Who we are
Who We Are
Knitter's Review is a weekly online magazine for fiber enthusiasts, established in September 2000, and based in Blue Hill, Maine.
Our mission is to provide quality product information to help knitters make informed purchasing decisions and, ultimately, have a more fulfilling lifelong knitting experience.
Geared toward the serious fiber enthusiast, regardless of skill or experience level, Knitter's Review features intelligent and in-depth yarn reviews, tips and how-tos, book reviews, tool profiles, and event information, written by author, publisher and designer Clara Parkes, aka the "Yarn Whisperer." Knitter's Review also features interactive forums and weekly polls.
Folio Magazine described Knitter's Review as "for the knitting community what Cook's Illustrated is for chefs and foodies."
Reviews focus on products, people, places, and events that are inspiring and enrich the knitting community. Clara avoids reviewing products she believes are not up to par unless, by not doing so, she'd be doing her readers a disservice. The reason is simple: A review in Knitter's Review generates significant public attention, and she'd rather focus this attention on worthy products. All reviews highlight, in an honest and clear way, the potential shortcomings and weaknesses in the products reviewed.
Our staff
Knitter's Review was founded and is written by Clara
Parkes, a print and online publishing veteran who escaped the hubbub
of Silicon Valley and now lives in coastal Maine.
Prior to founding Knitter's Review, Clara was Editor-at-Large of Intelligent Enterprise magazine, produced a major comparison-shopping Web site, and received a Society of American Travel Writers award for her profiles of San Francisco restaurants—all the while her true passion was knitting for the love of yarn. Her first book, The Knitter's Book of Yarn, was named one of the Best Books of 2007 by the Library Journal. Her sequel, The Knitter's Book of Wool, was released in October 2009 and has already been named the fourth best home and garden book of the year by the editors at Amazon.com.
Assisting her is seasoned Web professional Clare Potter, an able and talented editor, ad program manager, and provider of much-needed reality checks. Invaluable technical support is provided by Charlie Darling, the co-founder of Quilter's Review. Charlie's experience includes 10 years as President and Chief Systems Architect of Better Business Solutions, a software development firm.
About our yarn reviews
Each month Clara select a sampling of yarns in a particular fiber category. Coverage is balanced between large-scale and smaller-scale manufacturers. She produces several handknit swatches of each yarn and subjects them to a standard battery of tests designed to show how they perform under duress.
How we're unique
Knitter's Review is the oldest weekly knitting magazine
published on a large scale in the United States via any medium. It is
also the only independent weekly publication to focus on fiber, yarns,
and the online yarn-shopping experience.
Each month Clara select a sampling of yarns in a particular fiber category. Coverage is balanced between large-scale and smaller-scale manufacturers. She produces several handknit swatches of each yarn and subjects them to a standard battery of tests designed to show how they perform under duress.
About the Knitter's Review Store
In November 2010, we partnered with one of the best pattern providers in the business—Interweave Press—to create the Knitter's Review Store. In it, you'll find hundreds of your favorite Interweave projects and videos available for immediate download. A percentage of each purchase you make helps keep Knitter's Review free and accessible to all.
Some fan mail
Congratulations on all you've accomplished, and all the service you've provided to the knitting community. You realize, I'm sure, how many e-newsletters you've left in the dust. To grab a fresh, new medium and make it work so well—I really admire that!
Best regards,
Linda Ligon
Interweave Press
I just wanted to personally thank you for your wonderful site. I've been using it regularly for years now but it wasn't until today that it served me the best. I went through several of your yarn reviews while trying to find a special yarn for a project and found your writing to be just delightful, informative and very useful. Thanks for all you do for the knitting community—hope to meet you some day...
Bonne Marie
www.chicknits.com
From readers
Gratitude. I've been subscribed since about the beginning and just wanted to thank you for what you do. For about the umpteenth time, I'm going to the archive to see a yarn review. I became an all-year supporter of Heifer International because you exposed me to them years ago. I devoured the two books, now becoming mostly a wool knitter. And oddly enough, you were directly responsible for me finding Eugene Wyatt's garlic (wool too—I'm winding a ball as I type). Thanks from the bottom of my stash.
I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoy and appreciate your newsletter. I look forward to it and savor it like the dark chocolate I allow myself as a treat! Your information and reviews are so helpful and have given me much to think about. I work at a wonderful yarn shop (mostly to supply my yarn habit) one day a week and have been able to use the information that you have given to help the customers that come to the shop. Thank you for a fine addition to the wonderful tradition of knitting.
Your newsletter is so well written, continuously newsworthy and always full of great information. No matter how busy I am when going through my e-mail, I am always delighted to find yours and take the time to enjoy it and learn from it. I've been knitting on and off for over twenty years and always walk away with more knowledge after reading it. The polls are great, the content up to date and relevant. With so many mediocre websites around, you stand out by putting together a really wonderful one. Thanks so much!
I just wanted to comment on your site, which I think is wonderful. The yarn reviews are extrememly helpful, and many a time I have returned impulse purchases based on your comments. On the otherhand, I have tried (and fallen in love with) yarn, namely Beaverslide, you have reviewed. While I am sure they are time consuming to produce, the yarn and tool reviews definately make this site a favorite for me! Please keep up the good work.
I love having honest reveiws about a product! So many reviews of books and products just parrot what the manufacturer has said. You are a refreshing change!
I love reading Knitter's Review, and I agree with the comparison to a wine magazine. However, my favorite part is the meticulous testing of the swatches. I was trained as a laboratory scientist, and I really appreciate the thorough, consistent testing you perform on each kind of yarn. You are sort of like the Consumer Reports of knitting—only more exciting!