He’ll weave his way into your heart.
A TikTok heartthrob is going viral for his impressive knitting skills and “breaking stereotypes.”
Inked-up Jude Moore, 26, learned to knit after being sent to live with “his nan” for being a “naughty kid” when he was younger — and he’s kept up the hobby ever since.
“I’m definitely breaking stereotypes. People look at me and think ‘He looks like a proper geezer,’ but I’m sitting there knitting and listening to ’80s tunes,” Moore, of Essex, England, told South West News Service. “They get confused.”
One minute, he’s fixing his motorcycle, and the next, he’s in bed — knitting.
“I say I spend a good eight to 10 hours a week knitting. I do a lot of gym and a lot of boxing, too, so I’m always busy,” said Moore, who claimed the craft has calmed his anxiety and agoraphobia. “But knitting is more of a hobby, and it’s good for my mental health, too. It’s very therapeutic.”
An Essex, England, man has become a TikTok sensation after sharing his knitting hobby online.SWNSBut his favorite pastime has more benefits than he bargained for. Being handy with some needles and yarn has earned him amorous admirers on TikTok.
One clip, in particular, has amassed more than 1 million views, with thousands of comments from gaggles of newfound fans who crowned him as the perfect boyfriend.
“I’d rather my man be knitting than messaging other girls, at least you know where he is and what he’s up to,” one person wrote.
One of his clips has garnered over 1 million views, with commenters gawking at both his abilities and looks.SWNS“Knitting is more of a hobby, and it’s good for my mental health, too,” said Moore. “It’s very therapeutic.”SWNS“I think you’re brilliant, there should be more men out there like you … [at] least he would keep you warm in winter with the blankets he knits … love it,” another smitten user gushed.
Other lovestruck fans simply wrote, “i’m in love,” “he’s beautiful ?” and “what a cutie.”
‘Life’s short — who cares what people think?’Unfortunately for heart-eyed fans, he’s taken.
“My girlfriend loves it, I’ve taught her how to knit. We’ve knitted together a couple of times,” he told SWNS. “I can imagine us, when we get our own place, sitting together in the evening and knitting. Over lockdown, when she was at mine most of the time, I’d be knitting every night in bed and she’d be next to me watching.”
While he doesn’t know why people are “so fascinated” by his videos, it “wows” him that a million people want to see him knit.
“When I read the comments on my TikToks, I see a lot of people saying they’ve never seen it before,” he said. “If I’d never picked up knitting needles in my life and I saw a geezer doing it, I would think ‘That’s random, that’s weird, but it’s cool.’ “
The heartthrob has the internet smitten, despite having a girlfriend.SWNS“I’m definitely breaking stereotypes. People look at me and think ‘He looks like a proper geezer,’ but I’m sitting there knitting and listening to ’80s tunes,” he said.SWNSHe has hopes that his knitting will catch on with other guys who want to pick up a crafty skill.
“I want to make it a thing where young boys will make their little girlfriends a jumper or something,” he said.
“I’d say to people to do what makes them happy,” he continued. “Life’s short — who cares what people think?”
When he was 18, there was “no way” he would have been comfortable enough in himself to take up knitting, saying that it’s “all a part of growing up.” Now, he even ditches time with friends to sit at home and knit something new.
“I’d say to people to do what makes them happy,” Moore said. “Life’s short — who cares what people think?”SWNS“Sometimes I’ll get texts from my friends saying, ‘If you’re knitting, come out!’ and I’ll just be like, ‘Nah, I’m just chilling!’ ” he said, adding that his friends support his craft. “I get myself a teapot — I only drink tea out of teapots — take my tea upstairs, put on my ’80s classic playlist and get knitting.”
“I reckon I should have been born in the ’50s or ’60s and been in my late-20s or 30s during the ’80s,” continued Moore, whose mother agreed that he should have been born “in a different era.”
“Men wouldn’t have been knitting back then, but I would have been breaking stereotypes,” he added.
The time during lockdown at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic was really when Moore focused on honing his knitting abilities, first making a scarf for his niece. Now, he’s nearly finished with a bed runner.
“I’m not the best knitter. I can make the sleeves and torso of a jumper, but it’s knitting it together that is tricky,” he admitted. “But it’s all about learning and progress.”
