I like a challenge.
Doing things that are bloody hard.
I think this is me rebelling against the run-of-the-mill.
And the obvious.
And the ordinary.
Always Wear Red.
As you may know, I am in the middle of narrowing down my clothing label Always Wear Red to hand knits only.
I was building relationships with wonderful makers around the UK making lots of different brilliant things.
But I was spreading myself too thinly.
And as I crave true excellence in just one thing.
I had to choose where to focus.
And I choose hand knits.
Hard.
The main reason I chose hand knits is because hand knitting, of course, can’t be automated.
And even if some clever machine materialised that could create hand knits.
Well, I wouldn’t want one of them.
I want hand knits that have been knitted by hand.
But building a brand around this is hard.
Bloody Hard.
In fact, it’s bloody hard.
Quality control.
Consistency.
Costing.
Pricing.
Scaling.
But, I think, that is the main reason that I am doing it.
And because, when I was researching, I couldn’t find any dedicated, specialist hand knitting brand that committed to that one thing.
That adored that one thing.
Wanting to master it.
And wanting to protect the craft.
And paying the makers, the knitters, well.
Ethically, boldly, confidently and with interesting, contemporary design twists and storytelling.
I spent quite a while looking.
Looking for the world’s best brand for adorable hand knits.
Hand knits that couples fight over.
Hand knits that children want handed down to them from their parents.
And because I couldn’t find someone committed to doing this.
I decided that someone really should commit.
And that that someone – should be me.
Here’s how we’re looking so far: https://www.50odd.co.uk/hard/.
