Learn a New Skill this Autumn

The leaves are turning colour, the days are getting shorter…what better way to prepare for winter than learning a few new skills with renowned designer and teacher Anniken Allis at one of our workshops?

anniken-workshop

Firstly on Tuesday 11th October we have Easy Lace Knitting.

A quick glance at the latest designs in the knitting magazines and online shows that Lace Knitting is more than just a skill – it’s an art form! Whilst it may look complicated, most lace patterns are made up of a handful of stitches which you probably already know. It’s not just for fancy shawls either – you can use lace to add a pretty border on some mitts, as a panel on a summery top, or even on socks and hats!

The workshop will teach you how to read the charts (which provide a visual aid to the written instructions), how to work the stitches and decreases required for lace knitting, how to add beads with a crochet hook, and how to shape within a lace pattern. It’s suitable for adventurous novice and intermediate knitters.

lace-knitting

Next up we have an exciting workshop teaching you how to knit Two Socks at a Time, on Tuesday 15th November.

Why would I want to do that, you might ask? Well, did you know that Second Sock Syndrome is rife among sock knitters? The joy of finishing the first sock is replaced by the weary feeling of having to repeat the whole process again. As a result, single socks linger sadly in the knitting bags of many a sock knitter! Beat it by learning how to knit two socks at a time, top-down, using circular needles. You can either use magic loop method or the two circulars method, whichever you are most comfortable with. We stock a dazzling array of sock yarns in the shop – from self striping, colour-shifting, to self-patterning!

Learn how to cast on and arrange your stitches onto the needles, how to work the heel flap, heel turn, and gusset, and all the other skills needed to knit a pair of socks in one go. (Please note, this workshop is suitable for adventurous and intermediate knitters who have knitted at least one pair of basic socks from the top down.)

socks

Both workshops cost £49 for the day, which includes Joyce’s delicious home-cooked lunch and teatime treats. For more information and to book please call 01626 836203, or email us at customerservices@spinayarndevon.co.uk

A little information about Anniken Allis…one of our most long standing teachers at Spin A Yarn, top knitwear designer Anniken specialises in lace knitting, which she loves to add beads to. Growing up in Norway, she learned to knit before she left primary school, knitting continental style. When she moved back to the UK, she resumed knitting, found a love for blogging (follow her adventures at Annis Knitting Blog), and started writing up her own patterns (we still have some of her earliest patterns here in the shop!).

Anniken taught herself lace knitting (and cables) by using online videos, books and magazines, and quickly realised that it was much easier to knit from charts. Her patterns are regularly published in national magazines such as Debbie Bliss, Knitscene, Interweave Knits, and she even achieved her goal of having a pattern published in Vogue Knitting!

vogue-knitting-anniken-cover

Anniken’s Lace Workshops

We’re very lucky here at Spin A Yarn to count one of the current top lace designers of the knitting world, Anniken Allis, as a great friend and well established workshop teacher.

Anniken AllisAnniken at SaY Fashion Show

vogue knitting anniken cover

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hailing from Norway, knitting is in Anniken’s blood – having learnt Continental knitting from a young age, she started designing patterns in her early 30s and her love affair with designing beautiful lace accessories and garments began. Now a published author (of Beaded Lace Knitting) and having had her work featured on the front of the highly respected US Vogue Knitting, we are thrilled that she regularly travels up from her home in beautiful Cornwall to continue teaching workshops with us – on everything from how to knit Continental style, to Norwegian ‘Selbu’ style mittens.

Lang Vinter Votter 1

Selbu Mittens

Candace Pattern by Anniken Allis

Candace Shawl

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anniken’s delicate and glamorous shawls feature novel stitch techniques, unusual cast-offs (and sometimes cast-ons!), and often beading… she teaches all of these techniques and more on her popular workshops here at Spin A Yarn, plus staple techniques of Scandi-style knitting patterns such as Continental Knitting style.

We’re very excited that Anniken will be teaching ‘How to Design a Crescent Shawl’ with us this summer, so if you have your heart set on designing your own glamorous lacy accessories, that will be the one for you!

If however you’re a beginner, then Easy Lace Knitting will get you started with the core skills you’ll need to master lace patterns, including the basic stitches and how to read lace charts.

Violetta Shawl

Violetta Shawl

We have a few spaces left on each of these workshops, so if you’d like to embark on making a gorgeous accessory with Anniken’s help and advice, do visit our Eventbrite booking page or give us a call on 01626 836203 to secure your place. These workshops cost £59 each and, run from 10am to 4pm.

Easy Lace Knitting, Weds 4th March 2020

Learn to Design a Crescent Shawl, Weds 27th May 2020

Learn Continental Knitting including Norwegian Purl, Weds 10th June 2020

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Free Pattern – Rowan Beaded Shawl

Rowan Free Shawl Pattern

To celebrate our Spring 2016 Newsletter, Rowan have shared with us a beautiful and very glamorous shawl pattern designed by Jennie Atkinson in one of our favourite yarns, Kidsilk Haze. It features all over lace and a crochet trim making it suitable for the more experienced knitter.

This design uses only 1 ball of Kidsilk Haze and 1 pack of 6mm Swarovski Aquamarine Selection Beads. This pattern has been translated into French, German & Swedish – you need only print the pages you need after downloading.

Rowan Free Shawl Pattern

Rowan Free Shawl Pattern

Click here to download: Rowan Swarovski Shawl by Jennie Atkinson

Make sure you share your photos with us if you make one!