Is it me or has someone else had problems. I went onto email the day before yesterday in the morning to ask a question about decreasing, it had not been worded very well, I only heard back yesterday evening. I was so cross. I fiddled about and eventually got my head round it but the yarn is alpaca and wool and there are two yarns fixed to goether with a slight silk (I think) stitch so I didn’t want to mess about with the wool.
I was always taught that if you were in business, customers know best, and they could at 4 oclock on Friday emailed me and said we have early closing on Friday but we will be back as soon as possible on Monday. etc. etc. Now I would be pushed to buy a king cole pattern. I live in Spain and this would happen if you were dealing with a spaniard but I always thought that English people were polite. I see that there have several complaints about King Cole. Do they know about it?
Sadly, some large companies don’t always operate as politely or even efficiently as they should. Even an automated email response would have let you know that there would be no answer until after the weekend.
I’m sorry for your bad experience. Thankfully, not all companies have such poor customer service. Stay away from the ones that do, let them know that you’re unhappy and deal with someone better.
I don’t think culture has anything to do with this situation. It sounds like they need both an automated response and maybe a few other people to answer questions. It takes time to thoughtfully write out an answer so that it can be understood.
You can ask your questions in Knitting Help and we can try and help. Occasionally all we can do is suggest you write the designer, but mostly we can help.
Hi Jan it was only later that I remember this forum. I have to say its an excellent forum and will definitely try you out next time!! Anne. PS I find it slightly difficult to understand the outlay of the forum but will get into it sooner or later
Yes, the new forum is a learning curve. Use the three lines at the upper right by your avatar and it opens up a small window where you can choose categories and even threads that have comments or questions. Here’s some other info-
Latest - is all the latest comments in all threads
New - is only new topics/lquestions
Unread - is all unread posts clear back to the beginning of time…errr the forum. I avoid that one.
I reluctantly bought another King Cole pattern a few weeks ago. I’ve been knitting for more than 50 years but their pattern instructions baffle me. But I was desperate to complete something for a special occasion. Am still contacting a friend to translate instructions for me. Never again will I buy theirs.
Try looking at patterns on Ravelry. There is always a chance something won’t be written well, but the wealth of patterns makes it less likely. Many are free, too.
Hi Jan,so kind of you to email me. I finished the front of the king Cole jumper, looks really nice except I am doing a guessing game for my daughters size although I did ask her but as I say it looks nice. What they also did was …the pattern is either extra long with a round neck or normal with polo. So of course I was knitting the normal and round neck. I just hope it comes out OK. Yes you are right ravelry patterns are OK, I knit two before this one. You see I live in spain and all my knitting and sewing box is in storage - everything so I have to buy new needles etc. Although I found a charity shop although it is a bit of a way from us although no patterns there are needles but now too late. I bought a pin for saving stitches the like I have never seen before?
The ravelry pattern I messed about with too. Just up the road there is a factory that has second hand clothes, its supposed to be a charity but don’t believe it.they sort the good from the bad. The bad gets sent a way and is made into paper, the rest is sorted into trousers, jackets, shirts,blouses etc and people go and buy lots and sell in huge piles on stalls i havent seen anything more than 5 euros. and that is where i get the wool from. The first one was a mohair jumper which was off the shoulder pale blue obviously knitted for someone but for whatever reason it had gone to the recycling I washed and dried it and used a ravelry pattern except I used white mohair for a winter pattern scene at the bottom. The second was an old mohair cardigan of mine at least 40 years old. I washed it and knitted the same pattern and substituted westie dogs. The one I am knitting now is a coat knitted full length ( off the market think it was 3 or 5 euros)I pulled back surprising easy, I think is alpaca and wool its very very soft and in two strands so you have to be careful. There is enough for two jumpers. I also have another red mohair from a red mohair jumper waiting in the side lines. So yes I am in the thick f it. I dont knit more than 6 rows as day as it hurts my shoulder as usual and hope my daughter appreciates it. She lives just down the road from king Cole in Wakefield.
Thanks for the tip. Now I know where everyone is on the net if I get stuck i will add a message but hopefully if I don’t rush I will be OK. But I won’t use a king Cole pattern again. Just as a note you know in spain you can only knit from a book its very expensive but wool is fairly cheap as the Chinese sell what you want…
I never got a reply from my email to king Cole by the way.
Same with me about 50 years maybe its our age or the Yorkshire accent. We always have a laugh about english slang and accents in englad and i often send my friend in Valencia ones he should remember…in Yorkshire its “ay up” when you want to say something and when my daughter went to work in Wakefield not far from Skipton she said and yes mum they actually say “ay up” she said she’d nearly collapsed laughing and yes she is getting a Yorkshire accent.I guess you are in the states as I am in spain but if you need any help two heads are better than one…there we go another saying. I am still pretty annoyed about king Cole wonder if you asked after I blasted them lol.
Thank goodness we know about the forum now and ravelry as you see I usually get a basic pattern and then mess about with it. I am hoping to finish this for Xmas but I am getting a sore shoulder blade so pacing myself.
Let us know how you get on with the translation. I wish I had known about the forum as I had seen a pattern with a slash neck but like you I needed it to be translated as the sizes were really odd anyway she will have to make do with a funnel neck…(I think lol). Where do you live?
As you can read we only have books to buy. Just for one pattern it’s mad. There is a lady who has a shop and there are always knitters there as I discovered in Wakefield but spain beats anyone hands down with "stuff " to decorate clothes. I have an absolute field day. Spain is very Chinese orientated with anything and everything. Well I am off tomtge beach but if you need any help shout or we will both shout help tomjan hi anne
Anne you did make me laugh! I’ve been in Bradford 22 years, love
Yorkshire folk. But KC patterns - who do they get to write them! Will
be in touch if there’s owt to ask. Xx
You never know who you talk to I had a sort of aunt and uncle in Bradford they lived in odsal. We met them when I was a bout. 8 on a boat up the Thames. We used to write every Christmas but came to spain and no Christmas card so I assumed she had died but as the years went by I thought maybe she didn’t she would be in her 90s annyway. I have been to the cinema museum!!
Ay well las her gotta laugh now and then yer know, there is so much going on in spain and england. We have been stuck with the euro against the pound going down, we are having to be careful with our money. What do you think of the markets? I used to think I’m not going to buy from a second hand stall. But the wool really surprised me or maybe I was lucky. There are even second hand lace table clothes stalls etc but never what you want.
King Cole is in Skipton I think but funnily enough we were over about 6 weeks ago and looked for wool there and never saw a shop all.
Maybe it’s young uns who write the patterns. I was wondering what to do with 2 balls of white mohair but its so thin, when I knit my westies I used double. What are you knitting now…for Xmas?
I am not sure whether this is an american or uk forum but keep in touch as if you go on the forum we get notification.
One last thing when my daughter moved to Wakefield (she works for t17and checks video games for mistakes) we all thought oh no its up in the sticks ( we come from Kendal!) But how friendly people are I haven’t asked her whether she will go back to London though!! Kendal has attracted so many off comers they think they are a bit above the locals don’t think we will move back there when its time. Its excellent health care, people are so kind and the history is fantastic but they have an accent its Catalan with a bit of castillion so sometimes its difficult tonunderstasnd but we get by. Nice chalking to you I am sure we I’ll talk again. Tell me the pattern your doing too pls. Anne in gandia
