This week, I'm excited to share about something that is at the heart of both what we do as a business here at Knit Collage AND my own personal creative practice: Intuitive Knitting.

I just added this video to YouTube that I created for last year’s Solstice Hug Challenge where I riff on this idea, but the concept is all about tapping into what YOU love and making something that becomes an expression of who you are inside. It’s a manifestation of your own unique, inner creative voice through knitting and there’s no wrong way to do it!

Intuitive knitting is all about leaning into what feels good in your body when you’re knitting it. What lights you up and makes you excited about your project. What gives you that “just one more row” feeling as you create. It’s about feeling totally alive and engaged with your creative work.

My first real experiment with Intuitive Knitting was my Penguono sweater, by Stephen West, that I’m wearing in the photo above. When I knit that piece years ago, something unlocked for me ~ the freedom and sheer JOY of combining color and textures. It’s like the doors to my creative self-expression blew open, never to be shut again. Have you ever experienced something like that? If you want to hear how I approached knitting the Penguono sweater, I created a YouTube video about it here too!

This stunning Kaleidoscope Cardi, designed by Laurel Gervitz, was knit by a former team member Vanessa Reyes and it’s such an inspiration for what’s possible when you embrace this method of creating. Vanessa is such a talented designer and knitter who is more than worth a follow.

In this intuitive creative process, there’s no wrong way to do something. There are no rules. It’s absolutely your world. This might feel a little scary at first, but as you practice this skill it strengthens your connection to your intuition and eventually it becomes second nature.

Intuitive Knitting requires you to trust your gut and embrace the creative process which sometimes involves ripping back your previous work. When you embrace intuitive knitting, frogging doesn’t have to be a dirty word. It’s all just part of the process of playing with yarn and achieving your dream result. It’s all about checking in with your creative self and asking “Do I like this?” “Would I like it even better if I did this instead?” “Where do I want to go next?” It’s a conversation between maker and the making.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Amy Small (@knitcollage)

 When I posted on Instagram about the modifications I made to my Lotus Sweater over the summer, I got some questions about what I changed to achieve this cropped aesthetic. 

So, here is an informal roadmap for the mods I did in order to get this look:

First, I cast on for the Front Hem according to the instructions in the pattern for my size—size 2. Instead of knitting to the length called for in the pattern, I knit my front hem to 1.5'' / 3.75 cm and placed my stitches on hold.

Then, I cast on for the Back Hem according to the instructions in the pattern and knit to 1.5'' / 3.75 cm, just like on the front. Then, I followed the instructions to join in the round and begin knitting the body of my sweater.

I followed the instructions for the body for 9 total Lotus rounds, ending after a row 15 of the pattern repeat. Then, I continued to follow the pattern as written for both front and back armhole and upper body shaping, front and back neck and shoulder twisted ribbing, and the 3-needle bind off called for in the pattern.

The total body length of my sweater from shoulder to hem ended up being 15.5” / 38.75 cm.

For sleeves, I opted to do a 3/4 length sleeve. From where I picked up my sleeve stitches per the size 2 pattern instructions, my sleeve measured 11.5” / 28.75 cm in total length, including a 1.5'' / 3.75 cm cuff.

To make my Lotus flowers, I used a rainbow gradient of stash Wildflower yarn. I've listed each color used below, in order from the bottom up:

1. Ochre Rose

2. Blossom

3. Lotus Petal

4. Goldenrod

5. Come Alive Green

6. Reflection Pool

7. Caribbean Waters

8. Iris

9. Caribbean Waters

10. Reflection Pool

11. Come Alive Green

12. Goldenrod

13. Lotus Petal

14. Blossom

15. Ochre Rose

16. Blossom

I've now knitted two of these sweaters for myself—this cropped style and the OG version in Aquamarine! I love them both dearly in different ways and think both definitely have a place in my wardrobe.

Let me know if you have any questions about the mods I made or if you plan to knit your own! I'd love to see pics 💕

Our annual Black Friday and Cyber Monday events are almost here! Behind the scenes we’ve been working away to bring you something magical this holiday season, including a brand new collab with super star hand spinner Amanda of Melanated Boho Bae. Get the full scoop and all the details in the video and blog post above.

Every Black Friday we do something extra special. The first 100 people to order on Black Friday will receive a FREE mini skein in their order! These are valued at $13.60 per mini. If you’re in the first 100 orders we get over the course of the weekend, you’ll score one. We’re mixing in a bunch of colorways and you can expect a fun fiber surprise! The mini bonus is eligible to physical product orders only that are over $40.

Next up, we will be offering Free Shipping, up to $10, for Black Friday and Cyber Monday orders. The $10 credit will be for both domestic and international orders and it will automatically apply at checkout—no code needed to keep it super simple.

We’re also releasing our Lotus Sweater and Lotus Pillow designs. These designs by Julia Norris originally appeared in our Spring 2024 Knitalong and were huge community hits. These patterns are all about the lotus stitches, made with our vibrant cotton Wildflower yarns. While this stitch might look intimidating, my video class that comes with the yarn kit will walk you through each and every step. Both the stand alone patterns and kits will be available on Black Friday too!

We’ve also refreshed kits for our Holiday Stocking, a forever favorite around these parts. This year I’m finally offering a video course taught by me to accompany the kits. In the class, I’ll teach you everything you need to know to make the stocking from start to finish. Even an absolute beginner will be able to make this festive classic!

Next up is a fun one - meet the mini version of our beloved Faye Fringe Bag, designed by Anna Skala! It’s super quick to knit up and makes a wonderful gift. it’s the perfect size for a night out on the town. Kits and the mini pattern are headed your way! 

Finally for Black Friday, we have a HUGE SALE coming your way for the Happy Dance and a pattern release. I’m thinking of reinventing this yarn for Fall 2025 and it’s unlikely we continue with this yarn exactly as is, despite it’s extra specialness. We will have both kits and a standalone pattern for the Happy Dance Cardi, and all skeins of Happy Dance yarn will be a whopping 25% off. We so rarely discount our yarns, so this is major!

For Cyber Monday, we have an incredibly special release: a limited edition yarn collab with celeb spinner Amanda Solomon, aka Melanated Boho Bae. Over the course of the last 9 months Amanda, myself and our team in India worked hard to bring these to life!  This yarn will work great for any of our patterns that call for our Dreamland yarn and we’re releasing curated kits for our Over the Top Shoulder Hug specifically for this yarn. If you missed out on shrug kits for the fall knitalong, this is your chance!

There are two colors for this exclusive yarn release: A deep turquoise base with neutral accents and a neutral taupe base with turquoise accents. Pops of hot pink and fun flower trims tie both colorways together. Hear all the details in the video linked above.

Thank you for being here and being a part of this community. We are all so incredibly grateful for your support. If you need help at anytime, feel free to reach out to hello@knitcollage.com and we got you!

Thank you ~ Amy