KDD & co

you must believe in spring

By: KDD January 4, 2020January 14, 2020

amazing knitters, Warm Handsmittens, Warm Hands20 Comments

Today’s pattern has its own animation! One of the joys of developing a collection like Warm Hands is discovering the work of talented new designers. Today’s wonderfully jolly mittens – featuring stranded colourwork, cosy folded hem, and flower-topped hands and thumbs – are the work of first-time designer, Matissa Hollister. Here’s Matissa to tell you…

Dissonance

By: KDD January 3, 2020January 14, 2020

amazing knitters, Warm Handsintarsia, knitting, mitts, Warm Hands13 Comments

Today’s Warm Hands pattern is Dissonance – a pair of two-tone mitts knitted in a couple of contrasting and cosy skeins of Àrd-Thìr, and designed by the very talented Sarah Mackay. You may remember Sarah as one of the stars of our Milarrochy Heids book, with her stand-out Every Flavour hat. Sarah submitted her design…

Amaka

By: KDD January 2, 2020January 14, 2020

amazing knitters, creativity, Warm Handscolour work, design, knitting, Sylvia Watts-Cherry, Warm Hands10 Comments

I’m particularly excited to reveal the second pattern from our Warm Hands collection – Amaka – a beautiful pair of long-length gauntlets in five shades of Milarrochy Tweed, designed by the very talented Sylvia Watts-Cherry. Some of you may know Sylvia from her appearance on the Channel 4 TV show, Kirstie’s Handmade Christmas, with her…

Introducing Warm Hands

By: KDD January 1, 2020January 14, 2020

Warm Handsdesign, Jeanette sloan, knit, knitting, Warm Hands8 Comments

Happy new year, everyone! Today I’m thrilled to reveal the project that I, my co-editor, Jeanette Sloan, and the rest of the KDD team, have spent much of the past year developing and producing – Warm Hands. Edited by Jeanette and myself, Warm Hands is a collection of 15 fresh patterns for mitts, mittens, gauntlets…

12 months

By: KDD December 24, 2019December 24, 2019

making, Politics, publishing, Scotland2019, Applied Arts Scotland, Crafting Futures, creativity, end of year, publishing, wheesht, work36 Comments

We are about to take our short festive break, and have all been looking back over the past 12 months. 2019 has certainly been a very significant year for us as a publisher. With our Glasgow printers, Bell & Bain, we’ve completed work on four new titles, and printed around 18,000 books (the largest number…

from scratch

By: KDD December 18, 2019December 18, 2019

stroke, textiles, weaving, yarnApplied Arts Scotland, band weaving, Belinda Rose, brain injury, colourbothy, inkle weaving, learning, Lynne Mennie, Lynnes Loom, stroke, tablet weaving38 Comments

Sometimes there is nothing better than being a beginner: nothing better than learning something new, completely from scratch. To explain: back in September, I had the pleasure of spending some time in the studio of weaver Belinda Rose, as part of my residency with Applied Arts Scotland (which involves developing a wonderful project with some…

creative making in uncertain times

By: KDD&Co. December 7, 2019December 7, 2019

books, landscape, making, paintingabstract, art, Jane Hunter, landscape, painting, wheesht22 Comments

In January 2019 Kate sent me the first chapter from Wheesht. I settled down with my coffee that Sunday morning to read ‘Don’t Ask’, and it hit me like a tonne of bricks

wheesht

By: KDD December 6, 2019December 6, 2019

creativity, Kate Davies, publishing, reading, writingbook, business, creativity, disability, independent publishing, publishing, small publishing, wheesht, writing11 Comments

Wheesht is published! You can now buy the book in the KDD shop, find out more about it at its dedicated website and we’ve even produced a set of 12 jolly postcards featuring the wonderful illustrations that Tom created for each chapter of the book. If you were part of our club earlier this year,…

in-between times

By: KDD December 1, 2019December 1, 2019

mental health, worklandscape, mental health, work18 Comments

We have just finished work on three large projects here at KDD. Two are a couple of books which you’ve already heard about and which I’m happy to say we’ll be launching very soon – Wheesht and Knitting Season. The third is a really exciting project we’ve all been beavering away on in the background,…

Morrone is out

By: KDD November 26, 2019November 26, 2019

design, Kate Davies, Kate Davies Designs, knittinghat, Kate Davies designs, knitting, Milarrochy Tweed, morrone7 Comments

Just to let you know that the Morrone pattern is now available on Ravelry and kits in both colourways are now available in the shop This fun hat has really reignited my knitting. I feel another project coming on.

Morrone #2

By: KDD November 24, 2019November 26, 2019

design, knittinghats, it's on your heid, knitting, Milarrochy Tweed, morrone8 Comments

If you asked me my preference in winter weather, I’d always say cold, crisp and bright. But still and misty is lovely too, sometimes. I knit a second version of my Morrone hat this week, to test the pattern and try out a different palette. I’m pleased with how it turned out, This second version…

a hat and a hill

You may remember that I mentioned I fancied designing and knitting myself a new hat as part of the It’s on Your Heid knit-along, currently running in our Ravelry group I wanted to create a hat with deep, folded ribbing to cover my chilly ears; which sat on the back of my head (which is…