Test Knitter of the Month - October

Each month I’ll like to feature a test knitter from one of my designs.

My hope for a part of this blog is to feature the knitters who spend their time helping me execute a hand knitting pattern. Test knitting, especially garments, are a critical part of the design process and I wouldn’t be able to do it without their valuable feedback.

It’s been important for me to connect with knitters, and people in general, on a human level. My hope is that these introductions will help us connect to others that are more than what we see on the surface.

Test Knitter of the Month - October Feature: Amanda

How do you identify? My name is Amanda (she/her) and I am a biracial (Hong Kong Chinese/American) woman located in Washington, DC by way of Hong Kong, Australia, Chicago, and Beijing.

How many years have you been knitting? What’s your knitting origin story? My mom taught me how to knit when I was in high school. We had just moved to Chicago, and I'm not sure what made her take up her needles again, maybe the bitterly cold winters? She's always been good at anything crafty and learned how to knit when she was a child. I remember asking her to teach me to knit one day after school, out of the blue. To this day I'm not sure what prompted me to ask, but I'm so glad I did! There was a knitting club at my high school, which I sometimes showed up to after I learned how to knit, and I remember teaching some of my male classmates how to knit as well. I didn't knit for a while after that, but about three years ago I picked up knitting in response to a high stress time. Luckily, that particular stress eventually went away but the knitting stayed. I haven't looked back since!

Which pattern did you test knit? What size, if garment, and yarns did you use? I've been fortunate enough to test knit a few patterns for Tina! My two favorites are the Golden Horizon sweater (size 3, La Bien Aimee) and the Eleven Twelve sweater (size 3, McMullin Fiber Co and Hello Stella).

What is your favorite thing about test knitting or why do you test knit? I originally started test knitting because I would see all these amazing Instagram posts from test knitters on a pattern release day and I wanted to be in on the secret! It's also a great way for me to learn new skills in an environment where there's lots of support (my first sweater ever was a test knit). Most importantly, I view test knitting as another way to support makers whose work I value and enjoy. For Tina in particular, she was one of the first designers on Instagram I found. I hit the "follow" button immediately because it meant a lot to me to support a Chinese American designer (representation matters!), especially one whose design aesthetic suited my tastes so well. I still get as excited each time as I did the first time she accepted my application to test knit!

What other making superpowers do you have? I love to cross stitch. I've come back to cross stitching in a big way during this pandemic, and it's been nice to be crafty in another way besides knitting. I'm a good cook and an excellent baker. Writing is another superpower; I especially love a well-crafted personal essay.

Where can readers find your makes? (IG, social medias, etc.)I post some of my makes (but all of my test knits!) on my Instagram, @musicalpoem. I post all of my knits via my project pages on Ravelry (same username as IG, but don't want to link due to accessibility issues).

Test Knitter of the MonthTina TseOctober 25, 2020test knitter