I never thought I'd see the day when I wrote a post about knitting, but here we are! I recently took the opportunity since becoming a Skillshare ambassador to finally learn how to knit following a simple scarf class - now I'm hooked! I've knitted in the past, in fact I created a brief at art college around knitting, making samples out of knitted copper wire, knitting with broomsticks & using a knitting machine. So I'm very familiar with garter stitch!


But after watching my mum create beautiful knitted garments pretty much monthly for as long as I can remember, I no longer just want to put in the odd cheeky cardigan request, and actually knit one myself. I also trawled Instagram for some cool knitting accounts and that was it, my knitting aspirations have gotten bigger and more ambitious by the day. And yes, I am still just knitting my first jumper *face palm*.


I raided my mum's knitting patterns and she had the Wool And The Gang 'Total Eclipse Sweater' in her stash. It's an 'easy' pattern with a body consisting of pretty much 2 squares, knitted all in garter stitch. Although whilst the WATG yarn looks beautiful, it's a little out of my beginners yarn budget so I settled on a budget yarn incase this was all just going to be an awful memory.

My supplies:

Pattern: Wool And The Gang 'Total Eclipse Sweater'

Yarn: Stylecraft Special Aran Yarn in 'Fondant'

Needles: 5mm Bamboo Needles



I've been knitting every evening for around a month now and it really has brought a lot to my life. I know it sounds silly, but it's really had a positive impact on my evenings. Instead of fiddling with my phone, or working on my laptop, I'm taking that time instead to knit and it's far more enjoyable. If I feel like my day hasn't been particularly productive or it's just been super stressful, taking the evenings to work on my knitting means I am being productive (however slow the process may be) and it relaxes my mind.

I've also been struggling with my sewing and motivation this summer, and finding knitting came at a great time for me where I felt guilty for not sewing and failing with my summer dressmaking. I finally had that rush of excitement again that comes with learning a new skill and the possibilities that come with it.

I've always enjoyed crafts and I've lost count of the creative subjects I've dipped my toe into (with varying success). But recently I've found myself without a hobby and I'm craving something creative to focus on in the evenings instead of working at my computer or watching TV. 

In July I attended my first workshop, creating a simple macrame wallhanging. It was something I had never tried before but loved the look of. I really enjoyed the class and even though I found it tricky at first, I soon got into a rhythm and started to enjoy watching my knotted mess come together. I came away feeling accomplished and excited to go away an finish my project ASAP. The time I spent cosy on the sofa concentrating on creating felt far better for my mental health than working on my laptop. Whilst my first attempt at macrame is a little rough around the edges, it's sparked something in me and now I want to try all the crafts!

So when Skillshare approached me about become an ambassador, it was almost a little spooky. Since discovering the online world of Skillshare, I feel so excited to fill my evenings with creativity and learning instead of my usual practice of TV or my phone.



Skillshare is an online community of students and teachers where you can access over 18,000 classes. They're kind of like Netflix or Spotify but for creative learning with subjects from photography,  business and blogging to sewing and all the crafts you can ever imagine!

Usually when you sign up to Skillshare Premium you get 1 month free, but when you sign up through me you get 2 MONTHS FREE! That's 2 totally free months and 100% access to all the classes on offer.

GET 2 FREE MONTHS OF SKILLSHARE WITH MY LINK - CLICK HERE!

I have already spent hours on Skillshare browsing all the classes and dipping my toe into lessons. I have put together a list of subjects I want to research, along with compiling my 'Saved Classes'  on my profile for ones I want to join!

Here's some of the business-type subjects I'll be delving into:

• Photography & editing on Lightroom & Photoshop
• How to use Illustrator
• Email marketing & e-commerce
• Blogging & blog design

There's lots more, but I'm still looking!


So things are about to get real crafty around here and I'll be sharing all my projects with you. Once you're signed up, you can also follow my Skillshare profile too to see which classes I'm a part of.

You can cancel your membership at any time, so if you just want to snap up your 2 FREE MONTHS of Skillshare, there's no commitment. Or if you want to continue learning, it's only £10 a month. But what I love about Skillshare is that your membership fee supports the teachers to be able to continue to create professional and engaging content, and it helps fund students in need on Skillshare's scholarship program. Other perks include absolutely no adverts and you can download your classes & watch them offline at any time!

GET 2 FREE MONTHS OF SKILLSHARE WITH MY LINK - CLICK HERE!

This is a partnership I feel really excited about and I hope you will be too! Working from home my work hours can run up until bed time, and after a while that routine really takes it toll on my mental health and can effect my sleep pattern. I love having a craft project to work on, it takes me away from screens and thinking about all the work I have to do (small business owners can relate - there's always so many things that need doing). Feeling productive, learning new skills and focusing my brain on something other than work really helps my mood and I'm excited to learn some new creative skills to improve aspects of my blog, business and life! And you can do it all from the sofa - heaven.

What would you like to learn on Skillshare? I'm off to buy a loom!

Thanks for reading, pinups!
Abi xo