not do something as nice for the knitter. Mixed feelings can prompt them to end the relationship before it "gets serious".
- Aversion. Some beneficiaries may simply not want to wear anything hand-knit. A hand-knit sweater can also subject them to ridicule, either because the sweater looks bad (i.e., poorly made or unfashionable) or conveys overly domestic connotations.
- Misdirected attention. The knitter loves their sweater a little too much, and pesters the beneficiary about the sweater instead of working on their relationship.
The reverse sweater curse
The reverse sweater curse states that if you receive a knitted item from your significant other, they are about to break up with you.#redirect [[Template:Fact]] This version of the curse may result from the knitter trying to dispel guilt over the breakup or giving the beneficiary a friendly memento of their relationship.
Some knitting patterns provide runic spells that, when knitted into the sweater, are promised to dispel an unwanted significant other. This usage does indeed seem superstitious, unless the beneficiary can interpret the signs.
Antidotes to the curse
It's both practical and wise to involve the significant other in designing the sweater (e.g., in choosing its design, colors and materials) and to follow their suggestions (even if the knitter doesn't want to).#redirect [[Template:Fact]] Another strategy for avoiding the curse is to wait until marriage before making a sweater for a significant other.#redirect [[Template:Fact]]
References
External links
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