2014 WINNERS

Almost 14,000 readers and visitors to the websites of Let’s Knit and Let’s Get Crafting magazines cast their votes in the 2014 British Knitting Awards - the largest response ever received in the awards' seven year history and twice the number of votes recorded last year.

The final list of winners recognised a total of nearly 50 companies and individuals. Rowan Yarns were number one in five categories including Best Pattern House and Best Overall Yarn Brand, and retailer Deramores won three awards including Best Independent Yarn Brand.

This year saw the introduction of two new categories that support British brands and retailers – Best Brand for British Yarn, won by West Yorkshire Spinners, and Best Yarn Shop Day Experience 2014 scooped by Warrington-based Black Sheep Wools.

THE CATEGORIES

Best Overall Yarn Brand

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - Sirdar

3rd Place - Stylecraft

Best Value Yarn Brand

1st Place - Sirdar

2nd Place - King Cole

3rd Place - Stylecraft

Best Baby Yarn Brand

1st Place - Debbie Bliss

2nd Place - Sirdar

3rd Place - Deramores

Best Luxury Yarn Brand

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - Debbie Bliss

3rd Place - Noro

Best Sock Yarn Brand

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - Regia

3rd Place - Noro

Best Independent Yarn Brand

1st Place - Deramores

2nd Place - Toft Alpaca

3rd Place - Fyberspates

Best Pattern House

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - Sirdar

3rd Place - Debbie Bliss

Best Brand For British Yarn

1st Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

2nd Place - Toft Alpaca

3rd Place - Jamieson & Smith

Best Knitting Designer

1st Place - Debbie Bliss

2nd Place - Kaffe Fassett

3rd Place - Kim Hargreaves

Best chain store

1st Place - John Lewis

2nd Place - Hobbycraft

3rd Place - Abakhan

Best Online Store

1st Place - Deramores

2nd Place - LoveKnitting

3rd Place - Black Sheep Wools

Best Website

1st Place - Ravelry

2nd Place - Deramores

3rd Place - Loveknitting

Best Independent Store (North of England)

1st Place - Black Sheep Wools, Warrington

2nd Place - Baa Ram Ewe, Yorkshire

3rd Place - Purl City Yarns, Manchester

Best Independent Store (South of England)

1st Place - Loop, Islington

2nd Place - Get Knitted, Bristol

3rd Place - Spin A Yarn, Bovey Tracey, Devon

Best Independent Store (Midlands)

1st Place - Knit Nottingham, Nottingham

2nd Place - City Knits/Christine's Wool Shop, Birmingham

3rd Place - Toft Studio Shop, Rugby

Best Independent Store (Wales)

1st Place - Yarn 'n' Yarns, Penarth

2nd Place - Clare Wool, Aberystwth

3rd Place - Knitters & Sewers World, Swansea

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (Ireland)

1st Place - This Is Knit, Dublin

2nd Place - The Textile Studio, Belfast

3rd Place - Selections Wool Shop, Carrickfergus

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (Scotland)

1st Place - Wool for Ewe, Aberdeen

2nd Place - The Yarn Cake, Glasgow

3rd Place - Ginger Twist Studio, Edinburgh

Best Online Store

1st Place - Deramores

2nd Place - Loveknitting

3rd Place - Black Sheep Wools

Best Knitting Blog

1st Place - Deramores

2nd Place - Loveknitting

3rd Place - Attic24

Best Website

1st Place - Ravelry

2nd Place - Deramores

3rd Place - Loveknitting

Best Knitting Needle Range

1st Place - KnitPro

2nd Place - Milwards

3rd Place - Pony

Best Knitting Accessories Range

1st Place - KnitPro

2nd Place - Clover

3rd Place - Milwards

Best Yarn Shop Day Experience 2014

1st Place - Black Sheep Wools, Warrington

2nd Place - The Yarn Cake, Glasgow

3rd Place - City Knits/Christine's Wool Shop, Birmingham

Best Knitting Show/Event

1st Place - The Knitting & Stitching Show, London

2nd Place - Yarndale, Skipton

3rd Place - Woolfest, Cumbria

Best Ready-To-Use Knits

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - The Little Knitting Company

3rd Place - Toft Alpaca

Best Book 2014

1st Place - Knit Your Own Zoo - Sally Muir & Joanna Osborne

2nd Place - Stranded Knits - Ann Kingstone

3rd Place - Knitting Smitten - Jessica Biscoe

Best Chain Store

1st Place - John Lewis

2nd Place - Hobbycraft

3rd Place - Abakhan

2015 WINNERS

This year’s British Knitting & Crochet Awards received an extraordinary 28,000 votes - almost double last year’s tally, proving that the knitting public are just as excited by these awards as those nominated for them!

Stylecraft were 2018’s biggest success story, coming top in five categories including Best Overall Yarn Brand and Best Yarn For Crochet. It was wonderful to see Debbie Bliss doing well following a difficult year for her brand, and delightful to welcome several new names to the roster - Stephen West, For The Love of Yarn, and Ewe and Ply to name three.

THE CATEGORIES

Best Baby Yarn Brand

1st Place - Sirdar

2nd Place - Debbie Bliss

3rd Place - King Cole

Best Independent Yarn Brand

1st Place - Deramores

2nd Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

3rd Place - Toft Alpaca

Best Value Yarn Brand

1st Place - Stylecraft

2nd Place - Sirdar

3rd Place - King Cole

Best Luxury Yarn Brand

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - Debbie Bliss

3rd Place - Sublime

Best Sock Yarn Brand

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - Regia

3rd Place - King Cole

Best Overall Brand

1st Place - Sirdar

2nd Place - Rowan

3rd Place - Stylecraft

Best Brand For British Yarn

1st Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

2nd Place - Toft Alpaca

3rd Place - Jamieson & Smith

Best Pattern House

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - Sirdar

3rd Place - Deramores

Best Knitting Designer

1st Place - Debbie Bliss

2nd Place - Kaffe Fassett

3rd Place - Kate Davies

Best Online Store

1st Place - Deramores

2nd Place - LoveKnitting

3rd Place - Black Sheep Wools

Best Independent Store (South East of England)

1st Place - Loop, Islington, London

2nd Place - The Cheap Shop, Tiptree, Essex

3rd Place - Pack Lane Wool, Basingstoke

Best Independent Store (South West of England)

1st Place - Get Knitted, Bristol

2nd Place - Spin A Yarn, Bovey Tracey, Devon

3rd Place - Wool, Bath

Best Independent Store (North of England)

1st Place - Black Sheep Wools, Warrington

2nd Place - Baa Ram Ewe, Leeds

3rd Place - Purl & Jane, Skipton

Best Independent Store (Wales)

1st Place - The Wool Croft, Abergavenny

2nd Place - Yarn'n Yarns, Penarth

3rd Place - Calon Yarns, Cardiff

Best Independent Store (Ireland)

1st Place - This Is Knit, Dublin

2nd Place - The Textile Studio, Belfast

3rd Place - The Wool Shop, Newtownards, County Durham

Best Independent Store (Midlands)

1st Place - Knit Nottingham, Nottingham

2nd Place - Knit One, Leicester

3rd Place - City Knits (Christine's), Bournville

Best Independent Store (Scotland)

1st Place - Wool for Ewe, Aberdeen

2nd Place - The Yarn Cake, Glasgow

3rd Place - Kingfishersblue, Edinburgh

Best Knitting Needle Range

1st Place - KnitPro

2nd Place - Milward

3rd Place - Pony

Best Accessories

1st Place - KnitPro

2nd Place - Clover

3rd Place - Pony

Best Online Store

1st Place - Deramores

2nd Place - Loveknitting

3rd Place - Black Sheep Wools

Best Knitting Blog

1st Place - Ravelry

2nd Place - Deramores

3rd Place - Loveknitting

Best Website

1st Place - Ravelry

2nd Place - Deramores

3rd Place - Loveknitting

Best Book 2015

1st Place - Knitted With Love - Jane Ellison

2nd Place - Edward's Menagerie - Kerry Lord

3rd Place - The Knitting Book - Vikki Haffenden

Best Yarn Shop Day Experience 2015

1st Place - Black Sheep Wools, Warrington

2nd Place - City Knits (Christine's), Bournville

3rd Place - Knit Nottingham, Nottingham

Best Chain Store

1st Place - John Lewis

2nd Place - Hobbycraft

3rd Place - Abakhan

Best Ready-to-Use Knit Kits

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - The Little Knitting Company

3rd Place - Toft Alpaca

Best Knitting Show/Event 2014-2015

1st Place - The Knitting & Stitching Show, Olympia, March

2nd Place - The Knitting & Stitching Show, Alexandra Palace, October

3rd Place - Yarndale, Skipton, September

2016 WINNERS

Over 14,000 readers and visitors to the websites of Let’s Knit and Let’s Get Crafting magazines cast their votes in a total of 25 categories including six new crochet categories. This exceptionally high number of votes, a 7% increase on last year, once again confirmed the British Knitting & Crochet Awards to be the largest and most high profile set of awards in the industry.

Alongside accolades for big names such as Debbie Bliss, Rowan, Deramores and Stylecraft, it was great to see awards for independent stars like yarn producer West Yorkshire Spinners, self-published author Christine Perry and crochet blogger Lucy from Attic24.

The awards continued to recognise small local knitting shops, with seven regional categories for Best Independent Store plus a special award for Best Yarn Shop Day Experience, scooped this year by Aberdeen-based store Wool For Ewe.

THE CATEGORIES

Best Baby Yarn Brand

1st Place - Debbie Bliss

2nd Place - Sirdar

3rd Place - Stylecraft

Best Independent Yarn Brand

1st Place - Deramores

2nd Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

3rd Place - TOFT

Best Value Yarn Brand

1st Place - Stylecraft

2nd Place - King Cole

3rd Place - Drops

Best Luxury Yarn Brand

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - Debbie Bliss

3rd Place - Sirdar

Best Sock Yarn Brand

1st Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

2nd Place - Regia

3rd Place - Sirdar

Best Overall Yarn Brand

1st Place - Stylecraft

2nd Place - Rowan

3rd Place - Sirdar

Best Brand For British Yarn

1st Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

2nd Place - King Cole

3rd Place - Jamieson & Smith

Favourite Pattern House

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - Sirdar

3rd Place - Stylecraft

Favourite Knitting Designer

1st Place - Debbie Bliss

2nd Place - Kaffe Fassett

3rd Place - Louisa Harding

Best chain store/multiple

1st Place - John Lewis

2nd Place - Hobbycraft

3rd Place - Abakhan

Best Online Shop

1st Place - Deramores

2nd Place - Wool Warehouse

3rd Place - LoveKnitting

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (South East of England)

1st Place - JennyWren's Yarns, Ipswich

2nd Place - The Sheep Shop, Cambridge

3rd Place - Sconch, Braintree

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (South West of England)

1st Place - Get Knitted, Bristol

2nd Place - Spin A Yarn, Bovey Tracey, Devon

3rd Place - The Slipped Stitch, Sherborne

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (North of England)

1st Place - Black Sheep Wools, Warrington

2nd Place - Baa Ram Ewe, Leeds

3rd Place - Purl & Jane, Skipton

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (Wales)

1st Place - Caroline's Wool Shop, Newtown, Powys

2nd Place - Yarn'n Yarns, Penarth

3rd Place - Hanks, Menai Bridge

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (Ireland)

1st Place - This Is Knit, Dublin

2nd Place - Blacksheep Wool and Haberdashery, Nenagh

3rd Place - Silk Road, Ballymena

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (Midlands)

1st Place - Knit Nottingham, Nottingham

2nd Place - Christine's Wool Shop (City Knits), Bournville

3rd Place - Knit One, Leicester

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (Scotland)

1st Place - The Yarn Cake, Glasgow

2nd Place - Wool for Ewe, Aberdeen

3rd Place - McAree Brothers, Edinburgh

Best Knitting Needle Range

1st Place - KnitPro

2nd Place - Pony

3rd Place - Addi

Best Knitting Accessories Range

1st Place - KnitPro

2nd Place - Clover

3rd Place - Pony

Best Ready-To-Use Knits

1st Place - Deramores

2nd Place - TOFT

3rd Place - Wool & The Gang

Favourite Knitting Blog

1st Place - Deramores

2nd Place - LoveKnitting

3rd Place - Black Sheep Wools

Best Website

1st Place - Ravelry

2nd Place - Deramores

3rd Place - Wool Warehouse

Favourite Knitting Book 2016

1st Place - The Knitter's Knowledge - Debbie Bliss

2nd Place - Edward's Menagerie - Kerry Lord

3rd Place - Super Socks - Christine Perry

Best Knitting Show Event 2015/2016

1st Place - Yarndale, Skipton, September

2nd Place - The Knitting & Stitching Show, Ally Pally, October

3rd Place - The Knitting & Stitching Show, Harrogate, November

Best Yarn For Crochet

1st Place - Stylecraft Special DK

2nd Place - Sirdar 100% Cotton

3rd Place - King Cole Cottonsoft

Favourite Crochet Designer

1st Place - Lucy, Attic24

2nd Place - Jane Crowfoot

3rd Place - Kerry Lord, TOFT

Best Crochet Store

1st Place - Wool Warehouse

2nd Place - Deramores

3rd Place - Black Sheep Wools, Warrington

Favourite Crochet Blog

1st Place - Attic24

2nd Place - Deramores

3rd Place - Look What I Made

Favourite Crochet Book

1st Place - Granny Squares - Sue Pinner

2nd Place - 200 Crochet Blocks - Jan Eaton

3rd Place - Edward's Managerie Birds - Kerry Lord

Best Crochet Accessories Range

1st Place - Clover

2nd Place - KnitPro

3rd Place - Pony

Yarn Shop Day

1st Place - Wool for Ewe Aberdeen

2nd Place - Knit Nottingham

3rd Place - Christine's (City Knits)

2017 WINNERS

Run by Let's Knit and Let's Get Crafting, the awards are entirely customer-led with all the finalists nominated and voted for by the public. This year, there were almost 15,000 votes – a 5% increase from 2016 – showing once again how important these awards are to knitters and crocheters across the country.

THE CATEGORIES

Best Baby Yarn Brand

1st Place - Debbie Bliss

2nd Place - Stylecraft

3rd Place - Sirdar

Best Independent Yarn Brand

1st Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

2nd Place - TOFT

3rd Place - Baa Ram Ewe

Best Value Yarn Brand

1st Place - Stylecraft

2nd Place - Drops

3rd Place - Sirdar

Best Luxury Yarn Brand

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - Debbie Bliss

3rd Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

Best Sock Yarn Brand

1st Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

2nd Place - Stylecraft

3rd Place - Regia

Best Overall Yarn Brand

1st Place - Stylecraft

2nd Place - Sirdar

3rd Place - Rowan

Best Brand For British Yarn

1st Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

2nd Place - TOFT

3rd Place - Baa Ram Ewe

Favourite Pattern House

1st Place - Rowan

2nd Place - Stylecraft

3rd Place - Sirdar

Favourite Knitting Designer

1st Place - Debbie Bliss

2nd Place - Louisa Harding

3rd Place - Kaffe Fassett

Best chain store/multiple

1st Place - Hobbycraft

2nd Place - John Lewis

3rd Place - Abakhan

Best Online Shop

1st Place - Wool Warehouse

2nd Place - LoveKnitting

3rd Place - Black Sheep Wools

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (Ireland)

1st Place - This Is Knit, Dublin

2nd Place - Love Wool, Portadown

3rd Place - Parlour Yarns, Carrickfergus

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (Midlands)

1st Place - Knit Nottingham, Nottingham

2nd Place - Christine's Wool Shop, Bournville

3rd Place - Woolyhippo, Hinckley

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (Wales)

1st Place - The Wool Croft, Abergavenny

2nd Place - Rosemary's Wool Shop, Aberaeron

3rd Place - Red Apple Yarn, Lampeter

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (South West of England)

1st Place - Spin A Yarn, Devon

2nd Place - Get Knitted, Bristol

3rd Place - Pins & Needles, Devizes

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (Scotland)

1st Place - Wool for Ewe, Aberdeen

2nd Place - Ginger Twist Studio, Edinburgh

3rd Place - The Yarn Cake, Glasgow

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (North of England)

1st Place - Black Sheep Wools, Warrington

2nd Place - Purl & Jane, Skipton

3rd Place - Yarn etc, Harrogate

Best Local Independent Yarn Store (South East of England)

1st Place - Loop, London

2nd Place - The Sheep Shop, Cambridge

3rd Place - I Knit London, London

Best Knitting Needle Range

1st Place - KnitPro

2nd Place - Clover

3rd Place - Pony

Best Knitting Accessories Range

1st Place - KnitPro

2nd Place - Clover

3rd Place - Pony

Best Ready-To-Use Knits

1st Place - Wool Warehouse/Attic24

2nd Place - Deramores

3rd Place - TOFT

Favourite Knitting Blog

1st Place - LoveKnitting

2nd Place - Black Sheep Wools

3rd Place - Winwick Mum

Best Website

1st Place - Ravelry

2nd Place - Wool Warehouse/Attic24

3rd Place - LoveKnitting

Favourite Knitting Book 2016/2017

1st Place - The Sock Drawer - Verity Castledine

2nd Place - Hygge Knits - Nicki Trench

3rd Place - Knitting From the North - Hilary Grant

Best Knitting Show Event 2016/2017

1st Place - Yarndale, Skipton, September

2nd Place - The Knitting & Stitching Show, Ally Pally, October

3rd Place - The Knitting & Stitching Show, Harrogate, November

Best Yarn For Crochet

1st Place - Stylecraft

2nd Place - Sirdar

3rd Place - Scheepjes

Favourite Crochet Designer

1st Place - Lucy, Attic24

2nd Place - Jane Crowfoot

3rd Place - Kerry Lord

Best Crochet Store

1st Place - Wool Warehouse

2nd Place - Black Sheep Wools

3rd Place - Hobbycraft

Favourite Crochet Blog

1st Place - Attic24

2nd Place - Look At What I Made

3rd Place - Bella Coco

Favourite Crochet Book 2016/2017

1st Place - Granny Squares and Shapes - Sue Pinner

2nd Place - Edward's Crochet Imaginarium - Kerry Lord

3rd Place - Sophie's Universe - Dedri Uys

Best Crochet Accessories Range

1st Place - Clover

2nd Place - KnitPro

3rd Place - Pony

Favourite Charity Campaign

1st Place - Octopuses for Premature Babies

2nd Place - Innocent Big Knit

3rd Place - Cherished Gowns for Angel Babies

2018 WINNERS

This year’s British Knitting & Crochet Awards received an extraordinary 28,000 votes - almost double last year’s tally, proving that the knitting public are just as excited by these awards as those nominated for them!

Stylecraft were 2018’s biggest success story, coming top in five categories including Best Overall Yarn Brand and Best Yarn For Crochet. It was wonderful to see Debbie Bliss doing well following a difficult year for her brand, and delightful to welcome several new names to the roster - Stephen West, For The Love of Yarn, and Ewe and Ply to name three.

THE CATEGORIES

Favourite Pattern House

1st Place - Stylecraft

(HC) Rowan

(HC) Sirdar

Favourite Knitting Designer

1st Place - Debbie Bliss

(HC) Kate Davies

(HC) Stephen West

Best Baby Yarn Brand

1st Place - Debbie Bliss

(HC) Stylecraft

(HC) Sirdar

Best Value Yarn Brand

1st Place - Stylecraft

(HC) Drops

(HC) King Cole

Best Independent Yarn Brand

1st Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

(HC) Deramores

(HC) For the Love of Yarn

Best Luxury Yarn Brand

1st Place - Scheepjes

(HC) Rowan

(HC) Debbie Bliss

Best Sock Yarn Brand

1st Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

(HC) Stylecraft

(HC) Drops

Best Yarn For Toys

1st Place - Stylecraft

(HC) King Cole

(HC) Deramores

Best Overall Yarn Brand

1st Place - Stylecraft

(HC) Rowan

(HC) Sirdar

Best Brand For British Yarn

1st Place - West Yorkshire Spinners

(HC) Baa Ram Ewe

(HC) TOFT

Best Chain Store/Multiple

1st Place - Hobbycraft

(HC) John Lewis

(HC) Aldi

Best Local Independent Yarn Store LONDON

1st Place - Wild and Woolly

(HC) Loop

(HC) I Knit

Best Local Independent Yarn Store SOUTH EAST OF ENGLAND

1st Place - Jenny Wren’s Yarns, Ipswich

1st Place - The Yarn Dispensary, Faversham

(HC) Norfolk Yarn, Norwich

Best Local Independent Yarn Store SOUTH WEST OF ENGLAND

1st Place - Hooked on Wool, Penzance

(HC) Pins & Needles, Devizes

(HC) The Slipped Stitch, Sherborne

Best Local Independent Yarn Store NORTH OF ENGLAND

1st Place - Black Sheep Wools, Warrington

(HC) Lolly’s Lil Wool Shack, Blackpool

(HC) Yarn Etc, Harrogate

Best Local Independent Yarn Store WALES

1st Place - The Wool Croft, Abergavenny

(HC) Yarn O’Clock, Mold

(HC) Rosemary’s Wool Shop, Aberaeron

Best Local Independent Yarn Store IRELAND

1st Place - Love Wool, Portadown

(HC) The Wool Shop, Bangor

(HC) Yarn with Joanne, Newtownards

Best Local Independent Yarn Store MIDLANDS

1st Place - Knit Nottingham, Nottingham

(HC) Sheepish, Bishops Castle

(HC) Ewe and Ply, Shrewsbury

Best Local Independent Yarn Store SCOTLAND

1st Place - Wool For Ewe, Aberdeen

(HC) The Yarn Cake, Glasgow

(HC) Ginger Twist Studio, Edinburgh

Best Yarn Shop Day Experience 2018

1st Place - Black Sheep Wools, Warrington

Best Knitting Needle Range

1st Place - KnitPro

(HC) Clover

(HC) Pony

Best Ready-To-Use Kits

1st Place - Wool Warehouse

(HC) Deramores

(HC) Wool and the Gang

Favourite Knitting Book 2017/2018

1st Place - Knitting Outside the Box – Bristol Ivy

(HC) The Vintage Shetland Project – Susan Crawford

(HC) Shetland – Marie Wallin

Best Online Shop

1st Place - Wool Warehouse

(HC) Deramores

(HC) LoveKnitting

Favourite Knitting Blog

1st Place - Black Sheep Wools

(HC) Deramores

(HC) Marianna’s Lazy Daisy Days

Best Knitting Show Event 2017/2018

1st Place - Yarndale, Yorkshire

(HC) The Knitting & Stitching Show, London

(HC) Edinburgh Yarn Festival

Favourite Charity Campaign

1st Place - Octopus For A Preemie

(HC) Knit for Peace

(HC) Hug in a Blanket

Best Yarn For Crochet

1st Place - Stylecraft

(HC) Scheepjes

(HC) Sirdar

Favourite Crochet Designer

1st Place - Attic24

(HC) Jane Crowfoot

(HC) Helen Shrimpton

Best Crochet Store

1st Place - Wool Warehouse

(HC) Deramores

(HC) Black Sheep Wools

Favourite Crochet Blog

1st Place - Attic24

(HC) Look At What I Made

(HC) Bella Coco

Favourite Crochet Book

1st Place - My Crochet Project Bible – Stationery Geek

(HC) On the Hook – Verity Castledine

(HC) Edward’s Menagerie: Dogs – Kerry Lord

Best Crochet Accessories Range

1st Place - Clover

(HC) KnitPro

(HC) Pony