Let’s Knit Magazine Issue №159 (2020): A Complete Guide to Everything Inside

If you’ve been a fan of knitting magazines for any length of time, you already know that certain issues become go-to references you return to season after season. Let’s Knit №159 from 2020 is one of those issues. Whether you stumbled upon it through a LiveInternet community discussion, spotted it on a knitting forum, or discovered it through a Russian online diary service where knitters share their makes and musings, this issue earned a loyal following for good reason. It packed in a generous range of patterns, techniques, and inspiration that suited knitters from the enthusiastic beginner all the way through to the seasoned maker with decades of yarn under their belt.

In this post, we’re going to take a thorough look at what made Let’s Knit №159 so special, explore the kinds of projects it featured, discuss the community conversations it sparked on platforms like LiveInternet, and offer some practical guidance for anyone hoping to work through the patterns today.

What Is Let’s Knit Magazine?

Let’s Knit is a British knitting magazine published by Aceville Publications. It has built up a passionate readership not only in the United Kingdom but across Europe, Russia, and beyond, partly because of the internet’s ability to bring knitting communities together regardless of geography. The magazine typically includes original patterns for garments, accessories, and home décor, alongside technique tutorials, yarn reviews, and interviews with designers.

What sets Let’s Knit apart from some of its competitors is its accessibility. The patterns tend to be written with clear language, practical notes, and sizing information that covers a range of body types. The photography is warm and inviting rather than purely editorial, which makes it easy to imagine yourself actually wearing or gifting the finished items. Issue №159, published in 2020, arrived during a time when many knitters around the world found themselves spending more time at home and turning to their craft for comfort, creativity, and community. That context matters, because it shaped both what was in the issue and how enthusiastically it was received.

The LiveInternet Connection

For readers who may not be familiar with it, LiveInternet is one of Russia’s oldest and most beloved online diary and community platforms. Think of it as a blogging service with strong social features — users post about their lives, hobbies, and creative projects, and others follow along, comment, and share. The knitting and needlework communities on LiveInternet are remarkably active and detailed. Users post photographs of their work in progress, discuss pattern modifications, share tips for sourcing particular yarns in Russia and neighbouring countries, and engage in the kind of warm, generous conversation that defines the best corners of the crafting internet.

When a new issue of Let’s Knit arrived, it was not uncommon for LiveInternet users to start threads discussing particular patterns, swapping notes on which projects were worth attempting and which might present unexpected challenges. Issue №159 was no exception. The community discussions around this issue covered everything from colour substitution suggestions to questions about sizing and yarn weight. Reading through those archived conversations gives a fascinating window into how knitters around the world interact with the same source material in deeply personal and culturally specific ways.

Garment Patterns in Issue №159

One of the things that makes any knitting magazine worth purchasing is the quality and variety of its garment patterns, and Let’s Knit №159 delivered on this front with a selection that spanned seasons and styles.

The issue included several sweater patterns, ranging from a relaxed, drop-shouldered design that suits beginners comfortable with basic shaping all the way through to a more structured fitted knit with set-in sleeves and detailed stitch patterning. For knitters in Russia and other parts of Europe where winters are serious business, these sweater patterns represented genuinely wearable, practical projects rather than purely aspirational fashion pieces.

Cardigans also featured prominently. There is something perennially appealing about a handknitted cardigan — it is the kind of garment you make once and wear for years, and the patterns in this issue reflected an understanding of that longevity. The designs favoured clean lines and classic proportions over trend-dependent details, which means they remain just as knittable and wearable today as they were in 2020.

The issue also included at least one top-down construction pattern, which was a particular point of interest in the LiveInternet discussions. Top-down knitting — where you begin at the neckline and work down toward the hem — has grown enormously popular over the past decade because it allows knitters to try the garment on as they go and adjust the fit in real time. For knitters working from Russian yarn stashes or substituting yarns sourced locally, this kind of flexibility is especially valuable.

Accessories and Smaller Projects

Not every knitter is ready to commit to a full sweater, and Let’s Knit №159 understood that. The issue featured a satisfying selection of smaller projects that could be completed in a weekend or two, making them ideal for gift-giving or for dipping a toe into a new technique without a major time investment.

Hat patterns were well represented, covering both structured beanies and slouchy styles. These are perennial favourites in knitting communities everywhere, but they took on particular significance in the LiveInternet discussions because Russian knitters often sought out hat patterns with generous negative ease and deep ribbed bands — practical considerations for genuinely cold climates that the magazine’s British editorial team may not have prioritised, but which the community adapted for with enthusiasm.

Mittens and fingerless gloves also featured in the issue. These accessories walk a wonderful line between purely functional and genuinely decorative, and the patterns in №159 included some lovely textural detail work — cables, twisted stitches, and small lace motifs — that elevated them above the purely utilitarian.

Cowls and scarves rounded out the accessories section. The cowl patterns in particular generated considerable discussion on LiveInternet, with users sharing their yarn choices and posting progress photographs. A cowl is one of those projects that photographs beautifully at every stage, which makes it particularly well suited to the diary-style format of LiveInternet posts.

Home Décor and Beyond

Let’s Knit №159 also ventured into home décor territory, which has always been a strength of the magazine’s broader catalogue. Knitted cushion covers, throws, and decorative items have a devoted following among makers who want to extend their craft beyond wearables and into the spaces they inhabit.

The cushion cover patterns in this issue made use of textural techniques — bobbles, seed stitch, and moss stitch — that translate beautifully to home textiles. These are projects that invite improvisation and personalisation, and the LiveInternet community was quick to share their own interpretations, with users posting photographs of the same pattern worked in dramatically different colour palettes or fibre types to remarkable effect.

A particularly notable aspect of the home décor section was its accessibility for newer knitters. Some knitting magazines treat home décor projects as advanced territory, incorporating complicated construction or unusual techniques. Let’s Knit №159 took a more welcoming approach, offering patterns that a confident beginner could tackle successfully while still producing something genuinely beautiful.

Techniques and Learning Content

Beyond the patterns themselves, Let’s Knit №159 included the kind of technique content that keeps readers coming back even after they’ve worked through every project in the issue. Tutorials and step-by-step guides are a core part of what the magazine does well, and this issue was no exception.

The technique coverage reportedly included guidance on working with double-pointed needles, which is an area where many knitters feel uncertain and which generates significant discussion in online communities. Whether you’re navigating the slightly awkward choreography of DPNs for the first time or looking to refine your tension when working small circumferences, this kind of clear, illustrated guidance is enormously helpful.

There was also content related to finishing techniques — seaming, blocking, and weaving in ends. These are the aspects of knitting that make the difference between a project that looks homemade in the best sense and one that looks genuinely professional, and they are often underserved in pattern-focused publications. Let’s Knit №159’s attention to finishing was noted positively in several LiveInternet discussions, where users observed that the guidance helped them achieve better results with projects from the issue and from their broader knitting practice.

Yarn and Materials Guidance

For knitters sourcing materials outside the United Kingdom, yarn guidance in a British publication requires some translation. UK yarn brands and specific product lines may not be readily available in Russia or across Eastern Europe, and part of the value of community discussions on platforms like LiveInternet is precisely this kind of practical knowledge sharing.

The LiveInternet discussions around Let’s Knit №159 included detailed conversations about yarn substitution — which Russian-available yarns offered comparable weight, twist, and drape to the recommended British brands, and which tended to behave differently in ways that required pattern adjustments. This kind of community knowledge is genuinely invaluable and represents one of the ways that online knitting communities add real, practical depth to the experience of working from a foreign publication.

Wool, cotton, alpaca blends, and acrylic-blend yarns all featured across the patterns in the issue, giving knitters with different budget constraints and fibre preferences something to work with. The LiveInternet community particularly appreciated the patterns worked in more affordable yarns, which allowed knitters to achieve beautiful results without importing expensive specialty fibres.

Why 2020 Was a Significant Year for Knitting

It would be impossible to discuss Let’s Knit №159 without acknowledging the extraordinary context of 2020. The year brought disruption on a global scale, and for many people, craft became a lifeline — a way of maintaining a sense of agency, creativity, and calm in deeply uncertain times. Knitting communities everywhere reported surges in membership, activity, and engagement, and LiveInternet’s crafting communities were no exception.

Within that context, a magazine like Let’s Knit №159 offered something genuinely valuable: a structured, curated creative experience at a time when many people craved exactly that. The patterns provided clear goals and measurable progress. The technique content offered opportunities to learn and grow. And the community discussions that sprang up around the issue — on LiveInternet and elsewhere — created connection and conversation between people who might otherwise have been isolated.

This is part of why discussions from 2020 around specific issues like №159 have such a particular warmth to them when you read through them in archived posts. Knitters were sharing not just pattern notes but moments of genuine human connection, photographs of their work spaces and their finished objects, encouragement and solidarity. The craft was doing what it has always done — bringing people together — but in 2020, that function felt especially precious.

Practical Tips for Working the Patterns Today

If you’ve come across Let’s Knit №159 and you’re considering working some of the patterns, here are some practical considerations drawn from community experience and general knitting wisdom.

Always swatch before you begin. This advice appears in every knitting resource for good reason — gauge is the foundation of a well-fitting project, and even a small difference between your actual gauge and the pattern’s specified gauge will compound into significant differences in the finished dimensions of a garment. Swatch in the round if the pattern is worked in the round, since many knitters tension their yarn differently when working flat versus circular.

Read the entire pattern before casting on. Let’s Knit patterns are generally clearly written, but like all patterns, they contain instructions that need to be understood in the context of what comes later. Reading through in advance helps you spot any sections that might require preparation — purchasing additional materials, understanding a technique, or planning your time.

Consider body measurements carefully. The sizing in Let’s Knit reflects typical British sizing conventions, and the ease preferences of British editorial teams may not match your own. If you prefer a closer fit than the pattern’s suggested ease, size down; if you prefer a more relaxed silhouette, size up. Use your actual body measurements and the finished measurements listed in the pattern as your guide, rather than the named size alone.

If you’re working with a yarn substitution — especially relevant for knitters outside the UK — check not just the weight but the fibre content, ply structure, and drape. A single-ply laceweight will behave very differently to a four-ply tightly twisted yarn of the same nominal weight, and these differences will affect everything from stitch definition to finished drape.

The Enduring Appeal of Print Knitting Magazines

In an era of free online patterns and video tutorials, it might seem surprising that print magazines like Let’s Knit continue to thrive. But the community discussions around issues like №159 on LiveInternet offer a clue to why they do. A print magazine is a curated, considered object. It represents editorial choices — decisions about which designs to include, which techniques to feature, which voices to amplify — that give it a coherence and character that a Pinterest board or a Ravelry queue, however carefully assembled, struggles to replicate.

For knitters in Russia and across the post-Soviet world who engaged with Let’s Knit through LiveInternet communities, there was also something meaningful about the magazine’s foreignness. It offered a window into British knitting aesthetics and sensibilities while remaining adaptable to local materials, climates, and preferences. The community discussions were, in a sense, a form of translation — not just of language but of context and cultural meaning.

That translation process is still ongoing. Knitters continue to discover back issues of Let’s Knit through secondhand sales, digital archives, and community recommendations, and when they do, they bring those issues into conversation with their own knitting practice and their own communities. The discussion threads on LiveInternet around Let’s Knit №159 are a record of that process — a living document of how a British knitting magazine became, through the alchemy of community and craft, something that belonged equally to knitters in Moscow, Minsk, Yekaterinburg, and beyond.

Final Thoughts

Let’s Knit №159 from 2020 represents everything a good knitting magazine should be: generous with its patterns, attentive to technique, accessible to a range of skill levels, and inspiring enough to send readers straight to their yarn stashes. The conversations it generated on LiveInternet speak to its quality and to the enduring vitality of knitting as a social, communal practice.

Whether you’re approaching this issue as a new discovery or returning to it as a familiar favourite, there is plenty here to reward your attention. Cast on something from it this season. Share your progress in the communities that have been talking about it for years. And enjoy the particular pleasure of being part of a conversation about craft that spans languages, borders, and years.