Joi of Lace: Harry Potter And The Knitting Spell

July 15th, 2011 will mark the US premier of the final chapter of the Harry Potter movie series.

Like many people, I have followed Harry Potter since the first book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone came out. It was a story on CNN about a community burning the first book that got me interested in reading the series. (Anything that merits an old-fashion book burning must be a damn good book!) I was hooked on Harry after the first chapter and have been a loyal Potter-head ever since.

Harry Potter has done more than just get a whole new generation of kids away from the TV and to the library. It has also sparked a whole new realm of fantasy and fictional inspired knitting. From Mrs. Weasley's now famous sweaters to Hagrid's knitting that measures the size of a tent, we knitters have been obsessed with the knitting found or implied in the books by J.K. Rowling.

Alison Hansal"s Charmed Knits and the many Harry Potter groups found on Ravelry, Google and Yahoo are poof that the knitting spell Harry Potter has cast will live long after the final movie credits roll by.

Thank you J. K. Rowling and that you Harry Potter, for your inspiration, motivation and for bring that little bit of magic back into all of our lives!

As a final tribute to this great magical journey we've all been on, I encourage you to wear something knitted or crocheted this week that would be worthy of the magical world of witchcraft and wizardry. And to all you Harry Potter fans out there please tell me, what knitted / crocheted HP-inspired item will you be wearing to celebrate the final movie?

I leave you with a few of my favorite Harry Potter patterns. Enjoy!

[caption id="attachment_877" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Quidditch Sweater by Anne Bergeron (photo credit ACraftyLawyer)"]