In this post I have listed some of my favorite knitting-related websites for the year 2023 and why I like them so much. Is there an awesome website missing? Drop a comment below or send me an email at knitgrammer(at)knitgrammer.com and I’ll check it.
1. Ravelry
Ravelry is a website with a lot of patterns and a wonderful knitting community. You can find there both free and paid patterns by indie designers (for instance my patterns are available there) and an extensive database of yarns. For instance, you can search what kind of projects people have made of certain yarn or if you find a nice pattern you can check the projects made by your fellow crafters in order to find yarn ideas or see if they have shared some tips related to the pattern.
There’s also a huge knitting community and from the forums of Ravelry you can always find some friendly soul to help you with your knitting no matter how beginner or advanced you are. You can also join the groups just to chat. I think this is the easiest place to start selling your own knitting patterns as well.
Lastly, I love their notebook feature. I can add notes to my projects so that the next time when I start making something I can check whether the end result was ok or should I for instance take smaller needles for my new project.
To use all of the features you need to sign up but it is completely free.
2. Lovecrafts
Lovecrafts is a website where you can find a lot of free and paid patterns and at the same time, you can buy yarn for your project. They have also a very inspiring blog and community with whom you can share your finished objects and find project ideas.
I like them because there is an extensive selection of different yarn brands from affordable to more luxurious ones (cheapest acrylic to cashmere fade sets). They also support the work of indie designers by providing a platform for selling patterns. They ship worldwide from the US and UK.
3. Yarn sub
Has it ever happened to you that you find a perfect pattern but the yarn is no more available to purchase or not available in your country? Just go to yarnsub.com and search by the name of the yarn and the website gives you an extensive list of yarns that have similar qualities and thus suitable substitutes.
4. Etsy
If you would like to support small creative businesses Etsy is the place for you. There is plenty of knitting patterns available but also the most beautiful hand-dyed yarns (also plenty of commercial ones), buttons, beads, stitch markers and handmade knitting gadgets such as sock blockers and rulers as well as project bags.
5. Fruity knitting
Fruity knitting combines entertainment and education. They interview knitwear designers, yarn producers, and crafters around the world. Every time you watch one of their episodes you learn something new and get really inspired! Check out for instance the absolutely stunning double knitting projects by Alasdair Post-Quinn or the episode where they interview Andrea Mowry.
Their youtube channel is one of the few I need to go and check out immediately after a new episode has been published.
6. Craftsy
If you would like to take your knitting skills to next level you should checkout craftsy.com. There are several courses for how to make better fitting garments such as the Sweater Modifications for a Custom Fit course by Amy Herzog. Or if you would like to learn more about what qualities different yarns have and how they affect the end result of your knitting project checkout the Choose the Perfect Yarn Every Time course by Clara Parkes.
7. Lion brand yarn
On lionbrand.com you can find more than 3 000 free knitting patterns and of course you can buy there the yarn and other supplies after you have found your perfect pattern. They have categorized their yarns so that it’s very easy to substitute a yarn featured on a pattern to another. I like the fact that they also support a wide range of indie designers, and for instance, Jessica Potasz (aka mama in stitch) and Chantal Miyagishima (aka Knitatude) are designing patterns for the Lion brand yarn. Both of the previously mentioned designers have a blog full of awesome content and you should definitely check their websites out!
8. Knitgrammer
Before you go you might want to check out also this website knitgrammer.com. Here you can find interactive gauge-free patterns such as the No swatch, any stitch count, any yarn sock pattern and mittens pattern as well as knitting calculators like “When to start heel on toe-up socks” or “How to increase evenly”. Here’s also plenty of other useful content for knitters such as patterns and how-to articles.
Do you know a website that you think should be on this list? Share it with me by commenting below or sending me an email at knitgrammer(at)knitgrammer.com
For more ideas check the listings by Ranked blogs and Knitlikegranny.
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7 Responses
These are great! Yarnspirations is also a great resource
I understand Marianna’s point completely and have even stopped visiting sites that use trendy/unreadable styles. I do not as of today have difficulty with your style. Thank you for your consideration!
Thanks for all these different web sites. There is one that you didn’t mention that is pretty good and that is Knit Companion. You should check it out !
Hi Carol! Thanks for the hint. I will check it out. -Ida
Your light grey and light red type is very hard to read. Many of us older knitters are having trouble with the new Ravelry design. This color or lack of color intensity or whatever seems unnecessarily difficult. More contrast would be very helpful.
Hi Marianna! Thank you for taking your time and leaving the feedback. Actually, just a while ago I increased the font size but obviously, that did not improve the readability enough. I will try to fix this in the near future and I’ll let you know when the fixes are done. It would great if you could then tell me if the problem got solved or not. -Ida
I have now made the font much bolder and darker. I hope it improves the readability. Please let me know if that’s not the case.