Inspiration
Put a Gromit on It
When I heard there would be a new Wallace & Gromit. External Link. Opens in new window. movie, I knew it was time to dust off the pattern I bought on etsy.
I had a multitude of patterns to choose from but, naturally, Gromit knitting a scarf won out. Why wouldn’t I knit a dog knitting a scarf for his cheese-loving friend?
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Gromit is one of the first characters I grew up with; and a knitter to boot. Plus, he just happens to be a boy—a good boy at that.
Before I knew of Kaffe Fassett and Josh Bennett, I had Gromit to look up to. His expressive eyes, endless patience, and knitting generosity captivated me. I knew the best way to honor this icon was to immortalize him forever on a sweater.
The pattern called for 16 colors in a DK. Thankfully, my local yarn shop, Yarn Bar. External Link. Opens in new window., has Glencoul DK, a springy, wool-cotton blend. A friend helped me obtain the discontinued dark brown I needed for Gromit’s ears. (Thanks, Jen!)
I chose a lovely green for the background, nodding to Wallace’s classic sweater vest. I’ve assumed Gromit has knit every one of them. (Spoiler warning: there’s a scene in the new movie where Norbot the Gnome knits Wallace a Wallace Onesie; how insulting to Gromit.)
I quickly swatched and designed a sweater vest for myself with a scoop neckline. I wanted the vest to feel vintage 1970s with the colors I’m using.
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I haven’t knit multi-color intarsia in a while, so I untangled bits and bobs with each color change. Yes, bobbins are useful; I thought I’d save time jumping in without them.
After some trial and error (and many stitch markers), Gromit and his knitting came to life. I ignored columns of only one stitch; I decided to duplicate stitch those later. I adjusted the knitting pattern to have Gromit knit wider stripes, and I added a wedge of cheese to the back of the vest for fun.
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Thankfully, it all finally came together before Rhinebeck. It was the perfect place to wear it. Knitting fans recognized the iconic knitter. It was wonderful meeting Ann and Kay while wearing this piece of knitting iconography.
I had plenty of black yarn left over so a miniature Feathers McGraw had to happen. I found the plushie pattern online, modified it a bit to knit the individual pieces in the round instead of flat, improvised a rubber glove, and the rest was history.
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The evilest supervillain came to life out of some simple yarn. I was ready to watch Wallace & Gromit with my vest, evil rooster, some cheese and crackers, and a strong cup of tea.
As for Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I was home on holiday with my family. My mother taught me how to knit, so I was grateful to view it with her.
We knitted and laughed along to the hijinks that ensued as Wallace relied on his invention Norbot the Robot Gnomes instead of on his friend Gromit, to make tea, garden, and even knit the Wallace Onesie. (Naturally, Feathers McGraw, the iconic villain from The Wrong Trousers, made his return and used his computer hacking skills to control the Norbot gnomes for his own evildoing.)
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As I knitted, I was reminded how special it is using my own two hands to create new objects. Wallace’s inventiveness comes from this place: making something special out of something ordinary.
While his inventions are meant to solve a problem, knitting creates opportunities for artistic expression, meditation, and thoughtfulness. Gromit represents Wallace’s groundedness in this regard. Gromit prefers using his trusty teapot over Wallace’s Tea-O-Matic.
Reflecting on Wallace’s over-reliance on technology in an age where AI is heralded as the future for business and artistic venture, I must ask: are we as a society dependent on invention when human innovation is what ultimately moves us forward? Wallace’s final invention saves the day—but it’s his ingenuity that averts chaos when his own inventions malfunction.
I’m grateful for tools to type this article, to organize my day, and to entertain my knitting sessions. But it’s the quiet, focused moments I hold dear: it’s where I feel the most creative and the most grounded.
In the end, taking a moment to reflect, think, and ask what I want for 2025 is much more helpful. Add some cheese and tea, and I’m ready for whatever inspiration strikes next.
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It’s great that you love our very English Wallace and Gromit! They are irresistible, with lots of ‘comments’ on British life in the sets. And the time it takes to make them is unbelievable. Carry on enjoying and designing.
Oh, this is wonderful, thank you Paul. Like many others, I love Wallace and Gromit – and that vest! Wow! Intarsia as it was meant to be! Many thanks.
Is it wrong that I have a Shaun the Sheep tattoo? (Don’t answer that.)
OMG! I don’t have a tatoo and always thought about what I would want it to be if I ever got the nerve to get one. Shaun the Sheep, of course!!! Brillant!
You are way behind the times…. my children had this picture on their knitwear 25 years ago!
Love it!
Brilliant!
Are you familiar with the Shawn the Sheep nuidbranch? It’s tiny little sea creature that when magnified looks like Shawn the Sheep. Finding and photographing them is a ‘thing’ in the SCUBA community (when you’re in the right part of the indo-pacifc area).
Wallace and Gromit? Thanks to you, I now know a little about these two. Beautiful vest!
Brilliant post! I recently watched the new Wallace & Gromit movie with my grandsons, and now you’ve inspired me to knit something related. I’m off to track down a pattern or two!
Can’t wait to see yours! Check out my Ko-Fi if you want to use my stripe version.
OMG! That vest is fantastic. I remember watching W&G with my kids who now have kids of their own. Love them so much. It’s a good time to reacquaint myself with this delightful pair. Thanks also for sharing your thoughts on creativity and innovation.
I love the vest but what I really want now is a jumpsuit like the one in that photo. I’ll have to work on that.
I also have a queer grandkid who I already made a green vest for but there may be a second in the making…… I love it and I think they would, too,
OMG! Saw the picture of your fab vest and broke into a mile wide smile! You made my day. Love your creativity and stick-to-it-ness. Hmmm, who does that remind one of? Can’t wait to see your next yarn adventure!
Love this!
Love Wallace and Gromit! Thanks for a fun post! I will never make the vest, but perhaps Feathers. I do have a stuffed Shawn the Sheep!
Thanks for making me smile! What a truly awesome vest!
Brilliant vest! I have the same pattern, but never thought to put the image on a different item. Hmmm… you’ve inspired me to think of other places where Gromit could be knitting. Maybe on a throw blanket for my son who adores those movies? Thank you!
Smiling, thumbs-up to all that you said. With tea and cheese!
Love to all.
What vest pattern did you use? Is it yours or online? I am looking for a vest pattern just like that and haven’t had much luck so far.
I self drafted mine, though a dk weight sweater would work best.
You beat me to it, I bought this pattern years ago and decided to make it a vest, thanks for the kick in the rear to make me finally do it!
So cool! I had to track down the pattern: https://archive.org/details/patons-gromit/page/n3/mode/2up. External Link. Opens in new window.
I’ve been thinking about making an old school intarsia sweater for the longest time. Maybe this is the push I needed.
Thank you for the link to the wonderful project!
Loved this article, like others it brought back memories of giggling with my kids over the exploits of Wallace and Gromit, on repeat.
Thank you!
Thank you so much for finding the pattern. It’s now in my queue too!!!!
This is so cool! I love that you made the villainous penguin too!
What a splendid way to close out a January that has led me to watch a crazy amount of Shaun the Sheep and Wallace and Gromit. It’s always so nice to watch thoughtful problems solvers who also have a wool or yarn connection. Many thanks Paul, and I aspire to visit Yarn Bar!
I love your vest! Wallace & Gromit are my people. I watch Curse of the Were-Rabbit with my bunny, Charlie, regularly.
Your article is inspiring. Teaches us to not accept limits and make something our own. I loved that you searched for the perfect brown too for Gromit’s ears. And the rubber glove cracked me up.
Thank you for sharing this. Knit On!
That is so fantastic! I love it.
Just watched the movie, so this post is timely! Gromit to the rescue!
I have never watched this show, so I am going to put it on my list! And the vest is adorable. I always enjoy your writings.
I do do that ok
Brilliant!
I had just read some bad news, then clicked on this email and link. What a much needed cheer-me-up. Wallace, Gromit, a new movie, knitting, colorwork, yarn and a bit of life philosophy. Thank you so much.
What a wonderful homage to W&G and the amazing creative team who gave them to us
Love the Gromit
Both the Grommit vest and Feathers McGraw are fabulous! I enjoyed your commentary too. I had fun checking out your patterns on Ravelry. Wow! I love Hearsay, Fearless, and Stellar and the brioche shorts look like the comfiest shorts eeeveerrr. Thanks for sharing your designs with us. I love your designs.
Cute as all get out, and the cheese is the perfect touch!!!
Are you going to publish that pattern, Paul? I am enchanted! I searched for it in Ravelry to no avail.☹️.
Hi Judith,
You can find the chart above with the archive.org link for the original. Or you can head to my Ko-Fi, https://ko-fi.com/paulhaesemeyer. External Link. Opens in new window., if you’d like my version of the chart.
You are way behind the times…. my children had this picture on their knitwear 25 years ago!
Thanks so much for sharong your inspiration, so so clever!! Will tbere be a pattern?
Fabulous! I’ve adored Wallace and Grommet for decades. This is simply delightful. (And the cheese —-perfection!)
Beautiful congratulations you good with needles love it from Marie wa
Awesome knitting project but most of all I like your thoughtful message about balancing our reliance on technology with an appreciation of our awesome ability to create with our hands and heart. Thank you!
Absolutely LOVE your creations!!! Very well done!!! (love the chunk of cheese – really cute addition!)
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and creations – they give us all inspiration ❤️
A wonderful shout-out to Gromit, the most unappreciated of knitters who always saves the day…..and Wallace. Love the vest…..”Ooooh I do like a piece of Wensleydale” which I’m sure is what you have put on the back, probably with apricots in it.
Have you discovered Aardman’s other wool related animation? Shaun the Sheep?
I love Shawn the Sheep!
Wonderful! Brought back my own memories and inspired me!
Fabulous, and great for all Grommit fans! What a laugh!
We just saw the Wallace & Gromit exhibit with Shaun the sheep at THE HENRY FORD MUSEUM today through April 20.
I believe I saw you at Rhinebeck wearing this vest! I asked if I could take a picture of you because my children are such Wallace and Gromit fans! Thank you!
THANK YOU!! I adore Wallace and Gromit and have memories of watching with my son when he was young. He’s now a father to two boys of his own and I hope he’ll share Wallace and Gromit with them some day. Your vest is amazing! Kudos!!
Great stuff! (I love intarsia.) But how about more info about making the evil fowl.
Would like copy of pattern of Grommet knitting scarf. please let me know about any other fun patterns. Thanks
Oh my goodness I had forgotten that grommet is a knitter! I haven’t seen those since I was a kid. Your vest is perfection. Almost inspired enough to intaria now, almost
Hey , well done you! I too got carried away on the theme and did two postboxtopper s a Feathers and a Wallace and Gromit garden scene. I will make a vest too. Great job!