Summer already feels like a very long time ago. In my corner of the world, the temperatures are falling, the leaves are starting to drop and the kids have long been back in school. But let’s take a moment to pause and look back on the Confident Knitting projects we made this summer. Maybe it was your vacation/taycation knitting? Maybe you did it with a summery drink to hand? Maybe it distracted you from a heat wave, or jump-started your autumn wardrobe planning? It’s fair to say that, for our Confident Knitters, knitting really knows no season, and you all produced some beautiful FOs between June and August. Let’s revisit them!
Read moreShetland Trader Book 3: Heritage by Gudrun Johnston
To say that we have been excited about this release would be something of an understatement…
I’m not entirely sure when I first started to talk to Gudrun Johnston (below) about working on her next print book, but from a trawl through my extensive email collection, it seems to have been around five years ago. From the start I knew that this collection was going to be something really special.
Read moreUse Every Scrap Knitalong: Finished Socks!
We are deep in preparations for Yarndale at the weekend (are you going? We’ll be on stand J14 and are very excited about it!). But in the meantime, here are the socks…
I hope that you’ve enjoyed this gentle summer sock knitalong. We set off from our toes, and worked our way up the foot, conquered Mount Heel, and as of two weeks ago I hope you’ve been meandering along your calves. This really has been the perfect way to use every scrap, whether it’s a bag of sock yarn scraps, or every scrap of a precious skein of yarn, with this recipe, you can knit until it’s all gone!
Read moreHitchhiker - One Skein Wonder
As yarn shows start to come back again after their enforced closures, I have been thinking about the questions we are regularly asked at our stand. You are probably no doubt aware of our love for self-striping yarns and Schoppel Wolle Zauberball and Zauberball Crazy always seem to catch the eye of visitors to shows. After a customer has selected their perfect colourway, I’m commonly asked, “What can I make with this?” For a while I used to reply that these yarns are great for anything, but it was politely pointed out to me that I was perhaps not being at all helpful…
Read moreWhat's Next for Confident Knitting?
We’re well into September now, which means the digital, every-month-a-surprise portion of Confident Knitting has come to an end … but the learning and fun certainly hasn’t! Ebook updates have landed and print copies are making their way across the world. Let’s have a peek at what we’ll be learning over the next stages of the journey!
Read moreConfident Knitting Projects: Spring!
It’s really hard to believe that we’re over halfway through our year of Confident Knitting! Arnall-Culliford HQ is still a hive of packing industry as we are sending copies all over the world, and you might soon spy it popping up at a festival or yarn shop near you! We will be bringing lots of copies to Yarndale next week. I can’t believe it’s next week already!
There’s still plenty of Confident Knitting fun left (six months’ worth of knitalongs, to be precise… though of course the journey never really ends), but reaching the halfway point and the debut of the print books is certainly a milestone. We thought we’d celebrate it with a few posts looking back at what you lovely Confident Knitters have created and looking forward at what’s to come!
So today, let’s take a trip back a few months, when the Confident Knitting journey had just begun, and see some of the amazing learning that happened in the spring!
Read moreDebut Pullover + A Bottom-Up Sweater Knitting Video Tutorial
What did you knit over your summer holidays? When I wasn’t rejoicing in rainbow stripes, my needles were occupied with Karida Collins Debut Pullover, which I’m knitting up in Fyberspates Vivacious DK … + a video tutorial for joining sleeves and body.
Read moreStrickplaner, but not as you know it...
We are absolutely delighted to be stocking Martina Behm’s fantastic Strickplaner again this year. She has taken lots of feedback for the planner, and it has had a makeover… It’s no longer an annual diary, but rather a book that you can use over a number of years to track your knitting projects, and spoiler alert – we love it!
Read moreUse Every Scrap Knitalong: Calculating Calf Increases
Welcome to the penultimate post in the Use Every Scrap KAL! How did you get on with the heels? I hope they’re happily inserted, with all stitches present and accounted for, and that you’re feeling very pleased with your bravery! Today, we talk legs and particularly, how to accommodate our calves if we’re making longer socks that use every scrap of yarn.
Read moreMoorland Socks + Garter Stitch Short-Row Heel
Happy September and happy Confident Knitting release day! The time has finally come for me to introduce you to my very own design for Confident Knitting: Moorland Socks. These are knitted in a Fab Funky Fibres colourway designed specially for Confident Knitting! Do you spy that ever so squishy looking heel? It’s this month’s featured technique, the garter stitch short-row heel!
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