On today’s episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast we’re talking about building a craft community with my guests Ann Shayne and Kay Gardiner.
Kay and Ann are the co-founders of Modern Daily Knitting, one of the most vibrant places in today’s knitting world. Their partnership began in 2003 with a blog that quickly grew into a beloved hangout online, known for its humor, warmth, and stalwart belief that knitting is a vital part of a life well lived.
In 2024, they created Nash Yarn Fest, a big-hearted, large-scale annual gathering with vendors, speakers, and a Friday night hootenanny.
Beginning in 2025, they created a welcoming, inclusive community called The MDK Society, where members gather online and in person, and save all year long on MDK classes, shopping, and events. And, in what has been the ultimate manifestation of a dream and most certainly their steepest learning curve, they developed two MDK-exclusive yarns, American-made Atlas and British-made Jane. Through all this, MDK has proved to be most definitely part of a life well lived.
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We begin this interview talking about Kay and Ann’s early internet friendship, which began in 2000 on a Rowan knitting magazine chat board. They discovered each other while discussing problematic sweater sleeves and then maintained a correspondence through email. Eventually, they decided to start a knitting blog that featured their correspondence.
We discuss the evolution of knitting culture and the role that knitting blogs played in helping to create community for knitters, and to transform how people viewed knitting, making it an integral part of their lives rather than a secret hobby.
The relaunch of Modern Daily Knitting was inspired by Food52, a food blog and website. The goal was to create a constant stream of content for knitters. We discuss the impact of Ravely on the knitting industry and on media companies in the industry. With so many patterns available, consumers can be overwhelmed by the abundance, making curation even more essential. We also talk about funding and the impact that private equity has had on the crafts industry over the years. We talk about Modern Daily Knitting’s Field Guides, a series of self-published books created in collaboration with renowned designers and highlighting independent yarns. During the pandemic, Modern Daily Knitting began offering virtual classes which have become a vital part of the sites offerings.
When Modern Daily Knitting relaunched 10 years ago, Ann and Kay committed to publishing every day, to featuring diverse contributors, and to avoiding clickbait. There are no ads on the site, and all contributors are paid for their writing. Modern Daily Knitting readers can subscribe to receive posts via email daily, and to receive an email digest each Saturday called Snippets. We discuss Ann and Kay’s decision to change the name of the website and to grow their business to include live events, such as Nash Yarn Fest, which was inspired by the Edinburgh Yarn Fest. We also talk about how to maintain a healthy working relationship as business partners..
And, of course, I ask Ann and Kay to recommend great stuff they’re enjoying right now. They recommend:
- using 11 new colors in Jane yarn to make the Fly Away Blanket by Tin Can Knits
- Knitting the book “Knit Hello” using Atlas yarn. She made like 15 nameplates for Thanksgiving!
Keep up with Modern Daily Knitting on their website, where you can subscribe to Snippets, their Saturday newsletter, and on Instagram.
And join MDK Society with a special discount for our listeners! Use the code CIA10 for 10% off MDK Society now through Feb. 28, 2026.
