Photographing Your Knitting Projects with Trader Joe's

How do you take better photos of your knitting projects? Today I’m sharing why you might care about photographing your knitting projects, and how to do it on the cheap. Better knitting photography doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive, and it can start with a quick run to your grocery store.

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Why does photographing your knitting projects matter?

Us knitters put so much into knitting our projects: choosing the right yarn, swatching, frogging, and even blocking.

Often times we share what we knit with our friends: a photo to your sister, to your knitting Facebook group, or in your Instagram stories for the whole knitting community to enjoy. Whatever your reason, if you want to share what you made in the best light, photographing your knitting projects matters.

When knitting photography seems complicated

As easy as it seems to snap a picture of your knit socks the moment they’re off the needles, your amazing knitting project is hard to capture at 9 pm on a couch cushion under a lamp.

Not even Andrea Mowry’s work would look its best if she photographed it on the carpet after dark!

While there are other small changes you can make to take better knitting photos, I want to start with photo props.

Trader Joe’s photo props

So many of my designing and Etsy selling friends have said photographing their knitting projects is their least favorite thing to do. Why? It just seems like a lot of work!

And so they rush through it, or they spend money to outsource the whole thing. But it doesn’t have to be as complicated as it looks from the outside!

All it takes is a trip to the grocery store, and you’re already headed there!

I love shopping at Trader Joe’s. It’s pretty cheap and a great way for my whole family to eat their veggies packaged up as snacks! But what’s really great about TJ’s is the little known secret: they have really great (and cheap) photo props!

For just a few extra dollars, you can find gorgeous seasonal blooms that are also great quality. But there’s more from Trader Joe’s that I always snag for photographing my knitting projects.

Photos of your knitting in every season is so simple when Trader Joe’s does the work of restocking for you!

Flowers

The first and obvious choice are flowers.

At my store, they’re right where you walk in, and sometimes even just outside the door.

My favorites are bunches of Baby’s Breath. They’re a gorgeous and crisp white, which always brightens up any photo. They also dry out really well and I’ve used them 6 months later before buying a new bunch.

I love buying flowers that I can repurpose at home. Baby’s Breath ends up in empty vases around the house while they dry out.

Eucalyptus is another favorite, because it adds a muted and soft green to your knitting photography. Once you’re done, hang the branch upside down in the shower to release a relaxing natural smell whenever you run a hot shower.

Note: eucalyptus is sticky, so be careful with your hands. I’ve never had stickiness get on my knitting projects, but if you’re worried you can lay it next to your yarn or in a vase.

Trader Joe’s also has really nice seasonal flowers, like daffodils and tulips in spring. This is a fun way to add color to your pictures (and home) at the start of spring when your flowers might not have bloomed yet!

>>Check out my knitting photography playlist here.

Cinnamon rolls

I’ll be honest, my heart belongs to cinnamon rolls.

Okay, obviously an over-reaction, but I do love weekend mornings with my family and fresh, warm cinnamon rolls coming out of the oven.

Any chance I get, I add cinnamon rolls to my knitting photos. Why? There’s something about a skillet full of warm cinnamon rolls that jumps out of the picture. It could also be pancake bread, muffins, or cookies. Whatever your thing is, food from the bakery evokes all of our senses and elevates the whole picture. Just don’t get icing on your socks!

Candles

Did you know Trader Joe’s sells candles? They do!

Near the hand soap and fruit and veggie wash, they typically have seasonal candles which actually smell good and are pretty cheap! They’re not gigantic, but for for photographing your knitting projects plus a few more burns, it’s a really cheap and cozy element to pair with your knitting.

My favorite scent is their Honeycrisp Apple in the fall.

Note: don’t set your yarn on fire! Obviously, please make sure any lit candle isn’t near yarn or any other props.

Hot pad

This is one that only comes around a few times a year, but if you can snag a hot pad, do!

The wool felt poms are sewn together to make a functional and gorgeous hot pad to include in your knitting photos.

I got mine around Christmas, but I’ve gifted a summery one to my sister, too. Both are really pretty. Plus, if you go the cinnamon rolls or other baked goods route, you’ll probably have a hot skillet to set down.

I use this hot pad all the time, but whenever photographing my knitting projects, I offset it underneath the large skillet so you can see a layer of pretty wool peeking out.

Coffee

You can get coffee anywhere, but pick up an extra bag when you’re at Trader Joe’s. It tastes so good (you can grind it in the store!) and coffee and knitting always go together in photographing your knitting projects.

Iced coffee, coffee pods for a Keurig, and regular ground coffee are always good to have on hand.

If you want your warm drink to look really tasty next to your yarn, add their whipped cream and sprinkle on some cinnamon and nutmeg.

Photographing your knitting projects feels like “you”

Depending on your personality and what you’re knitting, you might not want to include all of these products when you’re photographing your knitting projects. But I really want to emphasis the simplicity of finding props at the grocery store that can add a feeling of “wish I was knitting with you” to your knitting photos.

When I first started off selling my knitwear on Etsy as SparklyTwig, I thought all good backgrounds had to come from Amazon or Menards, and that all of my photo props needed to be off in a drawer only to come out when I was taking product photos.

But when you find these special, yet everyday items for your photos, it’s totally authentic because you’re working with stuff you actually use and feels like “you.” No stashing props until next time, and no outsourcing the whole thing to someone else. You get to choose what you think highlights your knitting project!

Taking pictures of your knitting projects can be so fun! And for whatever reason you choose to share them, it’s nice to know how to take a really quality photo that highlights stitches and your hard work.