Here we go. My first ever knit project and first time reading a pattern – fingerless mitts.
Read More
All articles filed in knitting
I wish I could knit
You’re proudly displaying your beautiful finished object to the world when a friend, swooning over your latest make, laments – “oh this is stunning, I wish I could knit”. How often do you hear that refrain? We hear this many times a week, and not just online.Here on the blog we’ll document the progress of one such “I wish I could knitter”
Read More
5 weeks of knitting season
We are five weeks in to the Knitting Season Club – a three month exploration of creative making (and handknit design), following a format that’s a little different to previous clubs, with weekly essays and creative assignments as well as the usual collection of new patterns. These essays have been one of the most enjoyable…
Read More
Weel Riggit
Like many people, I think, this style of warm, hard-wearing and definitively wintery sweater fills me with a very particular kind of nostalgia. I first saw sweaters of this kind when I was eighteen, and went away to University. There I encountered a very particular kind of student who wore this type of sweater –…
Read More
Àrd Thìr
It’s yarn launch day! Let me introduce Àrd Thìr: our new aran (heavy worsted) weight yarn in a range of beautiful shades that have been inspired by the Scottish winter landscape. Our winter landscape is often thought to be drained of colour, but if you look carefully, you’ll discover a mix of many interesting shades:…
Read More
needle size is immaterial
Yes, this is a post in which I reiterate a frequently made point: that while gauge is really important when you are knitting a pattern, needle size is completely immaterial. When you want a hand-knitted item to fit correctly, the only thing that matters is that the fabric you are knitting is as similar as…
Read More
heid cases
Did you know that our Milarrochy Heids book was now available to pre-order? I’ve been really enjoying revealing one hat per day over on Instagram and Ravelry, and here’s a round-up of the first few heids. First up is Ella Gordon’s Breiwick – the featured cover design. Inspired by her own elusive search for the…
Read More
November
It has been a busy start to November. We’ve been working really hard finishing our new Milarrochy Heids book, and I have been preparing for a special event taking place later this week. It is a huge honour to be invited to speak at this event by the Federation of Small Business (from whom we…
Read More
New Lanark owls
Back in the spring, I knew my ten year owliversary was coming up, so I decided to knit myself a new owl sweater. These photographs were taken while we were in Berneray, back in May. It’s quite weird seeing myself with my ‘old’ hair – I suppose that must mean I’m now completely used to…
Read More
owl stories
You all know that the owl sweater means something to me, and now I know that it means something to you too. Over the past few day, via email, blog comment, or on Instagram, you’ve shared your owl-y stories. I received more than 700 responses across the different platforms and it has been inspiring, moving,…
Read More
owls (from “Handywoman”)
I recently wrote about how I designed the owl sweater in my book Handywoman. As part of the sweater’s ten year owliversary, I thought I’d extract that part of the book here. “In the autumn of 2008, I’d knitted a sweater that lots of people seemed to really like. As my skills and technical acumen…
Read More
owliversary
In November it will be ten years since I knitted my owl sweater. A lot can happen in a decade, and that’s particularly so for me. In November 2008 I was an academic lecturer at Newcastle University, researching and teaching literary history. Knitting was one of several hobbies I enjoyed, and I’d begun documenting my…
Read More