Published 1st Feb 2024, 06:00 GMT

So she set up a small Yorkshire business called Wee Woolly Wonderfuls, with a whole world of knitted giraffes, to create simple crochet kits with their own guided tutorials.

It has boomed after lockdowns, with sales almost doubling as more people embrace mindful crafts.

Now supported on Amazon Handmade, there is no sign of it slowing.

Lisa Dobbs set up Wee Woolly Wonderfuls when her son was born, taking a step back from her career as a mortgage advisor to create crochet kits part time. It has boomed - more than doubling its turnover in lockdown and with no sign of slowing since it was picked up by Amazon Handmade. Picture Bruce Rollinson

"I absolutely love crafts and crochet, I've done it since I was a child," she said.

“I never imagined it would grow to this. It's just catapulted.”

Mrs Dobbs, a former mortgage advisor aged 51, set up the venture in 2017 as she looked to spend more time with her son Ryan, and less time working evenings and weekends.

But instead of a part time role the business has grown so much husband Paul now backs it full time, and they've taken on a helper and with new premises in Hull too.

Lisa Dobbs set up Wee Woolly Wonderfuls. There are penguins, and reindeer, and witches, all handmade, and kits to create your own from scratch, and mountains of wool that is wound by hand. Picture Bruce Rollinson

"I've always been quite creative," she said. "My mum taught me to crochet when I was little.

"It's that satisfaction of making something with your own hands. You can switch off from all your stresses. And when you complete it, there is a sense of achievement."

Ryan is now aged 11, with his own crochet kit named after him in the shape of a reindeer.

There are witches, bunnies and penguins and a bear, and now new knitting kits.

The venture has grown from shipping 20 kits a week to 100 a day some days in the run up to Christmas.

And while it started off slowly, as soon as they started getting good reviews it just bloomed - more than a third of their sales now come through Amazon Homemade.

Each kit is put together by hand, based on Mrs Dobbs own pattern designs, with mountains of wool wound by hand and guided tutorials on YouTube.

The small company's Facebook page has its own "lovely" community, she said, where people share tips and pictures.

There has been a culture shift, she said, in the way people embraced their hobbies in lockdowns but have since started to search out new crafts.

"People are looking for something mindful," she said.

"They are changing, from watching TV and screens and wanting to do something more creative."

And when it comes to the business, she added, there is nothing lovelier than knowing she is sharing a skill which will stay with people for the rest of their lives.

"People have learned to crochet with us, and they absolutely love it," she said. "It's nice to be able to give that gift, a craft or a hobby.

"I enjoy it so much - I'm doing something I love which not many people are lucky enough to do."

How a Yorkshire mum's knitting hobby turned to incredible business success with adorable crochet kits