I can’t believe where the last five years have gone. It feels like just yesterday that my friend Claire and I tentatively picked up a pair of knitting needles.
Stockinette stitch
Stockard Cardi by Quince & Co.
Is it just me or was Christmas over in a flash this year? And let’s not even mention how unprepared I was for the festive season 2015!
Luckily, when it comes to my lovely Mum I had been planning her Christmas present months in advance. Together we’d selected the Stockard Cardi by Quince & Co. as my gift to her, in the soft red wine colourway, Syrah.
What I’ve been knitting lately…
It’s Christmas Eve!!!!! And after a few weeks of flying low under the radar, I’ve had some time to finish off a lot of knitting projects that were niggling at me to be completed (you know the ones, projects that keep you awake at night or torment you when you should be concentrating on life admin).
Knitted Christmas presents have been gifted, Etsy orders have been all tied up and commissions are complete. Since I started this little endeavour, I don’t think I’ve ever had a moment when I’ve not had something that I should be knitting for someone else. So now, I have all this free time over the holidays to knit for me – what a novelty! And one I’m not taking at all for granted. As much as I love knitting things for other people, I’m really looking forward to casting off on some knitwear that I’ve been working on for myself.
Pickles Feather Sweater
Remember this post?!
This gorgeous Feather Sweater by Pickles in Norway has been a long. Time. Coming.
Knitwear designers 101
Google ‘knitwear designers’ and you get thousands of links directing you to mega fashion houses and large retailers. The large brands that pop into your head every day of the week. Not what I really wanted to see.
When I think of knitwear designers, names like Pam Allen, Jared Flood and Olga Buraya-Kefelian come to mind. Knitwear designers that inspire me to pick up my needles, purchase their wonderful patterns, or even get creating my own. Sadly, Google didn’t agree with me.
I’m not-so-secretly waiting for the day when slow fashion really takes over and these become household names not just for knitters. It’s slowly bubbling under the surface. Non-knitters are beginning to see the influence making-your-own is having over our generation, that even ready-to-wear companies are getting on board. Knowing where your fibres have come from, the farm where the sheep were reared, the dyer that dipped the skeins of wool…the list goes on. And whether I buy my yarn or patterns in the UK or across the pond, provenance is increasingly important for me.
The reward I get from taking time over my own clothing and homewares is entirely the reason I knit. And I’ve rounded up the list of knitwear designers who are (for me) synonymous with the slow-fashion movement.
Michelle Wang
Stitch & Story Bounty Throw
With autumn having descended so quickly, these last couple of weeks have plunged us into cold spells. Knee high boots and wooly jumpers are the norm, and you absolutely have to carry an umbrella. At. All. Times.
So this seemed like the perfect time to indulge myself in a huge knitted throw for myself! Something that I can tuck my feet up under on these darker, colder evenings.
Stitch & Story’s Bounty Throw fit the bill perfectly. It’s a wonderfully easy pattern, but switches up the stitch patterns frequently enough to keep a seasoned knitter like myself from getting bored! I picked their lovely shade of Olive Pastel, as it’s my absolute favourite!
Bria Armwarmers free knitting pattern
Often the simplest designs are the most effective. And that’s never more true that with my latest free knitting pattern, my Bria Armwarmers. Knitting on DP needles in stockinette stitch, featuring a very small ribbed cuff at both ends.
Knitwear faves from this week – 17/08
Whether you make your own, commission it handmade, or nip down the shops to get your knitwear fix…this collection of knitwear faves from this week will whet your appetite!
A Q&A with Stitch & Story
Knitting’s been around for centuries. Literally AGES. It began with the Ancient Egyptians in the eleventh century, then burst onto the European scene in the twelfth and thirteenth century via France, Germany and Britain! So with such a long-standing, rich and varied tradition, how do you breathe new life into a craft that was at one time synonymous with ‘archaic’ and ‘old-fashioned’?!
That’s just what Jennifer Chan and Jen Hoang, Co-founders of Stitch & Story set out to do. Fed up with having to trawl the internet for a decent knitting pattern (we’ve all been there), both Jens set up shop – providing modern and fashionable knitting kits, top-quality 100% merino wool, as well as hosting their increasingly popular knitting workshops!
And I’ve had the pleasure of asking Jennifer Chan a few questions this week! I’m a massive fan of this wonderful independent knitting company, whose sole mission is to bring stress-free knitting to both the ultimate beginner through to the most seasoned of experienced knitters. You can check out Stitch & Story’s amazing offering on their website, as well as follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Continue reading
Knitwear faves from this week – 03/08
Just a quick update from me today! I just thought I’d share a few links featuring knitwear that’s inspired me this week. I’ll either be buying something very much like this, or I’ll be on the hunt for patterns to make my own!
We’ll soon be moving into that lovely season that is Autumn and I can’t wait to swamp myself up in oversized jumpers and subject myself on the daily to ‘hat hair’ with my favourite knitted bobble hat!
Seen any knitwear that’s peaked your interest this week? Let me know!
x
