Game of Wool - Q&A with Stephanie

AGE: 65
LOCATION: Derby

JOB: Life Coach

You’re going to be competing in the first competitive knitting show. Are you thrilled? 
I’m SO excited. I love knitting and I’m so honoured to be on the first competition show about knitting.

What is your unique style of knitting? 
I will turn my hand to anything at all, but I knit cardigans and jumpers. Some of the challenges on this show are really going to challenge me. I’m going to be learning SO many new things. 
 

What is the most ambitious project you’ve knitted?
Sewing, I have made a set of bears for my children. 
 

What is it that you love most about knitting? 
I can take my brain out. When you are knitting and concentrating on the pattern, you don’t think about anything else. You just be. It is stress free and don’t think of anything other than 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5.
 

Go on, there must be a part of the knitting process that you dislike - what is it? 
Sewing up! I love knitting, but not sewing up. Sewing up can sometimes take as long as it does to make the item. It takes a lot longer than you think.

How do you go about preparing for a competition like Game of Wool? 
I’ve been knitting a lot. I’ve been practicing and I’ve never used so much reused wool in all my life. I’m just trying to get my speed up too by practicing as much as I can. For me, it is the creativity. Coming up with ideas in the first place. Once I have the ideas, I know what I’m doing.

Have you done a knitting competition before? 
Nope!

What are you hoping some of the challenges will be? 
I’d really like to do something with lace. I’d like to do something with beads. I’m a cable girl and cable pattern, but I don’t knit lace often, so I quite fancy trying that again.

Are you just a knitting wiz or are you multi-skilled? 
I bake a mean cake, and everyone wants me to run a tea room. Dress making, sewing and turning my hand to all sorts of things.

How does knitting make you feel? 
It is the highlight of my day. I work by myself at my kitchen table. After I have my tea, I’m knitting.

Knitting is becoming cool again, why do you think this is? 
On a serious note, it’s becoming cool again because people are fed up of screens. It can be social by going to a Knit & Natter. But it’s also great for your mental health. You can just be in the moment. There are lots of advantages for it.

If you had to give one piece of advice to someone picking up needles for the first time, what would you say to them? 
Persevere. Take it slowly, don’t be too ambitious with your first project and follow the pattern. Take it steady, get the method then you can start working on tension so it looks neat.

Finally, if you could create one thing with absolutely no budget restrictions or brief, what would you make? 
I would love to make a cashmere coat. 

Game of Wool: Britain’s Best Knitter starts Sunday 2 November at 8pm on Channel 4.

ENDS