Who Is Stephen West? Knitting Career, Westknits, and Amsterdam Shop

Stephen West is an American knitting-pattern designer, author, teacher, retailer, and digital creator. He is the founder of Westknits, an independent design brand known for colorful shawls, sweaters, accessories, tutorials, and international knit-alongs.

Stephen West began publishing knitting patterns online in 2009. His work became recognizable for its bold color combinations, geometric shapes, textured stitches, brioche knitting, and unconventional styling.

Originally from Tulsa, Oklahoma, West studied dance in Illinois before moving to Amsterdam to pursue choreography. The Dutch capital later became the center of his knitting career. He co-owns the Stephen & Penelope yarn shop and helped establish the West Wool yarn brand with business partner Malia Mae Joseph.

Profile Summary

Early Life and Background

Stephen West was born and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Some online profiles incorrectly combine his birthplace with his later residence by listing “Tulsa, Netherlands.” Tulsa is located in Oklahoma, while Amsterdam in the Netherlands became his professional home as an adult.

Limited verified information is publicly available about West’s parents, siblings, or early family life. His published biography focuses primarily on dance, knitting, design, and entrepreneurship.

West moved to Illinois to study dance at the University of Illinois. While living in Urbana, he became involved with the local knitting community and spent time at Klose Knit, a yarn shop that helped deepen his interest in the craft.

Knitting gradually developed from a personal interest into a form of creative design. West began experimenting with shape, color, and construction while continuing his dance education.

At approximately 21 years old, he relocated to Amsterdam to study choreography at the School for New Dance Development, part of the city’s Academy of Theatre and Dance. The move proved significant for both his artistic development and future business career.

His background in dance remained visible in his approach to knitwear. West often presents garments through movement, dramatic poses, vivid styling, and performance-oriented videos. His designs also show an interest in proportion, structure, repetition, and visual rhythm.

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Career and Professional Journey

Beginning of Westknits

West began publishing original knitting patterns online in 2009. One of his important early designs was the Colonnade shawl, which appeared in the Fall 2009 edition of the online knitting publication Knitty.

The pattern helped introduce his work to a wider international audience. Online distribution allowed knitters in different countries to download his designs without relying on traditional print publishing.

West developed his design work under the name Westknits. The brand initially became closely associated with shawls but later expanded into sweaters, cardigans, hats, socks, blankets, scarves, and other accessories.

His career benefited from the growth of digital knitting communities. Pattern platforms, blogs, video tutorials, and social media enabled him to communicate directly with customers and provide technical guidance alongside each design.

Design Style

Stephen West is known for treating color as a central part of garment construction rather than as a secondary decorative choice.

His patterns frequently use contrasting shades, gradients, stripes, color blocks, and unexpected combinations. He encourages knitters to adapt the palettes to their own preferences and available yarn collections.

Geometric construction is another defining feature of his work. His shawls may use wedges, short rows, modular sections, asymmetrical forms, and expanding shapes. These methods often produce large, visually distinctive finished pieces.

West also helped bring wider attention to techniques such as two-color brioche and marling. Brioche creates a thick, flexible fabric with pronounced ribbing, while marling involves holding different strands of yarn together to produce blended color effects.

His patterns range in difficulty. Some are designed for knitters developing basic skills, while others involve complex colorwork, cables, textured stitches, or multi-stage construction.

Mystery Knit Alongs

West is widely associated with the annual Westknits Mystery Shawl Knit Along.

In a mystery knit-along, participants begin a project without seeing the completed design. Sections of the pattern are released as scheduled clues, allowing thousands of knitters to work through the same project at approximately the same time.

The format combines pattern design with community participation. Knitters share yarn selections, progress photographs, questions, and completed shawls through online groups and social media.

West supports these events with instructional videos and technique demonstrations. The tutorials help participants understand unfamiliar construction methods while maintaining the surprise of the final design.

The recurring event has become an important part of the Westknits calendar and has helped establish a long-term global community around his work.

Stephen & Penelope

West became professionally connected with Amsterdam-based craft entrepreneur Malia Mae Joseph after moving to the Netherlands.

Their collaboration developed into Stephen & Penelope, an independent yarn shop located in Amsterdam. The boutique sells yarn, knitting tools, project kits, books, and materials selected for Westknits designs.

Stephen & Penelope serves both local visitors and international online customers. Its Westknits kits provide coordinated yarn combinations for specific patterns, helping customers select suitable colors and quantities.

The store connects several areas of West’s career. It functions as a retail business, a source of project materials, a creative space, and a link between pattern publishing and the wider independent-yarn industry.

West should be described as a co-owner rather than the sole founder or operator of the business. Joseph has played a central role in its development and management.

West Wool

In 2019, West and Joseph launched West Wool, a yarn brand connected to Stephen & Penelope.

The project expanded their work from retailing yarn produced by other companies into developing their own branded materials. West Wool offers yarn bases intended for a range of garments and accessories.

The brand’s color palette includes neutral shades, softer tones, and brighter accents. These yarns are frequently used in Westknits samples, kits, and knit-along projects.

West Wool represents the broader development of West’s career from independent pattern design into publishing, education, retail, and yarn production.

Books and Pattern Publishing

West has published numerous knitting books and pattern collections under the Westknits name.

His catalogue includes early collections such as Made for Movement and Midgard, along with the Westknits Bestknits series. The latter includes volumes centered on shawls, sweaters, and the development of his shawl designs.

These books combine written patterns with photography, styling, yarn guidance, and explanations of his creative approach.

West distributes patterns in both digital and physical formats. Independent publishing gives him control over design selection, presentation, photography, and release schedules.

His publishing model reflects a larger shift within the craft industry, where designers can build international businesses through downloadable patterns, online communities, and direct sales.

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YouTube and Social Media

West uses YouTube to publish knitting tutorials, pattern demonstrations, knit-along guidance, and videos introducing new designs.

His teaching style often combines detailed technical explanation with humor, costume, movement, and theatrical presentation. This approach makes the videos both instructional and closely connected to his public personality.

His Instagram account, westknits, features finished projects, color combinations, shop updates, yarn releases, styling photographs, and behind-the-scenes content.

West has also produced knitting-themed music and performance videos. These projects draw on his dance background and use entertainment to promote patterns, techniques, and products.

The videos are part of his creative marketing strategy rather than a separate mainstream music career.

Major Achievements and Recognition

Building an International Design Brand

Westknits has developed from a collection of online patterns into an internationally recognized independent knitting brand.

West’s designs have been completed by knitters around the world, and his digital publishing model has allowed him to maintain a direct relationship with his audience.

His patterns are recognized for combining clear technical structures with unusual color and styling choices.

Influence on Contemporary Knitting

West has contributed to the popularity of large geometric shawls, two-color brioche, marling, and mystery knit-alongs.

Although he did not invent these techniques, his patterns and tutorials helped introduce them to broader audiences and encouraged knitters to experiment with color and construction.

His work challenges the idea that hand knitting must follow restrained or traditional visual styles. He presents it as a flexible form of fashion, design, craft, and personal expression.

Development of Stephen & Penelope

The growth of Stephen & Penelope represents an important business achievement.

The Amsterdam shop serves as a destination for knitters while also operating internationally through online sales. It brings together independent yarns, tools, Westknits patterns, books, and project kits.

The business demonstrates West and Joseph’s ability to connect creative design with retail operations and customer education.

Creation of West Wool

The launch of West Wool expanded the business into yarn development.

By creating a branded yarn line, West and Joseph gained greater control over the materials used in Westknits samples and kits. The brand also strengthened the relationship between pattern design, color planning, and yarn selection.

Online Education and Community Building

West has used videos, social platforms, and knit-alongs to build a sustained international audience.

His tutorials make complicated techniques more accessible, while his mystery projects create regular opportunities for participation and discussion.

This combination of design and education has become one of the most important elements of his professional identity.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

Stephen West has built an international career by combining knitting design, education, performance, publishing, retail, and digital media.

Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, he initially studied dance before moving to Amsterdam for choreography training. During this period, his growing interest in knitting developed into Westknits, an independent design brand launched through online pattern publishing.

West became known for colorful shawls, geometric construction, brioche, marling, and large community knit-alongs. He later expanded his work through pattern books, YouTube tutorials, the Stephen & Penelope yarn shop, and the West Wool brand.

His career demonstrates how traditional handcraft can be developed through modern digital publishing and international community participation. West’s lasting influence lies in his encouragement of experimentation, expressive color choices, and individual creativity within contemporary knitting.