About Us

We are the only independent yarn shop in the centre of Nottingham, we're multi-award winning and we're proud to have served the knitters and crocheters of this great city for over a decade. We focus on great quality, mid priced products and stock a great selection of basics with the odd foray in interesting, local, artisanal produce. We sell yarn, needles, hooks, notions, patterns, books and gifty bits and we teach workshops and hold events in the shop and further afield. We teach our own lessons on the whole - our staff are experts (or committed to getting there) - but we also love working with independent tutors. Community is a huge part of what we do and why we do this and we're dedicated to empowering people through craft.

We're committed to making our shop a welcoming and accessible place for people who are disabled, LGBTQIA+, BIPOC and otherwise marginalised. We do have a ramp that we're not afraid to use and an island in the middle of the shop which moves about for ease of access. If you want to discuss anything further please do give us an email or a call and we'll happily work with you and your needs. We consider our space unapologetically political, body positive and feminist and we don't shy away from the big conversations that crafting is a part of; it's not always heavy but it's not just sticks and string either (although if you're wondering whether you're able to do a difficult pattern, then it is just sticks and string...).

Knit Nottingham started on Mansfield Road in September 2010; the brain child of Eleanor (21 at the time!) and two business partners. Eleanor had just graduated from with law degree but took time out for a mental health break and kind of accidentally opened a yarn shop. It was tiny, disorganised, creative and full of life - the parties were legendary:

A small yarn shop absolutely stuffed full of people and yarn. There's a lot of movement - people reaching up and down for yarns, people chatting, laughing, grabbing bottles of wine. It's colourful and exciting.

Love Your Local Yarn Shop Day Party 2014

We did a lot of great stuff in that shop - won many awards, taught hundreds of people to knit and crochet, Eleanor became a published designer, hosted knitting tutors from around the world and most importantly we made lifelong friendships. By 2016, Eleanor had bought the other business partners out and found a new, much bigger shop in the city centre to move to and our customers were so supportive they started sending money in left right and centre!!! So we decided to formalise that and crowdfunded the move to where we are now - smashing our target in four hours and doubling it within days.

We opened on Trinity Walk, our current home, at Easter in 2016 and we've been super happy here. Continuing with the awards, events, friendships and expertise. The shop was super fancy and twice the size but we still managed to fill it to the brim:

A shop absolutely full of people and yarns. The walls are white but there are cupboards floor to ceiling with colourful balls of wool and interesting baskets and displays of projects. People are sat on sofas, chairs and the floor as well as standing along the length of the shop. The effect is light and airy but also vibrant and crammed.

Yarn Shop Day Party 2017

In 2018 we were approached by the BBC to be part of Interior Design Masters; a brand new programme, similar to the Bake Off but for interior design. It was such an amazing opportunity for us - we got a whole make over (they paid us!) and the show is still on Netflix so we get new customers from it even now. We're really pleased with the results.

A shot of a wall of wool. The shelves are circular tubes closely set on top of eachother. The base units are wood so the overall theme is warm, natural and neat but also bright and inviting.

The shelves designed by Nicki Bamford-Bowes from the show.

More recently we've been battling with the Covid pandemic - it's not over at the time of writing and it's been super difficult! We were as open as it was possible to be at all times with Eleanor in the shop servicing the website and Katie, Emma and April working on building this website behind the scenes. It's not been easy, takings are very down and it's looked scary at times but when I think about the support that we've been shown over the years I just feel so thankful and grateful. It's unbelievable to me that an accidental wool shop set up because I couldn't cope with the life I was about to begin has led to such incredibly deep bonds and and community that steps up to support us and allows us to step up and support them in such meaningful ways. During the partial re-opening in the summer of 2020 we organised a socially-distanced picnic on the Arboretum to celebrate our 10th birthday.

Eleanor, a fat, white woman with short hair and a chequered jumpsuit, sits on the grass, legs splayed open, with a blue project and a white knitting pattern in front of her. There are many customers sitting a few metres behind in camping chairs chatting. It's a gorgeous light.

Eleanor, a fat, white woman with short hair and a chequered jumpsuit, sits on the grass, legs splayed open, with a blue project and a white knitting pattern in front of her. There are many customers sitting a few metres behind in camping chairs chatting. It's a gorgeous light.

Eleanor helping a customer out at the 10th birthday party picnic.

Meet the staff:

Eleanor Burke (she/her) - Owner (you can see my photo above).

I work in the shop, on the website and anywhere else I need to be. I teach most of the lessons and I manage the events too. I love to knit, crochet, dye, spin, design, bead, sew, bake, garden, cycle, hike, kettlebell, wild swim, minimalise, bujo and over the lockdown I discovered a deep love of personal finance and how it affects women and marginalised people (more to come on that!). I'm in charge of the shop and I'm serious about the business aspect of it because, for me, a successful business will do more for my customers than one that's shut or struggling. I know the value that we add - the confidence that we build, the creativity we inspire, the thoughts we spark - for me this isn't just knitting and crochet but a way of grounding and finding ourselves in a world that would do anything to stop us knowing our worth.

Katie (she/her) - Shop Assistant and Literal Comedian.

I'm usually found on the front lines of the shop sorting people out with the perfect yarn and pattern for them. Since I started working here immediately before the pandemic, I've spent most of the last year getting deeply acquainted with the yarns and patterns by helping build the website. I'm an avid knitter with a penchant for cables and all of our recycled yarns, but I'm also an enthusiastic crocheter who tries very hard. One day, I'll even be good at it (Eleanor's note - she's great at it...).

I'm a very sociable person who loves a chat, and I love to see inspiration spark and projects bloom for our customers. For me, the best bit of the job is seeing people make things they never thought they could make.

Casper (he/him/they/them) - Technicolour Website Engineer and Coffee Maker Extraordinaire.

Casper, a young, white man with short bright green hair looks directly into the camera. He's smirking a bit and looks cheeky. He's wearing a brightly coloured Pokemon T-shirt and he's got some facial piercings.

Hiya! I'm Casper, a 22 year old crocheter and lover of all things bright and colourful. I started crocheting in lockdown and have quickly become hooked... get it? With KnitNott's help I've been learning to knit, too, and am always fascinated by everything our customers bring in to show us! Anyway, in the shop you'll most likely find that I'm downstairs working on the website, or upstairs in the button corner nattering away with Eleanor or Katie whilst, again, working on the website!

We can't wait to meet you and for you to see the shop. We're super proud of what we've created and how it touches peoples lives and basically we just want you and everybody else to feel happy and confident in your knitting and crochet! See you soon! xxx