What a month ...
Good morning my lovely crafters. How the devil are you all? We hope you are managing to cope with the heat. As a Scottish girl in London, I have to admit I've been struggling, but along with many of you, I've still been knitting. Everyone here at Knit With Me are definitely all weather knitters, but we have all moved on to vests, cami's, tees and accessories. We will show you what we have been working on but we would also love to see what you have all been up to, so please do tag us in posts or email us so we can see.
Apart from the crazy May weather, what else has been happening this month? Well, you may have seen on instagram that we had ANOTHER Thames Water mains burst on the hill (see below). At least we heard about it very quickly and shot over to empty the basement and move all the stock upstairs. We were very lucky compared to some other businesses and residents on the hill, but unfortunately the knock-on effects we have experienced are extensive and there are works needing done in our basement which is going to take a while. We have had issues with deliveries to the shop too (queue UPS insisting they had to drop our boxes off at the bottom of the hill whilst the road was closed rather than helping us up with them ... brilliant lol) and it has been taking us a little longer to find things when you are in store as everything has been moved, but we hope that this will be all sorted by the end of next month. I know it's our business rather than our home, but it's still very precious to us and it's been difficult to see things damaged.
We wanted to take this opportunity to say a genuine thank you to everyone who has helped. To those continuing to visit the shop and order with us whilst we deal with all the knock-on remedial works and to those who have sent cards and brought coffee and cake. We have the nicest customers and feel privileged to have you all in our club. You have all helped boost our energy and motivation to sort everything out and keep everything customer facing looking the same. We feel very loved and looked after. THANK YOU!!!
Ready for some better news now? This comes in the form of new yummy things in store, new cast-ons, more FO's and so many crafting plans! Let's get to the good stuff.
Soho Knit Club
Nothing makes us happier than hosting a group of crafters here at Knit With Me. This month we had the absolute honour of welcoming back the Soho Knit Club to Knit With Me. We were so glad the weather was nice as our upstairs space was a little cramped due to aforementioned basement issues and stock re-location, so we set everything up outside with some bubbles and fruit juices. It was such a heart-warming sight and amazing to meet them all again after seeing them last year. There were many an ooo and ahh from the team here over their beautiful projects and can't wait to have them back again.
If you have a knitting group and would like to meet up at Knit With Me just send us a message on Instagram @knitwithmeuk, or message us at connect@knitwithme.co.uk and we can let you know when we have availability to host your group.
Ranti and the Romanesco Bag
It was amazing to have this incredible workshop hosted by the talented Ranti of Ranti Studio where she went though the basics of her Romanesco Bag pattern (its so cool) and guided crafters through a couple of spike constructions. We all adore this design by Ranti, and Amelia and myself are both making one using Knitting For Olive Heavy Merino.
Amelia is making the larger cross-body sized version in Green Woodpecker, and I am making the smaller version in Blood Orange but extending the strap repeats to make it cross-body too. I just need to get my lining done now and Amelia is nearly finished her straps. Everyone had such a wonderful time at the workshop with lots of glowing reviews and feedback about Ranti. After many requests, as if we needed an excuse, we have managed to get Ranti back for another workshop date so grab a space before they have gone.
What we've finished, and free patterns (yes, free!)
I've managed to finish two projects and our lovely Alison has finished a new sample for the shop. Starting with the large picture above on the left and moving anti-clockwise you can see I finished my Wave Tee by PetiteKnit using Cottonwaves by Gepard. This cotton and linen textured yarn makes for a quick knit and a gorgeous slubby fabric which makes the plainest of classic shape tees something really special. I followed instructions for a large due to the small amount of positive ease as I wanted a little bit extra space. I used 7 balls of the colour 325 Red and the only change I made was to add a little split at the sides of the tee as I prefer how it sits on me. This knit up so very quickly which is always great for a bit of immediate satisfaction right? I also finished my Halo Loop Tee by Other Loops using Lamana Como in the colours 07 Khaki and 15 Chilli. This was a fab knit and I adore the light merino fabric on a 3.5mm needle. I knit a medium and used 7 balls of Khaki and 2 balls of Chilli. This would also be amazing in Cardiff Cashmere Classic which is actually the recommended yarn in the pattern. Lamana Como is a more affordable swap out for Cardiff Cashmere Classic in any pattern, which is always good to know.
Our Alison made us a gorgeous little sample of the Cornelia Dress by Knitting For Olive using Knitting For Olive Cotton Merino in the colours Lavender Blue and Lime Yellow. It is one of the cutest wee things I've ever seen and lots of you agree as lots of you have been making one after seeing it in the store.
Did you know if you purchase Knitting For Olive yarn for a Knitting for Olive pattern in store we will give you the pattern for FREE? Just pick your pattern and yarn and the pattern is on us. Unfortunately, this is only available in store. Any questions though, please do get in touch.
What's new in store
Muud Accessories
We are very excited to welcome Muud to store. Muud is a Danish lifestyle brand, deeply rooted in the Scandinavian mindset. They design beautiful, premium leather and canvas accessories that last for many years as they believe your knitting and crochet deserves beautiful storage when you are at home or on the go. That’s why Muud has crafted a stylish collection to keep your essential knitting & crochet accessories safe. Every bag features stylish details and practical pockets, giving you plenty of room for your accessories and making it easy to take your knitting projects with you wherever you go. We are beside ourselves over the new cow print canvas items ... moooo.
Loom | Alpaca Linen & Silk 4ply yarn
£23
Hello hello to our new favourite luxurious summer yarn that we just cannot stop touching. We are thrilled that Jess, the talent behind Loom, agreed to work with us so a huge shout out and thanks to her. This alpaca, linen and silk yarn is soft, has incredible drape and is just dreamy to knit with. Loom's Alpaca Linen has a beautiful balance between shine and halo and is perfect for summer. The linen fibre takes up the dye slightly differently, creating a delicate heathered effect, and will bloom and soften with age. Perfect for Summer knits like shawls, tees and light boxy sweaters. Although it's a fingering weight yarn it can be worked all the way up to a 4mm needle for a light, airy fabric or held double on a 4mm for a more traditional DK weight fabric. This yarn is hand-dyed in Somerset in the South West of England by the talented hands of Jess, who has a passion for moody, muted shades, be it a gentle speckle or a rich, saturated tone. IIt's newjust incredibly yum and you guys are obviously loving it too as we are nearly sold out of some colours, but do not fear, they have all been re-ordered.
Sewing Labels | Little Rosey Cheeks
£7.50
Little Rosey Cheeks sewing labels are perfect for your knitted, crocheted, or sewn projects. These darling little labels are colourful and fun, perfect for sewing into a seam or adding a cute pop of colour to all your makes, whether for yourself or as gifts. The Knit With Me team are excited to sort adding these to everything.
New colours in Bilum
Snek Gradient by Bilum
£36.00
We have had a big re-stock of Snek from Bilum including some new colours. This yummy soft merino is knitted up into blanks before being hand dyed and then washed and dried before being wound into these incredible gradient colour changing cakes. They are a piece of art all on their own even before you even start knitting with them. My best friend Lisa made an incredible version of the Brooklyn Raglan Lite by Tori Yu with 2 cakes of Snek by Bilum in the colourway 03 Viki. Lisa says "I used both cakes at the same time and alternated between the two every couple of rows. Then when I separated for the sleeves I just used one cake for one arm and the other cake for the second arm to keep the colour change consistent. After finishing the sleeves I went back to the body again alternating every couple of rows". It is such an effective technique we just had to share. When Lisa turned up wearing it to our last Knit & Natter it was by far the most commented on piece. Isn't it just fabulous. We all love it and are picking out colours for our own versions. Snek by Bilum is officially a 4ply/fingering weight yarn but can work well as a sport weight too.
What's on the Knit With Me Needles
What are we all working on at the moment? Our Amelia is knitting the 1. Buckle Top by Teun Bakker using De Rerum Natura Alice in the colour Richochet (all the newly released colours are now in stock with us). Mahwish, the latest member to join the Knit With Me team, has started the 2. Loupy Cardigan by Loupy Studio using Noro Ito in the colour 75 Budo. Amelia and I are very excited to make our own, but Mahwish just couldn't wait fo run to finish our other projects. We understand that feeling lol. I have started the 3. Maybel by Hannah Maciejewska using Gepard Horsilke in the colour 470 Burgandy. We are all very excited to wear the fruits of our labour soon!
Until next time...
In case you missed it, we had our May Friday Live yesterday on Instagram and we have added links for the patterns and suggested yarns on our blog on the website. Let us know what you think of our lives by commenting on the reel and if there are things you would love to see or include we will do our absolute best to add them.
We all look forward to seeing you soon in store, at our Knit & Natter in Chiswick, at one of our many workshops or at the end of a message or email.
Happy Knitting!
Carol and the team x