If you’re social media-savvy, you might have noticed that I Like Knitting magazine has its own Instagram account, and it’s beautiful. There’s really nothing more marvelous than scrolling through hundreds of beautifully-photographed and artfully-designed knit pieces while daydreaming of your next project… even though you might have three on the needles, already.
Instagram is quickly taking
If you’re social media-savvy, you might have noticed that I Like Knitting magazine has its own Instagram account, and it’s beautiful. There’s really nothing more marvelous than scrolling through hundreds of beautifully-photographed and artfully-designed knit pieces while daydreaming of your next project… even though you might have three on the needles, already.
Instagram is quickly taking over the net, our phones, and our social lives. Millennials, especially, find themselves “Instagramming” every conceivable moment, from their graduation day to their Saturday brunch. Just because young people have jumped on the Instagram bandwagon doesn’t mean it isn’t for people of all ages and interests! In fact, I heavily encourage you to make a separate Instagram for your knitting ventures. Here’s why.
- Share Your Projects With People Who Care
We already share our knitting with our loved ones, friends, and charity when we knit for others, but it can feel somewhat lonely to bind off on a lovely lace scarf or a cabled cowl just to realize… that’s it. You’re done. You can wear your knit item now, and you can show it off to your friends and family, but what if you want to show the world? After all, you put hours upon hours of hard work into that knit!
The fact of the matter is that unless you have a circle of yarnies you hang out with on a regular basis, your husband, child, or coworkers probably appreciate your knitting on some level, but they don’t understand the hard work and dedication that goes into every piece. They can’t quite grasp the bohemian effect of a drop-shoulder sweater, or lament with you over a single misplaced yarn over in your lace shawl. Other knitters just understand. I have never seen a more supportive community, a community so excited over the success and work of others, as the knitters of Instagram. Never again feel let-down when you show your partner a pair of hand-knit socks and they say only, “Oh, that’s nice.”
- Share Your Knitting Knowledge With the World
Instagram is for more than just pictures! In comments and captions, you can explain your photographs, tag others, and place hashtags. One of the best ways to use the text-based portions of this app in a knitting Instagram account is by explaining a technique! Yes, you can even write out some short instructions for a motif or a stitch pattern underneath your post. You can even take pictures of knitting classes you teach if you prefer to instruct in-person to encourage people to come learn from you.
- Capture Your Knitting on Video
That’s right—Instagram also supports videos! You can share, either on your story or a whole new post, a 60-second video (or 15 seconds if you’re posting to your story) of anything you want. This is a great way to teach new or even seasoned knitters how to complete a complicated stitch, or how to accomplish something that’s easier to teach visually than written-out. I learn so much by following my favorite knitting designers this way! So often, these free videos even help me complete patterns that I’ve purchased from them.
- Provide Real-Time Knitting Updates
Since people who follow your knitting Instagram actually care about your knitting and its progress, the use of Instagram stories makes it possible to give your friends and fans real-time updates on your latest accomplishments! Whether you just finished a particularly difficult row of a sweater, or you’re midway through designing a really brilliant scarf pattern, posting it to your story teases your followers of your newest knitting ventures and helps keep the knitting excitement alive.
- Share Your Designs
The grand majority of knitters that I follow on Instagram are designers, and that’s because you can get updated right out-the-gate of any new patterns they’ve created! This is awesome, because it means I get early-access to what could be a really popular pattern down-the-line. The reverse is true, too; posting a picture of your latest pattern (and how knitters can find it) with the appropriate hashtag will open your patterns up to a much wider audience than if you were to just send them to your usual list of email subscribers or social media followers. Since hashtags allow you to reach people who don’t directly follow you, people from all corners of the ‘gram can discover your labored-over patterns.
- Get Noticed by Yarn Brands
That’s right: if you design a pattern using one specific brand of yarn, especially if you’re very proud of it, it could get you noticed by yarn brands! You may be looking at sponsored patterns down the line, and even pattern kits getting made from your designs. If you think that’s a little too ambitious, have some faith! It happens more often than you’d think. Here’s a tip: be sure to tag the company in your post, or they’ll never see it!
- Gain a Following on your Blog or Etsy
If you post it, they will come! Excitable knitters like myself are always looking for new pattern stores to stalk and new blogs to which to subscribe. If you have a blog, Etsy, Ravelry store, or even a physical storefront or stand at a fiber festival that you want to show to the world, a great way to advertise it is on Instagram. Post some pictures of your favorite designs and be sure to post a link to your site on your Instagram bio!
- Inspire an Interest in Knitting
Sure, all the people watching the knitting hashtags are already die-hards, but those aren’t the only people you reach with your knitting. When you tell your friends and family that you’ve started a knitting Instagram, they’re bound to follow you just to be supportive. Over time, they’ll see how often you post and how beautiful the pictures and videos of your knitting look, and hey, this might even spark an interest in knitting within them! You can also reach strangers through non-knitting hashtags. Imagine if you posted a beautiful sweater under the “sweater” hashtag and someone found it, had a desperate need to buy it… and learned that it was actually a knitting pattern. Don’t you think she might consider taking up knitting?
- Participate in Knit Alongs
There are so many ways to participate in knit alongs, but Instagram is one of the most fun ways! Not only will you be working on bits and pieces of the pattern one section at a time, but you can also show your followers every step of the way. Some knit along contests even require an Instagram post for every part of the knit along, and it would be awful to miss out on an awesome prize just because you didn’t have a knitting Instagram yet.
- Partner With Other Designers
When other designers start to notice your work, they might become fans, themselves! You and other knitters can agree to each share a pattern of the other’s on your Instagram accounts. This is mutually beneficial because you’re gaining access to the other designer’s audience, and you’re spreading the wealth by giving them access to yours, as well. You can even feature the designer his or herself on your Instagram to help get some of your eyes to other talented creators. After all, the knitting world is happier the bigger it is!
Here’s a bonus reason: start a knitting Instagram because it’s fun! The hobby arena of Instagram is such a thriving one because everyone truly has a passion for their craft. Gone are the days where you’re made to feel like a nerd or a dweeb because you have a deep, genuine interest in perhaps slightly bizarre or underappreciated art forms. No matter how you use your knitting Instagram, the main point is to enhance your knitting experience and have fun, and everything else is just a perk. Follow the I Like Knitting Instagram page to start filling your feed with gorgeous patterns.