My visit to The Knitting & Stitching Show 2023

Howdy folks, how was your weekend? Mine was a great one! Mum and I went down to The Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate for a weekend away and we had such fun! 

Image of a hand holding a show guide for the Knitting and Stitching Show Harrogate 2023

This year the show, which is held over four days, was on 16 – 19 November 2023 held at the Harrogate Convention Centre. After am early start and rather an epic journey (3 trains later) mum and I arrived into the city just before midday. After dropping our bags off at a nearby Travelodge we made our way straight to the show.

Images of the crowds at the Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate

As we were going to be there for two days we resolved to be fairly systematic in our approach – we decided that the first half of our day would be spent mainly looking at what was on offer, and the second day would be more purchasing. Now it didn’t work completely like that, as there was some buying on the first day, but it seemed like a good way to see the show.

One of the beautiful yarn stalls at The Knitting and Stitching Show Harrogate
The TOFT stand at the Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate 2023

As we were browsing the stall and we found ourselves at Tanya’s stand from The Woolly Tangle. Tanya has been our stall neighbour a couple of times when we’ve been out on the road with Dear Ewe. It was really nice to catch up with her and hear about her experiences of the show – and I may have rescued some yarn from her that needed to come home with me.

The lovely yarn by Tanya of The Woolly Tangle
Image of a glorious yarn wall at the Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate

A highlight of the show were the fabulous textile exhibitions that were a delight to walk round. Even if it’s not your particular craft I don’t think you can fail to appreciate the artistry involved in the work -and they are incredibly inspiring! This year’s Textile Galleries featured exhibitions by Art Textiles: Made in Britain (Illuminate), 

Close up of 'Fancy Free' Open Textile Art by Kate Panhurst

Jan Beaney and Jean Littlejohn (Rhythms & Reflections), Ailish Henderson (Maker: Mended), Mandy Pattullo (Well Worn Work), Batool Showghi (Talking Threads), The Quilters’ Guild Collection (A Diverse Patchwork), Sabine Kaner (Hand Stitched Stories), Susie Chaikin, Susan Chapman and Sue Dove (Head, Heart, Knees and Hands), the winner and shortlisted entries for The Fine Art Textiles Award 2023, and winning entries from The Festival of Quilts 20th Anniversary Quilt Competition.  

Images of quilts on display at The Knitting and Stitching show in Harrogate

As we’d walked our legs off at the show we decided we needed a bit of a rest so we headed off to find Betty’s Tea Rooms! Betty’s is quite a famous tea room that has been serving irresistible treats in Harrogate for over 100 years. I’d had the opportunity to go once, possibly about 15 years ago, but mum had never been so we decided we needed to make a visit whilst we were in town.

Dusk exterior shot of Betty's Tea Room in Harrogate

Our sandwiches consisted of things like Wensleydale with red onion and cranberry chutney, and then we had mini cakes like chocolate cubes. Our favourite though had to be the cranberry and orange scones which were absolutely delicious! I would definitely recommend a visit to Betty’s if you visit a future The Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate.

Close up of the festive afternoon tea from Betty's tearoom, Harrogate

We got to have a lovely catch up chat with Sara (and Steve) from Black Sheep Wools. You may remember that Black Sheep provided yarn kits for the last two crochet-alongs and it was nice to chat about what’s been happening and possible future plans.

As we were walking round we also bumped into one of the winners of the giveaway for tickets for the show and had the opportunity to chat to them which was lovely. That’s one of the really nice things about visiting the shows, it’s the catching up with people, meeting new people and of course finding new things you didn’t know you needed in your life.

We did an awful lot of walking that weekend, I had turned on Strava (an fitness app) on whilst walking round the event (and Harrogate) and over the two days we walked over 12.2 miles (19.6km) so it was great exercise whilst enjoying ourselves! Then before we knew it, it was time to catch the 3 trains and a tram home again.

One of the many trains taken to get to The Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate
Haul of crafty goods from The Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate

And I think that this blog post is quite long enough! Hopefully you get the general idea about the show and maybe fancy attending one yourself.  The Knitting and Stitching Show runs in several venues across the UK. The dates for 2024 have now been released; 10-13 October 2024 will be at the Alexandra Palace, London, 7 – 9 November 2024 there’s one at The Titanic Exhibition Centre, Belfast, and finally 21-24 November 2024 is the Harrogate show at The Convention Centre.

Like all the craft events I’ve attended the show is not only about the pretty things I have the opportunity to buy it’s about the people and the experience. If you get the chance to go to a future Knitting and Stitching Show I can thoroughly recommend it.

I’d like to say a big thank you again to the shows organisers for offering me the opportunity to visit and for offering the special deals to my lovely KCACO.UK readers! 

Until next time folks! Happy hooking and keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

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Win tickets for The Knitting & Stitching Show Harrogate

EDITED: Giveaway now closed, congratulations to; Natalie C, Claire B, Kate R, @poppingcandycrochet and @redditch_rose

How would you like a giveaway to win some FREE tickets to the The Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate? If the answers a big woolly ‘yes please’ – then keep on reading…

The Knitting and Stitching Show logo

The Knitting & Stitching Show is back in Harrogate this year from 16 – 19 November held at the Harrogate Convention Centre.

Close up of a wall of yarn skeins hanging up in lots of lovely bright assorted colours

The spectacular event is a dream day out for crafters and makers, with creative inspiration at every turn. Perfectly timed for Christmas craft shopping, The Knitting & Stitching Show Harrogate features hundreds of retailers selling fabric and patterns, yarn and thread, sewing machines and equipment, accessories, crafts kits and gifts, from well-known global brands to small artisan companies.

In The Yarn Village, hand-picked, small-scale specialist retailers will be offering a selection of unique, high quality yarn and accessories, not found on the high street (you had me at Yarn Village! 😍).     

Image of a couple standing behind a stall; there are colourful skeins of yarn hanging on the walls behind them.
© Knitting and Stitching Show 2023

Whether you’re a knitter, quilter, embroiderer or needle felter, The Knitting & Stitching Show promises inspiration and ideas for every style and stage of stitcher. The show’s Learning Curve programme (ticketed) offers hundreds of hands-on workshops for enthusiasts looking to sharpen their stitch skills.

Close up of some rainbow coloured crochet swatches alongside a crochet hook.

Seasonal makes include needle felt reindeer and mice, winter-themed Dorset buttons, overlocker gift bags, beaded decorations, and knitted and stitched baubles. Whether you’re a complete beginner or an expert, top tutors will be sharing their knowledge, offering classes in every textile craft imaginable.

A group of people shown around a table working on some crochet projects together
© Knitting and Stitching Show 2023

The Knitting & Stitching Show is a showcase for new work by leading textile artists and groups, and this year’s Textile Galleries are sure to delight visitors, with exhibitions by Art Textiles: Made in Britain (Illuminate), Jan Beaney and Jean Littlejohn (Rhythms & Reflections), Ailish Henderson (Maker: Mended), Mandy Pattullo (Well Worn Work), Batool Showghi (Talking Threads), The Quilters’ Guild Collection (A Diverse Patchwork), Sabine Kaner (Hand Stitched Stories), Susie Chaikin, Susan Chapman and Sue Dove (Head, Heart, Knees and Hands), the winner and shortlisted entries for The Fine Art Textiles Award 2023, and winning entries from The Festival of Quilts 20th Anniversary Quilt Competition.  

A group of people do a selfie in front of the textile gallery at the Knitting and Stitching Show
© Knitting and Stitching Show 2023

At the show’s Creative Living Theatre, well-known knit and stitch personalities will be hosting free daily demonstrations, with Christmas needle felting, hand-stitched English paper piecing, Bargello basics, and upcycling waste clothing just some of the sessions on offer. Names include Angela Daymond, Wendy Dolan, Mark Francis, Debbie Harris, Jen Hogg, Moni Omotoso, Nerrisa Pratt and Steffi Stern, and there will even be a catwalk or two.

I’ve previously enjoyed my visit to the Knit and Stitching Shows (though not yet to Harrogate). You can read about those experiences you can read about them here and here.  

Image of a couple of people standing in front of a stall; a lady behind the shawl is showing them a colourful quilt that is hanging up behind her.
© Knitting and Stitching Show 2023

Hot and cold refreshments are available throughout the venue; you can grab a bite to eat at one of the venue’s food or coffee outlets, have a picnic in one of the seating areas, enjoy a glass of fizz at the Prosecco Bar, or enjoy one of Harrogate’s many excellent  cafés, bars or restaurants, including the famous Betty’s Café Tea Rooms.  

So on with the bit you’ve been waiting for! The giveaway details! I’ve got FIVE pairs of tickets to giveaway hurray!!! I’m giving away THREE pairs away here on the blog and TWO pairs away on Instagram.

GIVEAWAY

All you need to do to enter the giveaway is either leave a comment on the bottom of this blog post about why you’d like to go to the show or do the same over on my Instagram post.

The competition closes on Wednesday 11th October at 5pm (GMT). Winners will be contacted via the email supplied from their comment or by DM on social media.

Tickets are valid after 10am on Thursday 16th, Friday 17th, Saturday 18th or Sunday 19th November 2023. This year the organisers are not issuing paper tickets, winners will be emailed a link to register online with a unique code for one pair of tickets. Winners will then need to register online, enter their codes and they will receive e-tickets by email.  When entering this competition you must be happy to provide me with a your email address for this purpose, your email address will not be used in any other way.

The Knitting and Stitching Show Keep Calm and Crochet On UK Giveaway

SPECIAL DISCOUNT

I’d like to say a big thank you again to the shows organisers for offering this special deal to my lovely KCACO.UK readers! 

Good Luck everyone!

Until next time; keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

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Giveaway | Win tickets for The Stitch Festival

EDITED: Giveaway now closed, congratulations to; Ann C, Tracey L, Charlie P, @Catherinecrochets and @shearsfiona

How would you like to win some FREE tickets to The Stitch Festival which returns to the Business Design Centre, Islington, London from 23-26 March 2023?

The Stitch Festival Logo - Business Design Centre, Islington, London from 23-26 March 2023

London’s hottest event for contemporary stitchers is back! The annual four-day creative extravaganza is a ‘must go’ for craft fans, with more than 230 hands-on workshops hosted by top tutors, designers and makers. 

Dressmaking, upcycling and slow fashion are a major focus for The Stitch Festival, with a dedicated Dressmaking Studio (sponsored by Brother), an overlocker workshop programme, and a Dressmaking Competition that shines a spotlight on the skills and talents of home dressmakers. Open to sewists of all levels, there are categories for Eveningwear, Loungewear, Childrenswear, Knitwear and Crochetwear, Upcycled or Repurposed garments, and new for 2023, Menswear. 

Two ladies looking at different fabrics at The Stitch Festival
© The Stitch Festival 2023

Eagle-eyed judges from the worlds of fashion and textiles (past judges have included Esme Young, Lisa Comfort and Nerrisa Pratt) will be looking for excellence in technical skills, stitching and creative flair. With prizes for category winners, a Janome Sewing Machine worth £650 for ‘Best in Competition’, and a Finalists’ Fashion Show on Sunday 26 March, Stitch Festival visitors can expect some exciting highlights. Competition entry submissions must be made by Friday 24 February 2023. For full entry information, visit www.thestitchfestival.co.uk/dressmaking-competition/  

Portrait of Katie Jones, Crochet Designer surrounded by colourful crochet samples and yarn
© The Stitch Festival 2023 – Katie Jones (Photo by Rachel Manns)

There are yarny things to look forward to too at the Festival. This year crochet designer Katie Jones has designed The Stitch Festival’s Crochet Lounge where she will be hosting crochet lessons and book signings. There are also so many workshops, just search ‘Crochet’ for a list of all the hooky ones – or try your hand at a new craft. In terms of crochet they include sessions on Mosaic crochet, Tunisian Crochet, Broomstick crochet lace and Freeform crochet to name a few.

Textile artist Jen Cable’s project, Knitted Lives, will be a celebration of contemporary knitting, exploring the lives and stories of everyday knitters, while best-selling author and craft entrepreneur, Isabella Strambio, will be inviting Festival goers to awaken their creativity as she shares her passion for macrame.   

Image of Knitted Jen Cable by Sophie Hoare
© The Stitch Festival 2023

Looking for inspiration for new projects? The Festival’s Stitch Stage features free demonstrations, presentations and Q&As with some favourite faces from the knit and stitch world. On Saturday 25 March, the Instagram Makers’ Catwalk features garments made and modelled by talented Insta makers, supported by independent pattern makers and fabric companies. 

Last but not least, there’s shopping, with more than 150 specialist retailers under one roof and special Stitch Festival deals to be had, plus all that vibrant Islington has to offer with its stores, restaurants, bars and cafes.  Hot and cold refreshments are available throughout the venue, with seating areas for picnics.

Although I can’t make it to this particular show, I’ve enjoyed the visits to these Stitching Shows in the past. If you fancy a read about those experiences you can read about them here and here.  

Stitch20

So on with the bit you’ve been waiting for! The giveaway details! I’ve got FIVE pairs of tickets to giveaway hurray!!! I’m giving away THREE pairs away here on the blog and TWO pairs away on Instagram.

GIVEAWAY

All you need to do to enter the giveaway is either leave a comment on the bottom of this blog post about why you’d like to go to the show or do the same over on my Instagram post.

The competition closes on Wednesday 1st February at 7pm (GMT). Winners will be contacted via the email supplied from their comment or by DM on social media.

Tickets are valid after 10am on Thursday 23rd, Friday 24th, Saturday 25th or Sunday 26th March. The organisers will not issue paper tickets. Winners will be emailed a link to register online with a unique code per pair of tickets and will receive e-tickets by email. When entering this competition you must be therefore happy to provide me with a your email address for this purpose, your email address will not be used in any other way.

However if you want some tickets now scroll down for an exclusive special offer!

Giveaway image to win tickets for the Stitch Festival 2023
© The Stitch Festival 2023

SPECIAL DISCOUNT

Advance adult tickets for The Stitch Festival are £16.50 from Thursday to Saturday (concessions £15, children aged 5-18 years £7.50) – transaction fees apply. Full ticket information is available at The Stitch Festival website www.thestitchfestival.co.uk. Visitors are encouraged to book in advance to avoid disappointment. Opening hours are 10am-5.30pm on Thursday-Saturday and 10am-3pm on Sunday.  Visitors are encouraged to book in advance to avoid disappointment. 

But if you want your ticket RIGHT NOW I’ve also got a special discount for you! Just quote: CROCHETON23 to get £2 off advance adult tickets /and concessions.

Please note that the discount ends at 23.59pm on Wednesday 22 March 2023.

I’d like to say a big thank you again to the shows organisers for offering this special deal to my lovely KCACO.UK readers! 

Good Luck everyone!

Stay connected

I’d love to stay connected with you so please do sign up to blog (below) and / or my mailing list to get a reminder when new blog posts, giveaways, special offers or new pattern releases are available.

Until next time; keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

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Win tickets for The Knitting & Stitching Show Harrogate

EDITED: Giveaway now closed. Winners have now been chosen, congratulations to Suzanne, Jill C and Julie here on the blog and @sarahreedscrochetadventure and @made_by_skoo on Instagram!

How would you like a giveaway to win some FREE tickets to the The Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate? If the answers a big woolly and heartfelt yes please – then keep on reading…

The Knitting & Stitching Show is back in Harrogate this year from 17 – 20 November held at the Harrogate Convention Centre.

Meet up with like-minded crafters, discuss ideas, learn new skills and shop for your annual craft supplies all under one roof – it’s the ultimate day out for craft lovers. If craft supplies are on your Christmas shopping wish list, there are hundreds of specialist companies under one roof, selling haberdashery, fabric and patterns, sewing machines and equipment, thread and yarn, craft kits, accessories and more, with on-stand demonstrations and show offers to enjoy.  

Whether you’re a knitter, quilter, embroiderer or needle felter, The Knitting & Stitching Show promises inspiration and ideas for every style and stage of stitcher, from complete beginners to experts. Top tutors will be hosting more than 220 hands-on workshops and demonstrations, with a dedicated dressmaking programme and festive, seasonal makes like knitted Christmas gnomes, felted wreaths, fabric baubles and embroidery Robins.   

© The Knitting and Stitching Show 2022

Spectacular galleries by internationally acclaimed textile artists and groups are a highlight of The Knitting & Stitching Show each year. This year’s show is no exception with exhibitions by Aran Illingworth (Hanging on the thread: Portrayal of Poverty), Archana Pathak (Mapping Transience), Maggie Scott (Five Times More), Marcia Bennett-Male (Moments to Myself), The 62 Group at 60 (Essence), Vivienne Beaumont (Seeds, Flowers and Flowing Hair)James Fox, The Quilters’ Guild Collection and Jess Blaustein, the 2022 winner of The Fine Art Textiles Award, supported by The Open College of the Arts. A gallery of winning quilts from The Festival of Quilts 2022 competition includes the stunning Handi Quilter Best in Competition Award winning quilt, Impresión. Tramonto en Venecia, by Inmaculada Gabaldon. 

Sure to put a smile on visitors’ faces is the Hawes Yarnbombers’ Knitted Shrek. The group’s members meet every week at their local pub to knit “without being disturbed by husbands, family, work, household chores or the rest of the world” (their words!). After a great deal of hard work, and with a different theme every year, they have created a collection of delightful  characters from the popular movie to raise money for Yorkshire Air Ambulance and Swaledale Mountain Rescue. Hawes Yarnbombers will be encouraging other knitters to give yarnbombing a go to raise money for charity while having fun, and will be on hand with some top tips for first-time yarnbombers. 

© The Knitting and Stitching Show 2022

Although I can’t make it to this particular show, I’ve enjoyed the visits to the Knit and Stitching Shows in the past. If you fancy a read about those experiences you can read about them here and here.  

Hot and cold refreshments are available throughout the venue, with seating areas for picnics. Harrogate town centre also offers a wide range of cafés and bars to enjoy, including the famous Betty’s Café Tea Rooms (yum!). 

 © The Knitting and Stitching Show 2022

So on with the bit you’ve been waiting for! The giveaway details! I’ve got FIVE pairs of tickets to giveaway hurray!!! I’m giving away THREE pairs away here on the blog and TWO pairs away on Instagram.

GIVEAWAY

All you need to do to enter the giveaway is either leave a comment on the bottom of this blog post about why you’d like to go to the show or do the same over on my Instagram post.

The competition closes on Monday 7th November at 5pm (GMT). Winners will be contacted via the email supplied from their comment or by DM on social media.

Tickets are valid after 10am on Thursday 17th, Friday 18th, Saturday 19th or Sunday 20th November 2022. This year the organisers are not issuing paper tickets, winners will be emailed a link to register online with a unique code for one pair of tickets. Winners will then need to register online, enter their codes and they will receive e-tickets by email.  When entering this competition you must be happy to provide me with a your email address for this purpose, your email address will not be used in any other way.

© The Stitch Festival 2022

SPECIAL DISCOUNT

Standard adult advance tickets for The Knitting & Stitching Show, Harrogate are £17.00 (concessions £15.50, children under 18 £8.50) with VIP ticket packages starting at £36.00. Full ticket information is available at The Knitting & Stitching Show website www.theknittingandstitchingshow.com/harrogate/. Visitors are encouraged to book in advance to avoid disappointment. 

But if you want your ticket RIGHT NOW I’ve also got a special discount for you! Just quote: KEEPCALM22 to get £3 off advance adult tickets (and there’s £3.50 off advance concessions!). Please note that the discount ends at 23.59pm on Wednesday 16th November 2022.

I’d like to say a big thank you again to the shows organisers for offering this special deal to my lovely KCACO.UK readers! 

Good Luck everyone!

Until next time; keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

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Yarn Show 2022 | Wool@Jct13 – Get your tickets!

Yarn shows are back, hooray! I think they have definitely been missed. And I for one am super excited to be going back to Wool@Jct13 on 14 – 15 May 2022!

But I’m not going as a visitor this time, I’m actually vending with my Dear Ewe, KCACOUK and Yarnybobs products. In November of last year, I had my first yarn show stand at Wool@Jct13, and I’m delighted to be going back this May (and at the time of year the show is normally held).

If you’ve not heard of Wool@Jct13 before it’s a two day yarn festival held on a family run farm in the pretty market town of Penkridge, South Staffordshire which is just off Junction 13 of the M6.

It’s a show which is just down the road from me and we have been every year (pre-Covid), with the whole family, and it’s been a wonderfully fun day out (you can read about previous visits here, here and here).

The festival is described as a celebration of all things woolly for anyone with an interest in wool and crafts – whether it be knitting, crochet, spinning, weaving or felting.

Over the two days you can expect to find food, drink and music alongside demonstrations, competitions and wool craft workshops – and of course lots yarn themed shopping opportunities!

Tickets are very reasonably priced at £7.50pp on the day or £12.50pp for the full weekend. Getting advanced tickets you can get a bit more of a discount and under 16’s and parking for the day are both free.

If you haven’t yet booked your place for the 2022 show, follow this link for more info and to save money on your advance bookings: https://wool-j13.uk/tickets/

From learning new skills and stocking up on supplies, visitors to Wool@Jct13 are in for a weekend of wool-filled loveliness!

I really hope you will come over and say hi to me (and my lovely mum who is helping me on the day), we’ll be on stand 6A.

Until next time folks! Happy hooking and keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

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Win tickets for The Stitch Festival

It’s been AGGEESSS since my last giveaway hasn’t it – so I’m quickly going to rectify that now! How would you like to win FREE tickets to the The Stitch Festival at the Business Design Centre, London?

You’d love the chance – well awesome! Just keep on reading…

The Stitch Festival, formerly known as The Spring Knitting & Stitching Show, is the ultimate day out for craft lovers. The Stitch Festival champions creativity with hundreds of workshops, demonstrations, fashion exhibitions, textile installations, as well as exhibitors selling specialist craft supplies.

Highlights of this years show include the fabulous TOFT’s exhibition Making Women Who Made History, which marks International Women’s Day. The exhibition is a celebration of inspirational, brave and talented women, all made in amigurumi. TOFT launched its first design, Emmeline Pankhurst, on IWD in March 2020. I love TOFT yarn and characters so I bet that’s going to be awesome! And there are going to be over 100 other specialist retailers who will be selling yarn, crochet equipment and craft supplies…swoon right!

 © TOFT 2022

Although the The Stitch Festival showcases all stitch crafts like sewing, knitting, if you are just there for the crochet there are a range of crochet workshops which include:

  • Tapestry Crochet: Flower Power Coaster / Diana Bensted 
  • Mosaic Crochet / Diana Bensted 
  • Crochet an Amigurumi Easter Egg / Diana Bensted 
  • Beginners’ Crochet / Debbie Harris 
  • Crochet your own Perfect Sock / Diana Bensted 
  • Freeform Crochet Scumble / Diana Bensted 
  • Crochet a Granny Square Cushion Cover / Debbie Harris 
  • Make a Mini Crochet Shawl / Diana Bensted 
  • Crochet a Spring Inspired Pen/Pencil Holder / Eleonora Cugin 
© The Stitch Festival 2022

Excitingly this year they also have The Stitch Festival Dressmaking competition is open to all contemporary dressmakers who want the opportunity to share their creations. And it’s not just sewing there is a crochet / knitwear outfit category sponsored by Stylecraft. Basically it could be a chunky knit jumper or a fine knit cardigan, a dress, a scarf or other accessories. Anything goes, but you haven’t long, the entry form with photos must be submitted online by Midday on Friday 11th February.

© The Stitch Festival 2022

Although I can’t make it to this particular show, I’ve enjoyed the visits to them in the past. If you fancy a read about those experiences you can read about them here and here.

It’s so wonderful that craft shows are coming back, I’ve really missed them, but if you are at all concerned or have questions about how the show will work in COVID times The Stitch Festival hold visitor safety as paramount and you can view Immediate Live’s Covid commitment if you have queries about attendance.

 © The Stitch Festival 2022

So on with the bit you’ve been waiting for! The giveaway details! I’ve got FIVE pairs of tickets to giveaway hurray!!! I’m giving away THREE pairs away here on the blog and TWO pairs away on Instagram.

GIVEAWAY

All you need to do to enter the giveaway is either leave a comment on the bottom of this blog post about why you’d like to go to the show or do the same over on my Instagram giveaway reel post.

The competition closes on Monday 14th February September at 7pm (GMT). Winners will be contacted via the email supplied from their comment or by DM on social media.

Entry is for any one day on any of the dates of the show (3 – 6 March 2022). This year the organisers are not issuing paper tickets, winners will be emailed a link to register online with a unique code for one pair of tickets. Winners will then need to register online, enter their codes and they will receive e-tickets by email.  When entering this competition you must be happy to provide me with a your email address for this purpose, your email address will not be used in any other way.

© The Stitch Festival 2022

SPECIAL DISCOUNT

Advance adult tickets for The Stitch Festival are £15.50 (concessions £14.50, children aged 5-18 years £7.50) from Thursday to Saturday. VIP tickets start at £40. Full ticket information is available at The Stitch Festival website www.thestitchfestival.co.uk. Visitors are encouraged to book in advance to avoid disappointment. In the event of pandemic-related cancellation, ticket holders will be offered the choice to transfer their booking to 2023 or receive a refund. Transaction fees will be retained.

But if you want your ticket’s RIGHT NOW I’ve also got a special discount for you! Just quote: KCACO22 to get an adult ticket for £12.50! That’s £3 off advance adults (and there’s £2 off advance concessions!). Please note that the discount ends at 23.59pm on 2nd March 2022.

I’d like to say a big thank you again to the shows organisers for offering this special deal to my lovely KCACO.UK readers! 

Good Luck everyone!

Until next time; keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

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Pattern Release & Giveaway | Waverley Kisses Scarf

Well what a time we are having folks! Covid 19 or coronavirus has many of us feeling anxious I’m sure. It has already impacted on every aspect of our lives and we’re left feeling worried about loved ones. Although crafting isn’t the answer to everything it can provide us with something positive and practical to focus on can’t it!

So in the hope that I can momentarily distract you or keep you occupied during lock down I was going to tell you that I’ve had my Waverley Kisses Scarf back from the Unravel Festival.

It’s now available for purchase on Ravelry but I thought I’d spread a little cheer by having a giveaway! So I’m giving away a couple copies of the Waverley Kisses Scarf pattern here on the blog, a couple on Facebook and a couple on my Instagram (so if you don’t have one method of entering you might have another). 

❤️ WAVERLEY KISSES SCARF ON RAVELRY ❤️

This lovely and organically shaped wave scarf includes a fun crossed stitch in the design which creates a lovely subtle texture that you just want to run your hands over. Combine that with some beautiful yarn to make a winning combination scarf!

🎉 GIVEAWAY 🎉

How to enter simply tell me what colour you’d make your scarf in and be sure to let your friends know about this giveaway too!

Bonus Entry: Re-pin any of the pictures on this post and copy & paste the URL of your re-pin in the comments below. 

Winners will be randomly chosen on Friday 27 March 2020

Until next time folks! Happy hooking and keep calm and crochet on my friends x

Votes for Kisses | Unravel Design Competition

Did the title get your attention? Want to know what it’s all about – well I shall tell you, because I’m looked for help from my lovely blog readers! Excitingly I’ve had got a brand new pattern that’s been shortlisted in the Unravel 2020 design competition called The Waverley Kisses Scarf…

There’s nine designs now up for a public vote to pick a winner which will be launched at Unravel as part of their show guide during the festival on 21-23 February 2020.

Unravel is a three day yarn show in Farnham Maltings in Surrey. There’s over 80 exhibitors, craft shops and workshops and all the other lovely things you’d expect at a woolly festival! I’ve never actually had the opportunity to attend yet but I’ve heard only good things about Unravel!

You know me, I do love a bit of a crochet challenge, so when I saw the call for designers to enter their design competition on Instagram I thought I’d give it a bash!

My idea for the scarf comes from my own, and I’m guessing many other’s experience, of yarn shows. You know the times where you see some gorgeous yarn that you fall completely in love with so you have to take it home with you. But you didn’t have a plan when you bought it and now you don’t know what to make with just one skein!

Such as this gorgeous handyed skein that I had of Devon Sun Yarns … That’s where the Waverly Kisses Scarf comes in!

This lovely and organically shaped wave scarf includes a fun crossed stitch in the design which creates a lovely subtle texture that you just want to run your hands over. Combine that with some beautiful yarn to make a winning combination scarf that everyone is sure to admire whenever you wear it.

FAVOURITE WAVERLEY KISSES ON RAVELRY

I’m really chuffed with how this design turned out. It was one of those that just worked from conception to completion just how I wanted it too and I love everything about it.

So here’s where I need your help! The voting started at 5pm today and will run until 11:59pm GMT on Monday, 27 January. The person with the highest vote at the end will win.

Supporters can vote once per day and will need to enter a valid email address. You can choose to opt-in to receive emails from the yarn festival but of course that is not mandatory to vote! 📷

I’ll be doing reminders on all my social media but the link to vote is below:

xx VOTE FOR WAVERLEY KISSES SCARF xx

I’m asking for your votes not just for me, but crochet is at stake (against knitting) and it would be great for it to have a feature!

There are so many amazing designs from inventive designers that have been shortlisted and I’d like to wish the best of luck to all the designers taking part! … now go vote for Waverley Kisses!

Until next time folks! Happy hooking and keep calm and crochet on my friends x

P. S If you share on Instagram on your stories be sure to let me know so I can send you some kisses back!

Win tickets for Stitching Show at Ally Pally!

It’s been AGGEESSS since my last giveaway hasn’t it – so I’m quickly going to rectify that now! How would you like to win FREE tickets to the Knitting and Stitching Show at the Alexandra Palace?

You’d love the chance – well awesome! Just keep on reading…

If you’ve not heard about the The Knitting & Stitching Shows before, and are wondering if you want to enter or not, they are the UK’s biggest textile art, craft and design events. Events are run in various locations usually four times per year and there are LOADS of exciting features for crochet fans!

© The Knitting and Stitching Show

But if you dabble in other crafts, alongside crochet, there are things for needle felting to embroidery to dressmaking –  in fact pretty much covering every textile craft imaginable. And the show is great for complete beginners, experts or folks somewhere in between, as there are demo’s and workshops to try, or you can just fill your boots looking at all the crafty and yarny goodness!

© The Knitting and Stitching Show

In fact for this show, in The Creative Living Theatre, there are going to be free, 30-minute demonstrations to inspire future crochet projects including Tapestry Crochet: Fair Isle Techniques with Diana Bensted.

And for those visitors wanting to learn new skills, The Knitting & Stitching Show’s Learning Curve workshop programme is extensive! Offering over 250 workshops with top tutors where crocheters could have the opportunity to learn how to make seasonal snowflakes, Christmas baubles and mini amigurumi monsters or baskets, owls, scarves and fingerless mitts.

And there are over 350 specialist retailers who will be selling yarn, crochet equipment and craft supplies…swoon right!

© The Knitting and Stitching Show

I’ve attended different shows, and really enjoyed each visit, so I feel that I can tell you about them with experience, but if you want to read my FULL experience of the shows (you may want to get a cuppa before hand) then you can check out when I visited London Olympia earlier this year here or the time I went to the show at the Ally Pally here.

I was excited to see that Italian textile artist and contemporary crochet designer Luisa De Santi, will be showcasing her amazing work again at the Ally Pally.

© The Knitting and Stitching Show

I was amazed by her extraordinary exhibition when I saw it earlier this year. Magical Crochet Spells features colourful three-dimensional artworks, soft sculptures and jewellery that is just amazing and inspiring! Her work really is something to see – I also got the pleasure of meeting her in person too and she was lovely!

© The Knitting and Stitching Show

Unfortunately I’m not going to be able to make the show on this occasion, as I already had family plans on this date, but just because I can’t go doesn’t mean that you have to miss out because I’ve got FIVE pairs of tickets to giveaway hurray!!!

Giveaway

The tickets are for redeemable any day except Saturday 12th October  for the Knitting and Stitching show at the Alexandra Palace which runs from 10th – 13th October 2019.

All you need to do to enter the giveaway is to leave a comment on the bottom of this blog post about why you’d like to go to the show. 

The competition closes on Wednesday 18 September at 7pm (GMT). Winners will be contacted via the email supplied from their comment.

Special Discount

But if you want your ticket’s RIGHT NOW I’ve also got a special discount for you! Just quote KEEPCALM19 and you can save £2.50 on advance adult ticket price (£13.50 instead of £16.00 adult advance/£13.00 instead of £14.50 concessions), plus £1.95 fulfilment fee per transaction (£2.50 for posted tickets). 

This discount is for advanced bookings only and can be redeemed before 23:59pm (GMT) on Wednesday 9 October. Tickets can be booked online here  or by calling 0844 873 7343 and quoting the discount code. Full Terms and Conditions are available on the show website.  Information is correct at the time of writing.

I’d like to say a big thank you again to the shows organisers for offering this special deal to my lovely KCACO.UK readers! 

Good Luck everyone! Until next time; keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

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Yarn Shows 2019 | Wool@Jct13

Wool@J13 is the most local yarn show to me so I’ve started to mark it on the calendar each year. This year was the third time the show has run and subsequently my third visit to Lower Drayton farm where the show is held in May each year. 

For an avid crocheter a day out to a yarn festival is great for your sense of well-being and feelings of harmony with like minded souls. If you’ve not been to a yarn show before you probably need to prepare yourself for so much yarn (all of which you will probably want) and lots of people talking about yarn and knitting and crochet!

As yarn shows go Wool@Jct13 runs over two days (a Saturday and a Sunday) but it isn’t massive, and this year it was smaller than the year before. The stalls for the event are all held in a big structured tent with rows of stalls at each edge and along the centre which you get to walk around in a big sort of loop.

The last two previous years have been blessed with tremendous weather for the shows. This year it was a grey and cloudy so it was great to see lots of people still turn out for the show. Luckily the weather was still warm enough to sit outside and listen to the outdoor music by various artists.

Food-wise there are picnic tables available but most people seemed to just be buying lunch as there were quite a few food stalls at reasonable prices – we all enjoyed sampling pizza and tea and cake over the course of the afternoon.

My girls loved the bands and we were able to sit around and chill as they danced along to each track which was nice. That’s one thing I really love about Wool@Jct13, it’s extremely family friendly – you can just see my two girls (below) walking hand in hand through the stalls and even my husband was quite taken with the colours of the yarns available and by the artistry of some of the felt pictures we saw.

My girls also loved all the animals and the play-park that they have on site. In fact my husband played with them on the play-park whilst I got to have a first leisurely look at stalls then we all went round the stalls again together later. The kids also loved the fact that they got a tractor-trailer ride (there and back) to the show! My three year old was very impressed by the big wheels!

On offer at the show was mainly hand dyed yarn, things for spinners and needle felters, and products celebrating ‘wool’. Actually it is a very WOOLLY show, which based on a farm I think it was bound to be, there are sheep around and also fleece shearing demonstrations which are really interesting to watch. You certainly get a sense of where the yarn is coming from!

In the main tent there was just so much yarn prettiness to drool over that if I had all the money in the world I could have gone crazy – because I pretty much wanted everything I saw!

And I did buy yarn, I can’t lie, I felt it would be rude not to when at a yarn show! I just fell in love with the colourways of five skeins of yarn that had to come home with me. The first two are from Siobhan Crafts and the last three are from Bellica Yarns.

I just loved the speckles and flecks on the first two which are 75% SW Merino and 25% Nylon Double Knit. Together they make 200g and the colourways are OOAK – Prism and Mermaid Scales which I think will go beautifully together in an, as yet unknown, future project.

The gorgeous yellow toned yarns I had to have because I just envisioned them in a summer shawl. I’m going on holiday next week so I’m thinking of caking it up and taking it with me. The vivid block yellow is 100g and the smaller two lovely speckled variegated yarn are 50g each so I have 200g in total which should make a fair sized shawl. There were no colourway names on the labels but both are 4ply 75% SW Merino and 25% Nylon – perfect for a light and airy design I was thinking!

So all in all we enjoyed our visit to this years show and I’m sure you will find us back at Wool@J13 next year! If you are in The Midlands you might want to check it out. But actually if you love yarn then I hope you’ll go along and support any local yarn show, they’ll only be able to keep going if we help keep them running – if that’s not a good excuse for having to buy yarn I don’t know what is!

If you are looking for a yarn show near you I’ve found this comprehensive blog post, by the Travel Knitter, which seems to list all Yarn Shows for 2019 which is just fab (thanks to her for doing that!).

Are you visiting any yarn shows this year? I’d love to hear which ones you are going to and why you’ve chosen that particular one… feel free to drop a comment below.

Until next time – keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

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