Ethel & Em

23/08/2026

Hello Lovelies 👋🏽

I know a lot of you books from us (and we will be making them much easier to find online this autumn). But people also get books on Amazon and other online sources… ya need to be careful. This video is very helpful.

We source our books from Craft Book suppliers, and established authors.

The same watch out comes when buying individual patterns and ebooks online. We only use Ravelry or designers that we know’s own sites. We know some folks use Etsy. With Ravelry and Etsy, if you’re buying from a designer who is new to you - READ THE REVIEWS/COMMENTS. If there are none, you may be taking a gamble.

We know that AI can provide useful support in a number of ways, and it will be used in moderation. But irresponsible use and slop content that is inaccurate and misleading is a huge concern. This is a bit of a PSA so comments will be off. But this is a great video from Patty Lyons Knitting

15/08/2026

Well Simply Crochet it’s our last team member contribution of the day to

Our Ben has channeled his inner (and outer) gay goth vibes in this black and rainbow stripy treble square. He used Ricorumi dk and some of our remaining Scheepjes Catona Chroma.

Ben also did a bonus “square,” a coloured to show his (and our) solidarity with our trans brothers and sisters. This was made using Rico Design Ricorumi dk

This year we are seeing some amazing squares on the Simply Crochet feed and stories. We are so glad to take part in

crochet is so versatile and a great gateway to crochet. Happy everyone 🫶🏽🧶🤩

15/08/2026

Hello world 👋🏽

The second contribution from Ethel & Em for is from “ever so extra” Mel.

This sparkling, fluffy square uses Louisa Harding Amitola for a touch of luxury, Jeni Hewlett Cumulus for fab fluff, and Filcolana Paia for disco style shimmer throughout 🤩

Simply Crochet

15/08/2026

Simply Crochet this is our first offering of the day. This was created by our Em for

Crocheted in Luca-S Yarns this square is as magical and musical as our Em. Love this bright spark! (The square and our newest team member!)

30/07/2026

Our fab local radio station Beyond Radio is turning 10 🥳

Our Ben has joined in sending super birthday love to the team at Beyond Radio, with a special shout out to presenter at large (author, rambler, adventurer, Ethel & Em famalam, and so much more…) Beth Pipe.

Join in and wish this stellar team a happy birthday 🫶🏽

25/07/2026

Be fab to see a pic of one of the BIPOC people involved in this engaging with the E2M team. Just a thought.

We just wanted to say a huge thank you to Black History Lancaster and Connect Play Learn CIC for delivering some excellent training to our team of staff members, workshop facilitators, and volunteers!

The wonderful Lela Harris, Prof. Alan Rice, and Prof. Christina Hicks delivered a fantastic, informative session on Lancaster's Black History and Heritage!

This was followed by an accessibility training by the incredible Kirsten Freiesleben and Gill Mason from Connect Play Learn CIC.

We are so thankful to these wonderful organisations and are so excited to use the new skills we've learned to deliver our upcoming Heritage Festival!

15/07/2026

I did a live. The instagram won’t let me share it here. It’s about 5 minutes long and I’m telling you guys about some of the great value yarns we stock. Natural fibres, blends, and synthetics. You can click the video below if you want to find out more.

I did this because someone said the shop looked dear and I wanted to let you all know that we offer good bang for your buck.

In fact, I forgot to mention it, but the scarf I’m wearing in the video used 4 Ricorumi SpinSpins and two Ricorumis (I think) that’s a scarf in 100% cotton with a choice of almost 100 colours to choose from and it’s cost me less than £20 at current prices. I’m pretty darned pleased with that! That’s a round at the pub or coffees for the team…

04/07/2026

So… this is a bit of an introduction post for some of our new followers. I chose the yarn and wine pic because the freeze frames from the video were pretty darn grim.

I’ve not been able to figure out captions, so I will summarise the video for anyone who needs it…

My name is Melanie and this is my wool (and stationery) shop, Ethel & Em, in Lancaster, UK. I’m a BIPOC lady originally from NYC and my shoppe manager Ben (whose face often graces the grid) is a q***r man from Lancashire. Together we look after a lovely wool (and stationery) shoppe in Lancaster that is a truly inclusive space with lots of goodness for crafters who love fibre, paper, pencil and ink on a range of budget options.

We are pretty sensitive souls and I allude to my discomfort around today being the 4th of July. 250 years of independence for white, male Americans and a lot less time of liberation for women and BIPOC people.

Generally though, I’m wittering on about my lovely little shoppe.

I tried to film this more times than I can count, and this felt like the best one. It ain’t polished but it gives you a glimpse into the shop and our general vibe.

Thanks for being a part of our community. 🫶🏽🫶🏽🫶🏽

26/06/2026

It’s hot as heck and this is take two. 🤭IYKYK🤭

Anyhoo, big boss Mel is home with lurgy and jet lag after her mega trip to Ozzzzzstralia. Ben and Emily are enjoying one last hurrah before she returns and they are inviting you down for a bit of knitting, crochet, and general crafting in public from 11-2 on Saturday 27 June. They had a blast for WWKIP day and thought they’d give it another go.

Also, New Street is quite cool as the museum obscures direct sunlight on the front of the shop, so if you fancy crafting outdoors with Em and Ben tomorrow… come on down!

Stay cool 😎 crafters!

🥰all of us at Ethel & Em

18/06/2026

So much newness in store we need to shout about… super summer wools including Ben-me-quer and Madragoa from Beautiful lightweight Awrwetta and Alva from New colours from in the beautiful sock wool Terra and finally baby yarns from both and .

I said finally… I lied… we have a new Acrylic DK from Jette has a fab palette, great meterage and comes in 50g balls…. Winning 🧶