I can’t knit without my stitch markers—they’re not just tools; they’re full of feelings and memories
The funny mishaps from my travels live on my needles as I knit, writes executive content producer and knitwear designer Meiju Kallio.
Travel souvenirs can be collected in many ways. Some save boarding passes or postcards; others always bring home a mug. My most important travel souvenir is the stitch marker—small and cute, often metal or made from recycled plastic. I carry them in my knitting bag wherever I go.
Stitch markers are tools for knitting. When they’re parked on the needle, they help me remember where to increase or decrease, or where a motif begins. I need them because I usually don’t look at the knitting as I work. With a marker clipped to the work, I count rows or flag a spot I’ll need to write into the pattern later.
“On every trip, I try to find one stitch marker.”
My work as a knitwear designer takes me to craft fairs and knitting events. On every trip, I try to find one stitch marker. I keep them in small tin boxes that hold years’ worth of stitch-marker memories.
With these markers, I remember the events and the people who came along. The stories from those trips are full of laughter, mishaps, and fun moments. There was the time I wasn’t going to buy any yarn at all—and then ended up buying five balls of yarn for sweaters. Or when I thought merino bouclé yarn was such an ’80s thing, but within half an hour, my friend and I had designed a Chanel-style jacket from it—and I walked out of the yarn booth with the jacket yarn under my arm and the stitch markers tucked in a pouch. Every time I put a marker onto the needle, I remember where I bought it, who I traveled with, and how much fun we had.
“Gift idea for a knitter: a stitch marker!”
In my UNFINISHED KNITWEAR there are often several stitch markers on the needle. That means many trips tag along as memories. The markers are like jewelry for an unfinished knit. I don’t wear leopard print, but leopard print on a stitch marker is downright perfect—especially when it takes a small, fuzzy shape. Gift idea for a knitter: a stitch marker!
I recently visited two knitting events in New York State. The trip was full of surprising twists and turns. When the event was over, I realized I had forgotten the stitch marker. My heart sank. But no worries: I rummaged through the freebie bag from the event, and at the bottom a treasure was waiting—three stitch markers.
