9 perfect gifts for machine knitters for Christmas 2024

Christmas is a wonderful time for gathering with friends and family, feasting on delicious food, giving gifts, and starting 10 new craft projects (and maybe finishing a few too). 

Buying Christmas gifts for loved ones isn’t always a walk in the park, especially if you don’t share the same passions or interests… but if the person you’re buying a gift for loves machine knitting, we’ve made it really easy for you.

Here’s our list of perfect Christmas gifts for machine knitters, from a bunch of professionals and hobbyists in the Machine Knit Community (MKC), our friendly and supportive online space for crafters from around the world.  

And if you’re a machine knitter yourself, send this to your partner, parent or friend who never knows what to buy for you!

1. Supersoft Cashmere Yarn from J. C. Rennie & Co, £50-59.95

One thing a machine knitter can never have too much of is yarn, so this Christmas, why not give the gift of extra special yarn that they wouldn’t normally buy for themselves? 

This gorgeous cashmere and lambswool mix yarn is from one of the oldest mills in Scotland (established in 1798) and comes in 31 shades, so there’s bound to be one or two perfect colours for your favourite machine knitter.

If you’d like to learn why this is a great yarn for machine knitters, I wrote about it in this blog post: 5 best yarns for machine knitting Fair Isle.

JC Rennie's supersoft yarn is a blend of 87.5% lambswool and 12.5% Cashmere, making it ideal for making a snuggly luxury winter jumper, cardigan, or even a snuggly scarf. 

2. A new project for Christmas: Sophie Ochera Knitting Kits, from €32 (approx. £26.60)

Sophie is a wonderful machine knitter living in France, where she designs and sells beautiful jumpers and cardigans for adults and children, as well as knitting kits so that you can make your own. 

The knitting kits include all the 100% pure organic wool Bio Shetland yarn you need, plus instructions of how to hand-knit your own beautiful Fair Isle garment. 

This Christmas, you could give the gift of gorgeous yarns, a new project, and a new garment to wear, all in one - the Houndstooth Knitting Kit and Trouville Knitting Kit are great for intermediate knitters. 

3. The gift of inspiration and knowledge - machine knitting books, from £7

Books are a great Christmas gift because you can get so much joy, learning, and inspiration from them, and they’re often beautiful objects to adorn your coffee table, workspace or bookshelf with too.  

We have a great range of machine knitting books in the MKC bookshop, where you can find everything from Japanese knitting to Fair Isle, traditional knitting to bold contemporary knits, as well as some books about sustainable fashion. 

This is a good opportunity to shamelessly plug my own book too - Fair Isle with Nic (£14.99) is accessible for both beginners and those experienced in machine knitting, giving a clear guide to Fair Isle techniques and two-colour knitting.   

4. Josefien Cardigan Pattern for Machine Knitters by Sophie Ochera, €7.50 (about £6.25)

If your machine knitting friend loves Sophie Ochera’s designs but is not a fan of hand knitting, this is a great alternative Christmas gift, and it’s super affordable too.

The Josefien Cardigan pattern includes instructions only, but you could add some yarn to go with it for a really lovely Christmas gift for any machine knitter - if you need some yarn pointers, head to my previous blog: What are the best types of yarn to use for machine knitting?

This cardigan pattern fits up to 8 years, so if an adult-sized knit would be a better Christmas present for your pal, Sophie has lots of other great machine knitting patterns in her Ravelry shop, including her super popular Djo jumper. 

5. Give a mini Christmas hamper of handy haberdashery supplies from Beyond Measure, from £2.50

What could be better than opening a box of useful goodies from a lovely independent haberdashery? Beyond Measure stocks all sorts of handy things for knitting, crochet and sewing. 

I think any machine knitter would be happy to receive these Cohana Mini Snips (£18) for snipping yarn, some beautiful festive ceramic buttons (£2.20) for those finishing touches, and a stunning handmade Wooden Darning Mushroom (£24) for repairing precious knits. 

Pop them in a box with some colourful tissue paper and tie some ribbon around it, and you have a really delightful and thoughtful Christmas gift. 

6. The Stoodley Sweater Masterclass with MKC, £75

We’ve lots of brilliant Masterclasses to choose from in the Machine Knit Community, but this one is really popular and would make a really lovely Christmas gift for a machine knitter. 

The Stoodley Sweater has a lovely patterned yoke, and is suitable for any machine knitter who has a basic understanding of their machine - so if you’re unsure of your machine knitter friend’s level of expertise, this would be a safe bet.  

The Stoodley Sweater Masterclass takes your favourite crafter through making a beautiful machine knitted jumper, step-by-step, and the price also includes 2 months access to the Machine Knit Community, giving access to all our live and recorded classes and talks.

7. Splurge on a knitting holiday on Fair Isle, £3,250

This is a very generous and pretty pricey gift, but if you’re feeling extravagant or buying a gift for someone as a group, this would be a truly wonderful Christmas gift for a machine knitter to receive. 

These week-long knitting holidays are run by Marie on Fair Isle, one of the most remote islands in the UK. 

During the week, you learn all about Fair Isle knitting patterns and techniques, and produce your own knitwear. Accommodation and food are included, as well as guided walks and a visit to Fair Isle Museum.  

8. Membership to the Machine Knit Community, from £20 

Yes, we might be biassed, but we think membership of the Machine Knit Community is the perfect Christmas gift for the machine knitter in your life. 

Our community is a friendly and supportive online space for machine knitters from around the world, with 24/7 access to our private community, workshops and classes, knit-a-longs, challenges and more. 

If you’re still not sold on membership as a Christmas gift, you can find out more about the Machine Knit Community on our membership page. 

When you purchase a membership as a gift, you receive a PDF that you can print off and pop inside a Christmas card - choose from one month membership (£20) or one year membership (£195). 

9. If you’re still unsure, give a Christmas gift voucher

If you’re not feeling confident about what the machine knitter in your life might want as a Christmas present or what they might already have, a gift voucher is a great solution.

With a gift voucher, your loved one can buy something they really want or need, and they’re likely to get lots of use and joy out of it. 

Many of the businesses we’ve linked to above have gift cards available, including us! MKC gift vouchers can be used against any Machine Knit Community products, including Masterclasses and 1-to-1 teaching. 

For all your pal’s haberdashery needs, Beyond Measure gift cards start at £5, as do Bookshop.org gift cards, if you’re not sure which machine knitting book to buy for your friend.

These Christmas gifts for machine knitters should fit the bill, but if you think I’ve forgotten any great gift ideas, pop them in the comments below.

We hope you have a wonderful festive season and (if you’re lucky enough to have a break from work) can spend some time on your creative projects.