Stitching Queen

Local yarn shop is home to knitting star Michelle Hunter

MMICHELLE HUNTER might not get recognized walking down the street in central Ohio, but in the world of knitting, she’s a celebrity.

Hunter travels the country teaching the ancient art of knitting at conventions –and right here in Dublin at Knitting Temptations on South High Street. Her book, Building Blocks, is sold at about 2,000 independent yarn shops all over the United States and Canada.

But Hunter’s biggest presence is on the internet. Her website, KnitPurlHunter. com, draws thousands of beginners and long time enthusiasts, who come to read her blog and view the instructional videos she’s posted. Her videos have more than 1.3 million views on YouTube alone.

She didn’t start out as a knitting whiz. Hunter’s grandmother taught her to knit at age 6, but it didn’t become her passion until much later. “It was something I did on and off when I went to Grandma’s house,” Hunter says.

She grew up in the Cleveland area and earned her bachelor’s degree at Miami University, where she met her husband, Don. The couple and their children moved to the Dublin area 22 years ago when Don’s job transferred him to Columbus. Daughters Megan, Colleen and Shelia Hunter – now 27, 25 and 23, respectively – all attended Dublin City Schools, and Hunter taught elementary and preschool. Her second career as a knitting maven didn’t begin until after Knitting Temptations debuted in its current form in Historic Dublin in 2003. Prior to that, Hunter’s creativity took many forms, including cross stitch, sewing and needlepoint.

Knitting Temptations owner Karen Wilkinson quickly recognized Hunter’s talent.

“Michelle was one of my customers, and she took a class or two and she just took off all by herself,” Wilkinson said. “She spent a lot of time here and designed some patterns.”

Soon, Hunter was teaching classes herself.

“She has a real gift for simplifying knitting and making it much more understandable to the average knitter,” Wilkinson says.

“Teaching knitting classes just seemed natural,” Hunter says. “I’m very fortunate because I get to combine my hobby with my passion, which is teaching.”

For the Block a Month Club, the class that eventually became her book, Hunter developed a curriculum that takes the beginner through a host of basic skills. Once completed, the student will have created a beautiful 12-block afghan.

“People just flock to her classes. When she started Block a Month, it was really clear that we were going someplace,” Wilkinson says.

The class became so popular that yarn and needle distributor Skacel Collection, Inc. took notice.

“The woman who took the orders from Skacel said, ‘What do you have going on there that you keep ordering the same supplies?’” That question got Michelle a meeting with Skacel’s owner, Karin Skacel, at the National NeedleArts Summer Convention, held in Columbus each June.

“We hit it off and (Skacel) said, ‘I want to publish this. I want you to do things for our company,’” Hunter says. “So that’s how I went from little Dublin, Ohio to the national scene.”

The process of putting the book together took about 18 months. Building Blocks was released in January 2011.

Like her classes, the lessons in the book are supported by Hunter’s vast online library of instructional videos, produced by Dublin resident Matt Kubic. The videos of Hunter demonstrating techniques were born out of what she saw as a need for her students. “People always say, ‘Sure, I understand it. I get it,’ and then they go home and when they need to use that technique two weeks or two months later, they forget about it,” Hunter says. Hunter’s website and YouTube channel now have more than 100 free knitting instructional videos.

Teaching knitting and meeting other knitting enthusiasts gives Hunter fulfillment that she never expected she would have.

“I feel like now that my children are grown that this is my time to have this whole second career that I never had before,” she says. “I feel like a late bloomer, in a good way.”

She travels to conventions all over the U.S., teaching classes, doing demonstrations for Skacel and enjoying the company of others with the same interest in knitting. Her typical convention attire includes a pair of colorful tights, knitted over the course of two years from the yarn she had left over from various projects (mostly socks). They’re definitely a conversation starter, she says.

“I’ve met and have worked with so many great people. (In a class, you have) 20 to 30 women from all different walks of life and socio-economic backgrounds and when they all get together knitting, that all goes away and they just become one delightful group,” Hunter says.

Knitting also connects people with older generations, which is the reason the logo for KnitPurlHunter.com has a retro feel.

“Most people learned it from someone like their grandmother or their mother and it makes them feel connected to that person,” Hunter says. “One knitter made a pair of socks with one of my online classes and ended up burying her aunt in them because her aunt was the one who taught her to knit.”

Building Blocks is dedicated to Hunter’s grandmother, who’s now 96. “I’m just so grateful that she gave me this gift, that I was able to dedicate it to her and that she could see it,” Hunter says.

What little spare time Hunter has is also filled with knitting. She takes it everywhere, from the doctor’s office and sporting events to Presidential rallies and the beach. “What’s nice about it is you can take it anywhere,” Hunter says.

For those who may have learned to knit as children or don’t feel they have much skill, she has words of encouragement.

“I think that anybody can become a better knitter. Some are fast and some just plow through, but they get the job done,” Hunter says. “What’s great about knitting is that there are people who just want to knit a plain scarf and that’s all they ever want to do, but it makes them really happy. It relaxes them. There’s something about fiber running through your fingers that is relaxing and very therapeutic.”

There are rumors that Hunter has another book in the works, but neither she nor the Knitting Temptations staff is speaking up just yet.

“Keep an eye on her because she’s going to keep going,” Wilkinson says.

Lisa Aurand is editor of Dublin Life Magazine. Feedback welcome at laurand@cityscenemediagroup.com.

BY ALEX WALLACE