Knit Collage Spring 2022 Make-Along
Knitting has always seemed to be an intimidating endeavour to me. I have always had a deep desire to learn how to do it. However, when I had to wrap my head around it, and figure out how to start, either the knitting jargon was too much for me to handle, or to begin alone was too overwhelming. The following questions rang in my head with no answers: Which beginner pattern should I start with? Which yarn would be good for a beginner like me? Help! which needles, and why? When I started learning to sew, it was much easier to decipher instructions and plunge right in. With knitting, I kept hitting a wall whenever I tried to take a step forward, and was constantly filled with insecurities. I felt I needed someone to literally hold my hand and guide me through the whole process, but was too shy and embarrassed to ask anyone to invest that much time and effort to deal with my lack of confidence.
Hearing my prayers, the universe sent me an angel in the form of Amy Small who is the owner of Knit Collage. She offered the ultimate solution for me: join the Knit Collage Spring Make-Along 2022. I was sold as soon as I hopped onto the website and discovered the yarns that Knit Collage offered, and the design aesthetic. I wanted to make all of the patterns available – every single one of them. And the hand-spun yarns are scrumptious! However, what I was going to get from participating in the Spring Make-Along are not just the bare-bones yarn and patterns, but so much more.
First, I am getting expert instruction, and most important for me, time for personal attention and instruction. Not only are there well-written and detailed instructions for the patterns, but each pattern has a video tutorial that takes you through the whole process step-by-step so that there is a visual accompaniment to the words. This is extremely helpful for a visual learner like myself. This is literally the kind of nurturing instruction I was wishing for. In addition, these tutorials will be mine to keep for life.
The icing on the cake is that throughout the duration of the 8-week Spring Make-Along, I would be able to sign up for one-on-one sessions through Sign-up Genius, so that I can sort out whatever queries I have about my knitting process. I have already met one of the teachers in these personal zoom appointments. Her name is Cheryl Kubat, and she has been so patient and generous with me. I definitely felt her passion for igniting the love of knitting to whomever is interested, and she has great advice and references to different resources. She is also very responsive with questions on email, and she keeps checking on my process, which is very motivating for me. With her, nothing I asked was a dumb question. (And I know I asked some pretty silly ones, but she never made me feel ridiculous or less-than.) She helped guide me through making my first ever knitted cowl (Knitspiration Cowl Pattern) and beanie(Daisy Chain Beanie), and I am thrilled that she has my back with knitting. She is a treasure.
Second, the Spring Make-Along offers community, which I find is immensely valuable when learning a new craft. The camaraderie, the accountability, the encouragement and support that will be available to me with like-minded makers working towards a similar goal is simply priceless. I am so excited to meet creators from all over the world through weekly group zoom calls for the 8 weeks of the Make-Along. There will also be optional accountability small groups if you require an extra push to complete your project. The community is an ongoing connection that can be accessed through a private Facebook group and through Instagram as well @KnitCollageKal. This is an opportunity to meet with knitters and crocheters of all levels, and it’s not to be missed. I expect that there will be valuable connections and friendships made through this experience. How cool is that? You can see Amy on youTube underlining all the goodies that you would get when you join the Make-Along. Please watch it because it gives a very good introduction, and also the values that Knit Collage aligns with:
If you’ve decided to join in the fun and creativity, you still may be asking: how does it work? What’s the first step to take? First, check out the website to see the design styles available for the Spring 2022 Make-Along. These designs were picked through a vote that was held in March. My apologies that you weren’t able to cast your vote at this point in time, but look out for the announcement for the Fall 2022 Make- Along, and your voice will be heard for the next Make-Along.
There are 4 main design options: Corrine Cardi, Grow With Me Cardi, Botanical Cardi and Numerology Shaw:
There are also 4 Bonus Options: SoulShine Cardi, Botanical Blanket, Botanical Floor Pillow and Kaleidoscope Embroidered:
Amy also made another video with details of each of the designs. Check it out here:
Next, choose your favourite design, and buy your kit from the website. From Amy’s recent blog post, you’ll be able to check out all the details of each style and the price of each kit. After you’ve made your purchase, you will receive all the materials by mail, and video tutorials online required to make your chosen design. In addition, when you purchase any kit, you will receive access to all 8 patterns (and 2 surprise bonus patterns), the video tutorials for the 4 Main Designs plus the Kaleidoscope Embroidered, as well as the Intro to Knitting and Intro to Crochet courses. Of course, all the community connections will be available to you as well. That is a pretty sweet deal. Take note that Make-along kits will go live on Friday, April 8th at 10am ET and stay active through Friday, April 15th. The Spring 2022 Make-Along begins on April 25th.The Knit Collage team is working hard to put these kits together, and if you click on the link now before April 8, 2022, the site may not be ready yet. But if you decide that you do want a kit, get it as soon as the cart opens on April 8th. I hear that popular designs and colour combos sell out fast. I am writing this post now so that you have a few days to look through all the available colour combos for the different designs and make your choice.
Now if the designs appeal to you but you prefer to use your own yarn, then you can also purchase a virtual option where all the patterns, tutorials and community are available to you except for the yarn and notions included in the kit. This is very handy especially when you don’t want to deal with shipping, have yarn already in your stash, or prefer to source your own yarn choices.
As an affiliate member, the kit that I chose arrived early for me so that I could offer my honest opinion and feedback, and share them with my audience. I was surprised that the shipping took only 3 days for the kit to travel halfway around the world to reach its destination. Service was fast and pain free.
Can you guess which design I chose? Keeping in mind that I am an absolute beginner, it would be wise for me to go with the Numerology Shawl or the Kaleidoscope Embroidered. I ended up choosing the latter because I like that there’s some embroidery work for embellishment. The colour combo that I’m working with is the “Blue My Mind” combo, which has been renamed “Geri In Stitches” combo. You can check out the list of colour combos for the Kaleidoscope Embroidered from the link here. Also, if it all goes well, I also have my eye on the Grow With Me Cardi which features a more advanced knitting technique called Brioche. Perhaps I am being greedy and too ambitious, but I would like to try that one as well after I’ve completed my first project. However, if you are a more advanced knitter, and want to try out this cute pattern, then all the colour combos are here for you to choose from. I think I am going to go for the Highlighter combo for a splash of neon yellow/green to welcome the spring.
All the links provided here are affiliate links, and if you make a purchase through them, I will receive a commission at no extra cost to you. I really do hope to see some of you at the Knit Collage Spring 2022 Make-Along. It will be a great way to inspire each other, fuel our creativity, and craft together. I hope I’ve piqued your interest, ignited a desire to join us in this adventure. It would be a blast! In the meantime, watch this space because I will be posting about my progress.
