S3 E11: The Yarn Shop Dream: What Comes Next? | Jane Abraham

To avoid travelling to London to buy beautiful yarn, Jane Abraham opened a yarn shop in Cornwall. A perfectly reasonable solution, if you ask me.

Jane runs Stitches & Cream in Falmouth and is also known as The Cornish Knitter. As she prepares to close the physical shop and continue the business online, we talk about building a place where people feel welcome, the realities of running it and what she wants to do next.

We discuss giving advice without making a sale, supporting small yarn producers and balancing a welcoming community with a business that needs to pay its way.

Jane explains why some experienced knitters feel overlooked by contemporary patterns, from unfamiliar techniques to clothes that don’t seem designed for their bodies. Along the way, she helps me reconsider my cardigan design, and we explore the choices facing people who build craft businesses, including growth, ownership and changing direction.

Then there’s the question of what happens to your own knitting when it becomes your work. After years of making shop samples she can’t wear herself, what would Jane like to knit next?

Clarification — Knitting for Olive:
In our discussion, we speculate that the change in ownership at Knitting for Olive means a change in management. Since recording, Knitting for Olive has clarified that Alexander, Pernille and Caroline continue to run the business. The ownership change does not mean a new management team.

Find Jane:
Stitches & Cream: https://www.stitchesandcream.co.uk/
The Cornish Knitter: https://cornishknitter.co.uk/
The Flock: https://cornishknitter.co.uk/flock-online-knitting-community/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thecornishknitter

Find me:
Website and knitting patterns: https://cleevelyknits.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cleevelyknits/
Get in touch: [email protected]

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