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Come out and spend the day in beautiful Rappahannock County, just 90 minutes from Washington, DC. Learn fair isle knitting techniques from renowned author, designer and knitwear teacher Tanis Gray, and dyeing from Jennifer Heverly, owner of Spirit Trail Fiberworks. Enjoy lunch in Sperryville, VA, which offers several excellent dining options.
9 am – 12 pm: Fair Isle Knitting with Tanis Gray.
Freaked over Fair Isle? Curious about stranded colorwork techniques? Intimidated by multiple strands of yarn in multiple colors? Not sure how gauge works or how to trap those floats? This is the workshop for you! We’ll cover basic Fair Isle knitting techniques for English, Continental and Combination knitters, tackle common issues, proper technique, how to trap floats, Latvian braids, Fair Isle history and set good Fair Isle knitting habits. We’ll put everything we learned into practice and knit an exclusive unisex Fair Isle cowl designed in Spirit Trail Fiberworks yarn for this workshop by instructor Tanis Gray. This 3-hour class is open to all levels, but participants should be comfortable casting on, joining and knitting in the round.
Materials:
• 1 Hank each Spirit Trail Fiberworks Luna (3.8oz/110g ea approx. 200yds/182m, 100% non-shrink wool). Colors used in original sample are Good Vibrations (MC, blue) and Christine (CC, pink). This is included in the workshop fee and will be sent to participants prior to the workshop, in order to complete homework (detailed below).
Participants should bring the following:
• Size US 7 (4.5mm) 24” Circular Knitting Needle
• Stitch Markers
• Tapestry Needle
Homework:
• With MC using Twisted German CO method CO 120 sts. Join into round being careful not to twist stitches, place marker for beginning of round. (Twisted German Cast On: http://tinyurl.com/j5ob6ws)
12 pm – 2 pm: Lunch break. Attendees are on their own for lunch, with multiple options within walking distance of Jennifer’s studio.
2 pm – 5 pm: Yarn Dyeing with Jennifer Heverly
Learn dye techniques to dye two skeins of yarn to use in colorwork projects. In this workshop, attendees will join Jennifer Tepper Heverly to learn the basics of dyeing yarn, and will dye two skeins of yarn using two different techniques: kettle dyeing and speckling to create the perfect contrasting yarns for colorwork projects.
It's recommended that participants wear dark clothing, and / or clothing you don't mind getting stained, or bring an apron to protect your clothes. Dye has a way of getting on things (especially where you don't want it!). We use dyes for protein fibers (wool, silk, cashmere and other animal fibers) and it is typically removable from non-animal fibers (cotton, linen, synthetics with the exception of rayon) but some slight staining may remain even after washing.
Because I prefer to let yarns cool slowly overnight for the best results, finished yarns will be dried and then mailed to participants the week after the workshop.
Participants must be 18 years of age or older to participate in this full-day workshop.