This November, I will be headed to Minneapolis to teach three classes at Vogue Knitting Live! I’ll be flying solo on this trip, as Kate stays home to hold down the fort at one of our busiest times of year.
I’ll be teaching some of our all time favorite classes, and they are all color work focused. If you’ve been reluctant to try color work because you are intimidated. it’s time to take the plunge! Color work is fun and fairly simple, it just looks intimidating. If you can knit, you can do color work.
On Friday I’ll be teaching my favorite technique, Bohus Knitting.
The Swedish Bohus workshop, founded by Emma Jacobsson, is best known for its beautiful hand-knitted items made famous in the late 1930s through the ‘60s for their attention to detail, innovative design and color, and exacting standards of craftsmanship. Traditional Bohus patterns utilized a fine-weight angora and wool blend to create a gorgeous halo and tonal gradations of color. The addition of purl stitches and the sometimes third—or fourth or fifth—color per row opened up limitless design possibilities for the knitter. In this class we will learn a bit about the history of Bohus knitting, as well as the technique used to create its masterful effects. We’ll be using The Fibre Co. Road to China Light to knit sampler wrist warmers using the chart from the sweater above, and also – for the more daring – creating our own designs to swatch. This is a full day class, and there are just five spots left! Sign up here.
Saturday I’ll be teaching a full day color work workshop, perfect for those looking to learn new ways to add color to their knitting. Beyond Stripes covers a wide range of color work techniques, from simple stranded peeries and Fair Isle designs, to traditional Scandinavian patterns like Setesdal and Selbu, as well as Bohus, Roositud, Intarsia, and Embroidery. Beyond Stripes covers it all!
This is a full day class, and we cover a lot of fun material, including choosing colors. We expect trial and error, and the hope is that you will be encouraged to try something new and unexpected. I’ll be bringing The Fibre Co. yarn for all the participants to use in an assortment of colors and fibers. The sampler above uses The Fibre Co. Cumbria, Organik, Road to China Worsted, Canopy Worsted, and Terra.
Even if you are new to color work, this class is a great opportunity to get comfortable with the technique and get exposed to all the various ways to add color to your knitting. We will also cover techniques like tacking long floats, maintaining even tension, and two-handed color work. Sign up here!
Sunday morning, my final class is Roositud, an Estonian technique which adds color to your knitting as you work. Similar to embroidery, but done as you knit, Roositud is an inlay technique which is easy to do and looks quite impressive!
Using the Kelbourne Woolens pattern Lenten Rose by Kate Gagnon Osborn, we’ll use The Fibre Co. Road to China Light to knit a pair of wrist warmers, or mittens. This is a half day class, and students will leave equipped to tackle any roositud project they come across, from Kate’s three color inlay Yvette Roositud Beret, to more complex designs like Nancy Bush’s Aino Gloves from Folk Knitting in Estonia.
Sign up for Roositud Knitting here.
There will be a couple of Kelbourne Woolens and The Fibre Co. stockists in the marketplace at the show as well! Utah stockist Wasatch and Wool will be hosting the Arranmore Trunk Show for the event, and stockists Northfield Yarn, Amazing Threads, Linden Yarn, Darn. Knit. Anyways, StevenBe, Hank and Purls, and MORE will be in the marketplace.
I can’t wait to see everyone in Minneapolis! – Courtney