Emma Wright is Britan’s Next Top Knitwear Designer

I’d been on the lookout for this one but somehow missed the official announcement. Back in March I told you about the knitwear design contest being held by LoveKnitting looking for the next great knitwear designer in the UK. Hopefuls had to design a project using yarn that LoveKnitting sells, and their creations were judged by a panel of experts including Debbie Bliss.

The winner is Emma Wright, from Sheffield, who wowed the judges with her bulky tie-back sweater with a textured body, polka-dotted sleeves and bold teal accents.

It’s a really fun design, and because she won the contest she will have the chance to professionally finish her design and make it available for sale at LoveKnitting. She’ll also get work experience with Emilio de la Morena in advance of his S/S London Fashion Week show in September and a cash prize of £1000.

Congratulations, Emma!

Check out the other finalists and see if you think the judges made the right choice.

[Photo via LoveKnitting.]

Getting ready for back to school makes me think about pencil crafts, so let’s take a look at some pencil themed knitting patterns!

I recently made a pencil on a circular knitting machine, and it was a fun, quick, easy project that uses little bits of leftover yarn (and if you don’t have yellow you can make it a colored pencil using whatever color’s your favorite). And if you want to make a bigger version check out this pattern from Orange Olive Road on Etsy.

If you want to knit a pencil pillow by hand, check out Sketchy, available on Ravelry from Shana S. Cohen. This one uses worsted weight yarn and has two size options and the choice to make a pencil with an eraser or a colored pencil.

Pencil scarves seem to be the most popular kind of pencil knitting pattern, and there are lot of cute ones. This one from Cosy Craft UK mostly uses garter stitch, with some welts to add texture and what looks like an I-cord edging. It calls for DK weight yarn.

If you want to go all garter stitch try this version from Emsley Co Creations, which uses five colors of DK weight yarn and just a little shaping to make the point of the pencil.

There’s also this fun, mostly stockinette so it looks like it curls a bit, pencil pattern that looks like it’s worked in chunky yarn from Little Knits Studio. This one uses just a little garter stitch and easy shaping for the point.

If you don’t want a pencil scarf, how about some pencil socks? The No. 2 Pencil Socks from The Yarn Enabler are available from Ravelry and use five colors of sock yarn. They feature wide ribs to mimic the texture of a pencil and have options to be worked from the top down or the toe up.

Needs Sharpening by Alexander Walker is a free pattern on Ravelry that uses five colors of sock yarn to make a sort of shortie sock. The little bit of black at the tips of the toes inspired the name. These, too, can be worked in either direction and are available in three sizes.

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