For several years now I've been utterly delighted by "knitting and nature" enthusiast Sam Barsky, who has been knitting sweaters for over two decades. His sweaters feature depictions of famous landmarks and locations (Venice Beach, Hollywood Sign, Eiffel Tower, London Bridge), animals (owls, pandas, ants), natural phenomena (Niagara Falls, eclipses, Mendenhall glacier), and more, and often takes photos of himself wearing the sweaters in front of whatever landmark or creature is depicted on the sweater, which he then posts on his social media accounts.
On his website, he has posted photos of himself wearing every sweater he's created, to date. His first sweater, from 2000, depicts a covered bridge. The latest one, #160, is from 2023 and depicts the Washington Monument in Baltimore and the Walters Art Museum.
Over on TikTok he posts funny, endearing videos where he tells some of the stories behind his sweaters, like his Colonial Williamsburg sweater or his Hoover Dam sweater. I just love his enthusiasm and passion for his work. He's truly found his calling and is thriving!
Unfortunately for his fans, he doesn't sell his original creations despite their constant requests. He explains why on his website:
1.) It takes me an average of at least a month to knit and assemble just one of the sweaters in my collection. It is impossible for me to be a human sweater mill!
2.) Not only would the cost for the time spent knitting be very high, out of the range of most people, but the yarn alone can be quiet costly. In reality, the sweaters are priceless!
3.) It is nearly impossible to reproduce a sweater exactly like before, no matter how hard I try, because yarn can vary from skein to skein and many yarns are no longer being produced.
4.) People wear different sizes of clothing. And getting another person's size correct is very difficult. I have even made some of my own sweaters in the wrong size!
5.) I am constantly in demand to knit sweaters for places where I travel or others of importance and need all my knitting time to focus on those. Since it takes me a month or longer to make one, I have to be sure I have sweaters I am making for travels and other gigs done on time for them.
6.) My sweaters in my collection are my wardrobe. I wear them every day, all the time, inside and outside of my home.
He does, however, sell t-shirt replicas of some of his favorite sweaters, including power lines, the leaning tower of Pisa, New York City's Times Square, and many others.
For more of his delightful work, follow him on TikTok or Instagram, or check out his website.
