Today we are happy to welcome Jean Moss to our little corner of the internet! Jean is an amazing knitter and recently published a book of knitting patterns for sweet little shawls, aptly name Sweet Shawlettes. She also hosts knitting tours of York, Ireland and Morocco--we dream of joining her on one of her tours!
You can win a copy of her new book--see the details at the end of this post!
You can win a copy of her new book--see the details at the end of this post!
Jean, tell us a little about how you learned to knit.
Originally I learned to knit before I went to school because I wanted to be like my beloved grandmother who spent hours teaching me. A fallow period ensued but my interest was rekindled in my teens when I started to make my own clothes. It was the swinging sixties and I loved what I was seeing on the street and in magazines, but had no way of achieving anything similar other than to pick up my needles again. From then on I was hooked.
It never occurred to me that I'd ever be able to make a living out of it, especially as I had no formal training in design, but after getting requests for sweaters I'd made for the kids, I decided that it might be a way of making some extra cash from home. No-one was more surprised than I was to find that very quickly I was presenting my designs to luminaries such as Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein and they were placing orders! It was a meteoric learning curve!
It never occurred to me that I'd ever be able to make a living out of it, especially as I had no formal training in design, but after getting requests for sweaters I'd made for the kids, I decided that it might be a way of making some extra cash from home. No-one was more surprised than I was to find that very quickly I was presenting my designs to luminaries such as Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein and they were placing orders! It was a meteoric learning curve!
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| Vamp Boa from Sweet Shawlettes |
I noticed you not only write books, you also host knitting tours. What are some of your favorite places to visit?
Our tours were born out of a desire to share some of my favourite places with other knitters. Back in 2000 I was invited to do a workshop at the Rowan Mill in Holmfirth to a group of lovely American visitors on a UK tour hosted by Vogue Knitting. My partner, Philip, and I were struck by the fact that their American guides were not familiar with deepest Yorkshire at all.
Reasoning we could do that, we launched our own programme of tours, initially in the UK, but now further afield to Morocco last year and Ireland this year. We only visit places we know well, so that we can offer our visitors a personal off-the-beaten-
Our aim is to offer the very best of the British knitting scene. Although knitting and yarn feature heavily in our tours, we also try to mix in beautiful gardens, great food, quirky people and places, and local musicians. The aim is to create a house party atmosphere, where our visitors can unwind with kindred spirits, rubbing shoulders with top designers like Alice Starmore, Sasha Kagan, Martin Storey, Erika Knight, Debbie Bliss, Sue Duckworth, Debbie Abrahams & Sarah Hatton.
Some of our people started a special Travellers with Jean Moss group on Ravelry, where you can speak with past and present participants and get their feedback. Friendships are made and cemented, and many come back year after year. This is why we’re constantly on the lookout for new locations. Morocco last year, Ireland this year, next year we're considering Amsterdam and the Peloponese in Greece - two other destinations we know and love.
Are your sweet shawlettes inspired by some of the places you've been?
Absolutely! Kardamili is named after one of our favourite villages in the Mani, Greece. In the Brontë fichu, I used a delicate fishtail lace pattern in recycled silk and cotton, as the texture and colours of the yarn remind me of the windswept crags and heather moors of Brontë’s Yorkshire home.
Ceilidh is reminiscent of my Lancashire childhood, when I used to wear a red plaid kilt every winter, as well as my many visits to Edinburgh both independently and on our tours. There's also a wealth of inspiration in the old ganseys of the seafaring folk of the British Isles. Polperro is a contemporary take on these patterns and named for one of my favourite Cornish villages, latterly famous for its knitters.
Garland takes me straight to Venice, where I love to be at this time of year, as it's quiet, spooky and full of mystery and in the evenings there's the passeggiata – the free catwalk show that Italians excel at – glitz with style! I was once snowed in there in early February, the lagoon was frozen and the planes couldn't get in or out – heaven!
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| Bronte Fichu | Ceilidh Shawlette |
Ceilidh is reminiscent of my Lancashire childhood, when I used to wear a red plaid kilt every winter, as well as my many visits to Edinburgh both independently and on our tours. There's also a wealth of inspiration in the old ganseys of the seafaring folk of the British Isles. Polperro is a contemporary take on these patterns and named for one of my favourite Cornish villages, latterly famous for its knitters.
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| Polperro Cape |
Garland takes me straight to Venice, where I love to be at this time of year, as it's quiet, spooky and full of mystery and in the evenings there's the passeggiata – the free catwalk show that Italians excel at – glitz with style! I was once snowed in there in early February, the lagoon was frozen and the planes couldn't get in or out – heaven!
Sweet Shawlettes was wrapped up just before we left for Knit Morocco, so as I was still in the shawlette swing, I designed another shawlette on the tour. I would have loved to include it in the book, but sadly it was too late. However, subsequently I was asked by Taunton to gift a shawl to the upcoming Prayer Shawl Companion so I found a good home for it there. Morocco is a designers dream, complete sensory overload everywhere you look, and I love to think my pattern, Marrakech, captured a little piece of its magic.
Thanks Jean!
To win a copy of Jean's book, Sweet Shawlettes, leave us a comment by Friday, January 27th at 6pm MST telling us your favorite scenic place to take your knitting (or where you dream of going). Make sure to include your contact email. We will chose one winner randomly to receive a free copy of Sweet Shawlettes!
***UPDATE: Thanks everyone for commenting and sharing your favorite knitting locales. Lorraine is our lucky winner--we hope you enjoy your new book!***
If you want to make sure to get your own copy, stop in and purchase the book at Fancy Tiger!
SWEET SHAWLETTES blog tour
Tues 24 Jan Fancy Tiger Crafts – Amber Corcoran
Wed 25 Jan Chic Knits – Bonne Marie Burns
Thurs 26 Jan The Panopticon – Franklin Habit
Wed 25 Jan Chic Knits – Bonne Marie Burns
Thurs 26 Jan The Panopticon – Franklin Habit
