Letter From The Editor
The scoop from the Editor
photo: AmyI'm still standing
It was naive of me to think that I was past the worst of the eldercare stuffs last issue. So I've been pushing on as best I can, taking breaks when I could or when it was the only option.
The week I got my official Autism diagnosis (the companion to my ADHD diagnosis of 4 years ago), I actually shut right down. Parental things got extra spicy at the same time, and as a result, I became a non-functioning human. The worst of it lasted a week. I just leaned into it, because there was nothing left to fight with.
I'm sharing so those of you who have or are experiencing similar stuffs, whatever the reason, feel less alone. Social media is a curse that has trained us to behave better than we feel, and I'm pretty much over that. I'm kind of over social media as well, which is a problem, as it's become one of the best ways to promote small businesses...if you can get through the algorithms to reach your people. But that's a story for another time.
One thing I want to celebrate is that I finally do have my diagnoses, and they explain so much. It's ridiculous to me that I thought I didn't have social difficulties; surely I was just a peculiar person. In fact, I do have social difficulties, and they are often intense and have made my life what it is. I don't think I'm alone in thinking that everyone else felt as I did, and they were just handling it better. So yeah. A professional diagnosis was what I needed to start being kinder to myself. Now to find a late-diagnosis neurodivergent therapist to help me process what I'm learning and live happier.
The Clapotisfest winner emails are still going out. I'll keep you posted about when I'm finally finished.
My sincere apologies to everyone who's still waiting to send out yarn or to choose their prize. I never imagined this year would be the personal mess it's turned into, and I'm sorry it's affected other people.
ABOUT THE DEEP FALL ISSUE 
| This time we went cozy with a theme of Comforting Texture. We think you'll like what the designers came up with this time...so much lushness that we get to create with our needles or hook!
Speaking of the mighty hook, we welcome (officially) our newest columnist, Julia Madill, who is a pro at both crochet and knitting. She's taken on the task of helping us knitters overcome our fear (or mistrust, perhaps) of crochet patterns and empowering us to be able to follow a crochet pattern with confidence! Start with her new column, How to Get Hooked, and stick (hehe) with it. I personally love being able to do both knitting and crochet, though I am a very new and cautious crocheter right now. I'll be following along with y'all and looking forward to feeling more crochet empowered!
So off you go, then, to check out all the goodies on our front page.
NO AMAZON, NO AI | Another quick but important note: We no longer publish Amazon links, as the corporate mission of Amazon and its owner do not align what we stand for at Knitty. We stand for small businesses over corporations, and truth in news media rather than politically influenced lies. So no more Amazon. When there is time, I will be removing the old Amazon links from our back issues. Instead, we now point US readers to Bookshop.org to buy anything we review on our Cool Stuff page. For everyone else, worldwide, please consider buying from your Local Yarn Shop or Local Book Store. Even if they don't carry the thing, I would bet real money that they'd be glad to order whatever it is you want from their suppliers.
The other change is a policy decision, and it's an important one. As AI is starting to be pushed at us from every direction, we have decided that we will not use it. No AI-generated images, no AI-generated text. Not in our pages, not in our social media. It's hard to avoid AI, and it likely is behind the scenes in some websites and apps we use without our knowledge, but we can control things like the images and text we publish.
SOCIAL MEDIA? A reminder that you can connect with Knitty on Bluesky where I chat with readers, announce the latest Knitty news, and the usual stuff we used to do on the other place. Come find us!
JOIN THE KNITTY GUILD | When I started Knitty in 2002, I never imagined a world where we would be almost the last North American knitting mag standing, but here we are. The Knitty Guild has been our major support since 2015, and we would not be here without them! These folk, exactly 2,900 people as of this moment, support Knitty in whatever amount they are able to, once per issue. The money covers our operating costs like our server and all the other online services that make Knitty run, our payroll (the staff and designers – all the folk listed on the masthead above right), and my salary.
Knitty Guild members get rewards for their support, like early access to every new issue, and at the Tangy+ level and up, they can use our super-cool new feature, knitty+! It lets them customize Knitty patterns showing only the size they're going to knit, so the pattern text is leaner and easier to follow! There are other benefits to knitty+, and other benefits to being a Knitty Guild member, too. Check it out here, and see if you'd like to join us! Knitty Guild members come and go all the time, and we need a consistant level of support to be able to continue to publish.
How can you help Knitty stay strong and stick around? Here are some suggestions:
- tell your knitting and crochet friends about us!
- Tag them on our Instagram or Facebook posts
- Tell your fiber group, guild or meetup about Knitty or a Knitty pattern that you're working on
- Share your Knitty pattern WIPs and FOs on social media and let people know where to find the pattern
- follow us on social media! Bluesky | Facebook | Instagram
- if you are able to support us financially at any amount, check out knitty.me, which lays out all the ways you can do that (including joining Knitty Guild)
Thank you for being a Knitty reader! More people don't know about Knitty than those that do, so when you share us with your fiber friends, you're doing a great thing!
Here's how you can keep in touch with us:
Bluesky | Facebook | Instagram | Patreon (home of the Knitty Guild)
Amy Sadler
[editor, Knitty]