Pontyclun yarn shop launches Caernarfon Cowl and daffodil blanket projects for festival’s 20th birthday
THE 20th anniversary of Wonderwool Wales has inspired a South Wales yarn shop to create two brand-new projects for knitters and crocheters ahead of the popular festival later this month.
Jenny Watts and Ruth Moore, who run Ammonite Yarns in Pontyclun, have designed a knitted Caernarfon Cowl and a crocheted octagonal blanket featuring plain and daffodil-themed granny hexagons.
The new patterns and yarn packs will be available at a special show price during Wonderwool Wales 2026, the UK’s largest wool, yarn, natural fibre and textile festival, which takes place at the Royal Welsh Showground, Llanelwedd, on April 25 and 26.
In a further boost for the event, the pair have announced that 10 per cent of sales from the patterns and yarn packs at the show will be donated to Wonderwool’s chosen charities — Wales Air Ambulance and NGO Molotok in Ukraine.
Jenny Watts said the designs were heavily influenced by Welsh tradition and the emotional connection many people feel to Welsh textiles.
“We’ve often thought that Welsh blankets are a tangible expression of the Welsh concept of hiraeth, evoking as they do a sense of place and nostalgia for a bygone way of life,” she said.
“These patterns and colours embody the culture and history of, and have a place in, modern homes as well as in the hearts of Welsh people.
“For us, Wonderwool Wales has a sense of hiraeth – it’s a comforting, safe place, a home from home for like-minded crafters with wonderful fibres as well as a good few sheep!”
The Caernarfon design is one of the best-known traditional Welsh blanket patterns, and the Ammonite Yarns team previously created a cushion featuring the design for Wonderwool in 2022.
“This year, for Wonderwool’s 20th anniversary, we wanted to design a wearable project in this iconic pattern and the Caernarfon Cowl is the result,” Jenny added.
The cowl uses two colours of four-ply yarn, with Jenny and Ruth choosing Cambrian yarn to complement the traditional Welsh blanket style. The piece is knitted in the round using stranded colourwork techniques.
Meanwhile, the crocheted blanket design draws inspiration from the daffodil — Wales’ national flower — and the arrival of spring. Yarn packs have been produced with enough wool to complete the blanket, but alternative layouts have also been provided for those wishing to make a wrap, shawl or stole.
A stole version will be displayed on the shop’s stand at the show and on the Sheepwalk. Yarn packs, including the pattern, will be available at a special show price of £49, or £5 for the pattern alone.
“Daffodils are synonymous with Wales, particularly at this time of year, so our crochet project is designed around the flower,” said Jenny.
“We did have a moment of doubt about the number of petals on a daffodil but checked them out at St Fagan’s Museum of Welsh Life and they do have six, so our hexi-grannies design is ideal!”
Ammonite Yarns was established in 2015 and specialises in sourcing and selling yarns, with a strong focus on British suppliers. The shop also runs classes for beginners, workshops for more advanced techniques and informal drop-in knitting and crochet groups.
Wonderwool Wales is regarded as one of the highlights of the crafting calendar, covering everything from raw fleece and hand-dyed fibres to finished textile art, clothing and home furnishings. The event attracts around 6,000 visitors and exhibitors from across the UK and overseas.
This year’s festival will feature more than 220 exhibitors, including around 30 new ones, with two travelling from Portugal and the Netherlands.
Tickets cost £16 per day or £30 for the weekend.
To book tickets for Wonderwool Wales and its Woolschools craft workshops, visit the Wonderwool Wales website.
