Please don’t talk to me about the two months I spent knitting a pair of Glynis socks by Cookie A, only to felt them on the first wash: it’s still painful 7 years later! Having spent hours (sometimes even years!) knitting a beautiful design, it’s vital that the finished item is properly cared for. There’s little in knitting that is more distressing than ruining something that you’ve spent so long creating. Whether it’s spillage of bolognaise sauce down a child’s jumper, or the dreaded moths nibbling a hole in a treasured Fair Isle sweater, this article will help you to avoid some of these pitfalls.
Read moreHeart on My Sleeve
Emily Wessel and Alexa Ludeman, the duo behind Tin Can Knits have brought together world renowned designers to collaborate on their charity collection Heart on My Sleeve to raise funds for The Against Malaria Foundation.
Read moreThe Designers
Jim and I are so happy to finally be able to share what we've been up to... Image © Jesse Wild
Is it Wednesday already? This week has flown by, and it's finally time to share with you the list of designers from all over the world, who have contributed to our new book, A Year of Techniques. To say that we are enjoying working with them all doesn't really cover it. This is a dream line up for me - these are the designers whose work I turn to when I want to cast on something new. We really hope that you will enjoy their creations as much as we do. Jim and I spent many hours on the sofa, chatting about who we wanted to work with, and how we wanted our book to be, and the time has finally come to share all our plans. We can't wait to be knitting along with you from March!
Read moreThe Yarns
During the commissioning process, we had long discussions about which yarns we wanted the designers to use in their submissions. Our criteria were fairly straightforward: they had to be yarns we absolutely loved, widely available in quantity, and come from brands with a range of options in weight and fibre mix. After some to-ing and fro-ing, we settled on three of our all-time favourite brands: Fyberspates, Jamieson & Smith, and Schoppel Wolle.
Read moreAll About Our Cheerleaders
Jen mentioned in the launch post that Ann and Kay of Mason-Dixon Knitting will be writing the forward to A Year of Techniques. Having talked them through the concept and given them a look through the fuzzy snapshots we have of the samples, I think they're as excited as we are. As our Stateside cheerleaders, we asked them to take a break from high kicks and put their pom poms (knitted, obviously) down for long enough to answer a few questions.
Read moreThe Techniques
Heartfelt thanks for all the kind words you've said about A Year of Techniques. We've been overwhelmed by the messages in our Ravelry group, on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and via email. It's so great to hear that you're sharing our excitement!
I've always been a bit of an enthusiast for learning something new. In fact, that might be the understatement of the century. Whether it's in my knitting, or the garden, or helping the kids with their homework, I absolutely adore that satisfied feeling you get when you've mastered something you couldn't do before. I want to spread that feeling far and wide! You don't have to love every new thing you try, but there's always something to learn from the process of having a go. At least that's what I tell the kids when I've cooked some experimental dinner and they are all turning up their noses. Sometimes it even works!
Read moreA Year of Techniques
Twelve projects, from world-class designers (you wait until you see the list!), teaching you twelve new techniques that will bring your knitting to a new level. Each pattern will be supported by an article with a detailed photo tutorial, as well as a video tutorial to walk you through each step of the technique. The projects are intended to be small enough to be completed within a month, thus allowing you to try something new without over-investing in either time or yarn. And the best part is that we will be with you every step of the way, knitting along and encouraging you as you try something new.
Read moreBook review: Coop Knits Socks Yeah! Volume One
There is no way that I can claim to write an unbiased review of this book! I edited the patterns, am very good friends with Rachel, and the book is stocked in our online shop. Unbiased just isn't possible. That said, I still think I would be jumping around shouting about this book, even if I hadn't worked on it, and didn't know Rachel. You'll just have to trust me on that...
This lovely book was released back in October 2016 when we were deep in editing work and kids adjusting to being back at school. Much to my regret I didn't get around to shouting about it at the time, so I'm making up for it now. Clicking on any of the photos in this post will open larger versions in a lightbox so that you can see all the details of these pretty designs.
Read more