This month’s Boost Your Knitting pattern is the fabulous Flying Leaves Scarf by Carol Feller, which introduces how to make a knitted brioche fabric and how to work brioche increases and decreases. Carol is based in Cork, Ireland and is a knitwear designer and teacher with a background in structural engineering. Her unique designs have been widely published in books and magazines, and she also has taught at yarn shops and fibre festivals around the world. Carol was kind enough to catch up with me a few weeks ago and share a little more about the Flying Leaves Scarf, top tips for brioche knitting, and her gorgeous yarn, Nua, which is featured in this month’s pattern and a new addition to the A-C Knitwear Shop
Read moreFinding joy in the everyday : An Interview with Felicity (Felix) Ford
Last week, I was lucky enough to catch up with Felicity (Felix) Ford ahead of the release of the Skystone Armwarmers, this month’s Boost Your Knitting pattern! Felix is a knitter and sound artist who translates the joy and beauty of the everyday into amazing stranded colourwork knitting. Her books, the Knitsonik Stranded Colourwork Sourcebook and the Knitsonik Stranded Colourwork Playbook, empower knitters to unlock their own creativity by observing the world around her. We’re so lucky to have her beautiful design and expertise for this month’s knitalong — and I think you’ll agree Felix’s enthusiasm for colourwork really come through in our chat! I hope you enjoy it!
Read moreTechnique Talk with Julia Farwell-Clay
his month’s Boost Your Knitting designer is the supremely talented Julia Farwell-Clay, whose cleverly cute Heartgyle Socks have knitters around the world not only working intarsia, but doing it in the round! She loves a good sweater, but also has designed beautiful accessories — she’s partial to eye-catching designs and interesting techniques! She was kind enough to sit down and answer some questions about her design process and the role that new techniques play in it — and she’s got some good advice for us too!
Read moreAn Interview with Thea Colman
Last week, Boost Your Knitting designer Thea Colman’s delicious Apple Swizzle Hat was released. Thea is a prolific independent designer who likes to play with cables, lace and motifs that, in her words “look harder than they are.” The result is timeless garments and accessories full of fun and interesting twists — make one of her patterns, and I venture a guess you’ll be wearing it for years to come! I caught up with Thea last month to talk about dip stitches, design, and the highs and lows of turning a favourite hobby into a career.
Read moreTexture Talk with Sarah Hatton
May’s Boost Your Knitting pattern is the Totally Tubular Mittens, designed by texture goddess Sarah Hatton. The mitten’s 1x1 rib cuff begins with a tubular cast on in the round – the technique we’re mastering this month – from which charming mock cables grow. Sarah is a prolific designer who loves to use interesting textures to make timeless wardrobe staples. You’ll recognise her designs from The Knitter Magazine (where she and Jen first met), Simply Knitting, Rowan, West Yorkshire Spinners … the list goes on! And of course, she also created a beautiful pattern for A Year of Techniques: the Yellow Wagtail Scarf. And Sarah was kind enough to take time out for a little chat with here on the blog!
Read moreA chat with Joji Locatelli
Monday brought the release of this month’s Boost Your Knitting pattern, the stellar Sterlyn Shawl, designed by the incomparable Joji Locatelli. This gorgeous shawl, knit in, well, scrumptious Scrumptious 4-ply, is the perfect canvas on which to practice April’s featured technique, fixing mistakes in your lace. I caught up with Joji the other day and really enjoyed hearing more about her thoughtful approach to the Boost Your Knitting brief. Read on for Joji’s tips on avoiding mistakes in lace, what she does when she makes them, and the technique she’d most like to conquer this year!
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