About 490 Knits

Hello there!

My name is Jensen and I am the creator behind 490 Knits.

I am currently a student that loves to create and design.

The journey that has led to 490 Knits has been that of a life time. From a young age, I have been surrounded by family and friends who are knitters, weavers, crocheters, felters, spinners, and other kinds of fibre artists. My love for yarns, textures, and colours has mainly been influenced by my mom as she is an avid knitter and designer who makes luxurious garments.

Growing up, I would watch mom knit and I would wear what she made. My interest piqued when I got to go with my mom and grandma to their fibre art group. A group of lovely ladies would sit around a table on Tuesday nights and do their hand craft, be it knitting, crocheting, spinning yarn, weaving etc. It led to fun conversation about their lives, the people they cared for, and the projects they worked on. The group no longer comes together, but the ladies still stay in touch with each other and practice their fibre art.

When growing up, Mom would go to yarn stores whenever we would travel and I’d slug along because the alternative of sitting in the car or going to a car-parts store with Dad was far less appealing. I used to find it boring being in these quiet stores but as mom started to bring me into the projects she was working on, things got interesting. I would help her pick colours of yarns for things that she wanted to knit. But what I learned from this design process was how truly luxurious something can be just based on what yarn and supplies you use. Mom would also buy magazines to add to her growing collection and we would talk about what was in these books of patterns. This process really shaped my understanding of style, structure and design in knit garments. Mom and I would even flip through the magazines on our own and then trade books and attempt to guess which garments the other person liked. Through this game we learned that we had the same preference of patterns and styles simply because she had trained my eye to know what looked pleasing and flattering in the world of knitwear.

All my life, she has knit me wonderful garments that are truly gorgeous and luxurious. I have a hat stand full of amazing shawls and scarves that she has knit and I truly cherish them. Words don’t describe the elegance or the grace that each piece carries. When I wear her shawls out in public, I get compliments on them, and I say, “my mom made it” every single time. As I write this, I am wearing her most recent knit for myself. What she makes is truly luscious and it has inspired me to make my own line of garments that are equally luxurious. My goal is to be able to create and share garments that display the luxury of knitting.

In the making of this business, we were brainstorming names and she mentioned 490 Knits. Four-ninety is the township road that I grew up on with my family in rural Saskatchewan. It figuratively and literally takes me to the place that sparked the fibre artist inside me.

Welcome to 490 Knits!