BEIJING, Feb. 13 -- A HK man is knitting a scarf for his girlfriend when other guys are desperate for gift ideas to please theirs for the coming Valentine’s Day.

Jeffery Kwok, 26, has everything under control. “I hope to make a special gift. Before, I bought her a mobile phone or accessories, which can be seen everywhere,” the man was quoted by the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post as saying Saturday.

He has been attending a knitting class for a month.

“I’ve never done any knitting in my life. The scarf I’m knitting for her is pink, with some special patterns. She might think it doesn’t look good when she sees it, but I’m sure she will appreciate my effort,” he said.

Kwok, who has taken a new knitting course at the Hong Kong College of Technology’s Competitiveness Center, is among a growing number of men who have taken up knitting after it became trendy in New York. A wool and craft store in Manhattan organizes “boyz nights” where dozens of men gather for a few pints and to knit. It is said knitting helps relieve stress.

Competitiveness Center manager Santes Ma Sai-dan said the course had only recently begun recruiting men. “Knitting is a very good way to show your love and to take your mind off stressful daily life,” Ma said.

She said she hoped the center would help promote the culture of knitting among males. “In the past, you’d never see a man carrying a baby or feeding one. But these days, they are everywhere.”

While men in the United States seemed to be more open about their newly acquired interests, Kwok was a little shy.

“I didn’t tell anyone about attending the knitting class because it’s embarrassing. People usually think guys shouldn’t pick up such a girly hobby,” he said.

(Source: Shenzhen Daily/Agencies)