It’s taken me ages to get round to writing my first blog – I’ve been busy busy busy since I took over from Katie Allen at the end of October but it’s all paid off as we’ve just received our copies of the Winter issue and it looks gorgeous! It was quite nerve-wracking as it was mine, and Emma, our new editors’, first issue. In fact everything at the moment seems new or a first. New editor, new assistant editor, new office. Yes, somehow Knitting has managed to wangle the best office in our building. We now have a large airy studio with windows over-looking the garden, complete with full-length mirror and clothes rail, and plenty of room for our ever-growing piles of knitting paraphernalia.

The January issue is shaping up brilliantly. We had great fun choosing a winner from all the fabulous knitted animals sent in for our Noah’s Ark competition. The winning crocodile and pattern is featured in our fun knits this issue. I currently have the pink chameleon sat on my computer and the snake draught excluders got loaned out to the other departments when our heating got switched off the other day.

A big feature in the January issue is new patterns for premature babies. We managed to raise confusion with our photographer though when she asked us about the premature baby ‘bag’ that had been sent to her to photograph. Poor girl, no wonder she was confused, it was a hot water bottle.

We’ve even featured on local radio as Emma B, our deputy editor, without us knowing, emailed the DJ asking to play ‘Fairytale in New York’ (as we had been singing it ever since Emma K, our editor, put it down as her Christmas song for the Ed’s page question) dedicated to the girls at Knitting and because Emma K fancied Shane McGowan. You should have seen her face! Claire, our designer, printed out the words and we had a good sing song- until someone rang up the radio station and berated the DJ for playing a Christmas song too early! We can’t help it, working on issues months ahead sometimes plays havoc with our time scale.

And to wind it up, I’m going to my first knitting workshop tonight at Purl in Brighton. Debbie Smith, the owner, has agreed to take me on, even after I warned her I’ve never even put yarn to needle. I have a feeling this is going to be quite a comedy venture, news of which will crop up often in my blog so keep checking back to follow my progress (or despair?).

Till next time.