About Knitting Matters

Thanks for stopping by to see my designs! For those who are interested in how this all came about, here's a brief history of Knitting Matters.

I began knitting (again) in 2001, having had a brief fling with yarn and needles in my teen years. I'm still not exactly sure what prompted me to take up the needles again, but I dove in headlong this time. I refreshed my memory with books and a basic knitting class at the local community center, and was off and running.

Through the years I searched out and met other knitters, attended wool festivals and knitting "conventions", took specialty classes, completed two-thirds of the Master Knitter course, worked in a yarn shop, and -- one day in 2005 -- began dabbling in designing my own patterns.

I quickly found that pattern design was a great fit for my personality, making use of my affinity for math and spreadsheets while allowing me to express my creativity. I submitted to a few magazines but soon became discouraged by the slow response times and having to sit on the designs I was excited about while waiting for an editor to make a decision (or in some cases to never even acknowledge my submission). It was just not the way I wanted to live in "my" knitting world. So I began self-publishing my patterns, and the rest is history. (Ha ha -- it all sounds so grandiose, doesn't it?)

My early designs were usually things I personally would wear, done in my favorite colors and styles. Now I'm branching out to things that aren't necessarily my own taste, but that other people may like. But whether it's a style for my body type or not, I try to always include design details that will be flattering to the body -- things like waist shaping, darts, an interesting neckline, or knitting on the bias.

My FlexPatterns _TM consist of instructions that give you generic yarn requirements (i.e., yards and meters needed instead of how many balls of yarn), as well as names of some possible alternate yarns. This basic concept, along with ideas for optional modifications to the designs, is meant to make each pattern flexible enough that it can be used more than once with different yarns or modifications, with a different result each time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where can I buy Knitting Matters patterns?

I sell my printed patterns to local yarn shops and sell them in downloadable .pdf format on this website. You can see the list of shops that carry Knitting Matters patterns here. If you're not near one of the shops listed, you may find that one of them will be glad to send you the pattern by mail if you call them.

If you'd like a shop near you to carry the patterns, just ask them to stock them for you. To make it quick and easy for them, print this form and give it to your yarn shop owner or staff. Or just email them a link to www.knittingmatters.com/wholesale.html.

What if I have a problem understanding a Knitting Matters pattern? Can you help me?

Yes and no. If you are experienced at using patterns and find that you can't figure out something in one of my patterns, I'd definitely like to know about it. I strive to publish patterns that are crystal clear to most knitters.

However, if you are relatively new to knitting with patterns, you might be better served in the long run by seeking help from your local yarn store or knitting guild. They can teach you the basics of pattern reading and garment construction that can't be easily explained via email messages. These are building blocks for achieving any level of competency in knitting.

People often ask a question that is already answered in the pattern (yes, they really do!). So double-check the entire pattern if you have a question about an abbreviation or technique -- you'll sometimes find that you just overlooked it. If not, feel free to send me your question at Kim AT KnittingMatters DOT com.