Fair isle knitting may look complicated, but knitting expert lynne watterson lays out the basics in a way that is easy to follow and understand. That makes this a great technique to use for small colorwork patterns on bags, sweaters, socks, and other projects where the back side doesnt show. Were all familiar with the gorgeous knitted fair isle sweaters, but heres a little secret for our bluprint crocheters. For that is where, in a chain of islands called shetland, our beloved fair isle knitting was born. I love it for checking the complexity of my hand knit projects. The type of yarn you would normally use for fair isle knitting. The best yarns for fair isle knitting knitting interweave. Stranded colorwork originating in scandinavia norway, sweden, denmark, and finland is very different. You have essentially lifted the left hand color over the right. How to catch floats in fair isle knitting floats get especially long if your pattern has too many stitches between one color change and the next.
Made famous by knitwear from fair isle, one of the islands of scotland, the fair isle technique is one form of stranded colorwork. In this definitive guide, expert knitting designer and bestselling author monica russel teaches you the essential skills of this. Buy alice starmores book of fair isle knitting dover knitting, crochet, tatting, lace green ed. Put your needle into the stitch and under the yarn on the left hand. Fair islestranded knitting tutorial the spruce crafts.
Oct 11, 2017 in this video i demonstrate a couple of ways to carry floats in fair isle knitting. The first two garments were purchased by bbr which were knitted on fair isle. May 09, 2017 this looks like a really fun project, and the authors have included a little tutorial about how to deal with long floats, too, which is one of the challenges lots of fair isle knitting projects. Fair isle knitting makes a nice warm fabric because all those floats add extra bulk and warmth. Carry your yarn in the hand that you are most comfortable with. Fair isle is typified by its use of symmetrical geometric motifs, twoply shetland yarn, and muted, sophisticated colors. Why fair isle sweaters have a threeyear waiting list conde. Fair isle knitting has been replicated worldwide but the. Your tips and techniques have opened up a whole new world of knitting for me, and im grateful beyond words. But then again, my fair isle knitting tension is always much much looser than single color knitting, and for me personally i always get better results by going down in needle size.
The first photo shows a vest where the columned steek is turned under and sewn down with blanket stitch. Fair isle knitting has a timeless appeal, and is celebrated all over the world for its beautiful patterns and distinctive motifs. The writing is engaging and witty, and i loved reading about the history of shetland and fair islethe place, not just the technique. Using just two colours in each row you can create a myriad of different patterns that are deceptively easy to achieve. Jan 15, 2014 youve seen floats on the back side of fair isle knitting before, no doubt, but heres a pic for you.
Advanced approaches to slipstitch colorwork knitting. Fair isle knitting and how to trap the floats youtube. When you have a pattern that calls for long floats the strand of yarn that you carry behind the color youre knitting with at any one time, its. For the knitter whose primary style of knitting is left handed or european both colors can be carried on the left hand. Alice starmores book of fair isle knitting by alice. Picking back up with the beginning to knit series, lets talk about colorwork specifically, stranded or fair isle knitting. Many people use the term fair isle when they mean stranded knitting, and this is inaccurate. How to catch your floats in fair isle knitting instructional article our very own jeanne stars in this knitting instructional article about how to catch your floats in fair isle knitting. An exclusive dover interview alice starmore has a fascinating tale to tell. Floats are not usually caught because their colors runs are never more than 5 to 7 stitches. Fair isle knitting for all your art book, craft book and. But even or especially if youve been knitting a long time and have never done it, its time. How to use designaknit to check floats in fair isle.
Stepbystep techniques, easytofollow stitch patterns, and projects to get you started by lynne watterson isbn. Looking for easy fairisle knitting patterns and colorwork. What you didnt know you needed to know after youve read through a few tutorials and books and selected your first pattern and are ready to begin, here are a few tips that id like to pass along which i hope youll get the chance to read before knitting your first sweater. Our experts have got for you some top tips, ways to avoid the pitfalls and the 6 best ways to make sure your finished fair isle knitting is smooth and lies flat. Colorwork patterns for firsttimers fringe association. One of the rookie mistakes when knitting fair isle for the first few times is to pull the yarn floats the strands between the stitches knit in a given colour tightly across the back of the work, which can compress the gauge of the fair. While fair isle crochet patterns dont always follow the same design standards as their knitting counterparts, why should knitters have all the fun. Alice starmores book of fair isle knitting dover knitting. The reason most peoples stranded work winds up being tighter than singlecolor work is that their floats are too short and it pulls on the back of the work. This allows you to carry the yarn you arent knitting with across the back of the work as you go.
Why fair isle sweaters have a threeyear waiting list. May 04, 2011 how to catch your floats in fair isle knitting. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. How to catch your floats in fair isle knitting instructional. All you need are a few simple projects to get your feet wet, and then the world of fair isle knitting is your proverbial oyster. Managing long floats in fair isle knitting interweave. Knitting tips and tricks for colour work beginners. Overall, youll do better with any of a number of other books dealing in fair isle technique and motifs, including the art of fair isle knitting gorgeous. Jun 22, 2011 how to catch fair isle floats on the purl side.
In this video i demonstrate a couple of ways to carry floats in fair isle knitting. Fair isle is a very specific type of stranded knitting from fair isle, a tiny island in the north of scotland and part of the shetland islands. Fair isle knitting and how to trap the floats nancy wynn. Alice starmores book of fair isle knitting one thought on floating away.
Alice starmores book of fair isle knitting is a musthave resource for the serious knitter. You can carry yarn for stretches longer than 5 or 7 stitches, but pushing the traditional limits requires that you catch the float. How to catch fair isle floats on the purl side instructional. By using two or more colors and basic knitting skills, you can achieve stunning fabric that gives the impression of requiring much more advanced skills and timeconsuming work than it really does. How to weave in ends like a pro sheep among wolves. Bought the fairisle ebook from liat gatknitfreedom i can really recommend it to anyone who is new to fairisle knitting. Knitting assistant freddie patmore demonstrates how to get your fair. I arrived on fair isle, in scotlands shetland islands, intent upon buying a sweater. Learn how to carry and trap the floats while knitting your fair isle pieces. This is my first time working fair isle on a purl side. Sep 05, 20 knitting fair isle two yarns in right hand catching floats i like to do twocolour knitting holding both yarns in my right hand as this feels more comfortable to me rather than the twohand.
Ive admired fair isle to the extent of having bought alice starmores fair isle knitting as one of the first knitting books i bought in the late 1980s. Tips for stranded knitting floats at the back of your knitting in stranded fair isle knitting source by hellomandybee victory baret. However, there are times when fair isle and other color work is done flat and with longer color runs. For this project it is necessary to weave in some of the long stranded floats when you are working the other color. There are several ways to deal with floats on the back of your knitting. You will pick up each strand as you need it and this leaves a strand or float of yarn on the back side of the work. In fair isle knitting, only 2 colors are used per round and yarn is carried for a limited number of stitches across the back of the work. It works similar to carrying floats on stranded knitting.
Fair isle knitting has been replicated worldwide but the genuine article can only be found on the three. Jun 29, 2016 traditional fair isle or stranded knitting color knitting specifies no more than two colors per row and sequences of no more than six stitches of one color. May 15, 2014 were all familiar with the gorgeous knitted fair isle sweaters, but heres a little secret for our bluprint crocheters. In this video, we learn how to knit with two colors of yarn. Here is a picture of a fairisle pattern that i am going to be knitting next. There is a pattern for a miniature fair isle teddy bear size sweater aka tea cozy in nicky epsteins book, knitting on top of the world, and here is a blog post with many photos from someone who has made this for reference.
Alice starmores book of fair isle knitting by alice starmore. You dont want very long floats in the back to catch fingers and such. Stranded colorwork originating in scandinavia norway, sweden, denmark, and finland is very different from fair isle, though the knitting techniques are similar. Beginning of a dialog window, including tabbed navigation to register an account or sign in to an existing account. This is because, although youre using two strands of yarn for every row, youre only using one of them for any given stitch, so the unused yarn is stranded around the back. Traditionally, fair isle only uses two colors on any given round and is only worked in the round. Floats get especially long if your pattern has too many stitches between one color change and the next. Fair isle knitting, also known as stranded knitting, refers to color work that is a repeating pattern worked over a group of stitches and rows. How to change yarns without having to weave in ends. I will definitely add this book to my permanent collection since i borrowed this copy from the library. That makes this a great technique to use for small colorwork patterns on bags, sweaters, socks. How to use designaknit to check floats in fair isle turkish.
The pattern suggests this, but doesnt explain exactly how to do it. Once again very pink knits has a video about how to do that. While fair isle crochet patterns dont always follow the same design. Simply fair isle knitting knitting is as easy as knitting pattern fairisle knitting patterns charts are those charts as the guidance to create the knitting piece with the fair isle idea. Fair isle or stranded knitting how to wrap the yarn to. Its officially springtime now, and though it may not be warm in the islands north of the scottish mainland, up there by the arctic circle, we can start dreaming about colorful wildflowers in sloping fields overlooking the north sea. Fair isle differs from intarsia in that the nonworking yarn is carried across the wrong side of the work in strands called floats. Knitting a pattern where two or more colours repeat continuously across a row uses a method known as fair isle.
This collection of 17 fair isle knitting patterns is a great place to start if youre uneasy about giving stranded colorwork a try, or if youre a seasoned pro who just wants some ideas for his or her next project. She starts with an overview that covers everything from the best types of yarn suitable for fair isle patter. Knitting fair isle two yarns in right hand catching floats i like to do twocolour knitting holding both yarns in my right hand as this feels more comfortable to me rather than the twohand. Then, dont tension it around your pinkie so you can control the yarn. And it can be fearless, whether youre using just two yarns or going wild with forty.
Issuu the very easy guide to fair isle knitting sample pages by st. A float is the distance one color is carried in the back. Proceed to knit your stitch with the right color as normal. You can also use it in fair isle knitting so that you dont have to work any of your complicated colorwork patterns flat, eliminating the need to learn to purl while stranding colors and also reducing the number of yarn. Here is the knit side with the floats latched up on the purl side.
How to catch fair isle floats on the purl side instructional article our very own jeanne stars in this knitting instructional video demonstrating how to catch fair isle floats on the purl side. Just like cables, stranded knitting is a great thing to try when youre still fairly new to knitting. This technique is also referred to as true fair isle, from the island located between scotland and norway where the intricate fair isle style of knitting with multiple colors originated. I suppose, though, if the floats are being pulled too tightly, going up a needle size would help somewhat. The largest pattern in the book is a 42 chest measurement. All knitting charts for knitting in the round are read right to left, from the bottom to the top. Now, put your dominant color over your forefinger and the accent finger on the bottom of your forefinger. What you didnt know you needed to know norwegian knitting. Many other stranded colorwork patterns use longer color runs, creating the long and potentially troublesome floats.
Nov, 2012 mastering fair isle knitting has never been easier. I am back to the ellybob cardigan and im to the fun partthe fair isle. The author knows this and starts the book by saying, take a deep breath and repeat after me. Move your mouse to the check menu, click and select. Tips for managing floats in stranded colorwork michelle says. One of the characteristics of a true fair isle pattern is that there are rarely long runs of stitches. Oct 01, 2009 buy alice starmores book of fair isle knitting dover knitting, crochet, tatting, lace green ed. Although slipstitch textures worked in solidcolor yarns are attractive and exciting, it is slipstitch colorwork for which this technique is best known. I would suggest doing that with pure wool that didnt get the superwash treatment. Outstanding knitting book the essential book on fair isle knitting. This 1998, 2009 edition, of alice starmores book of fair isle knitting has a soft cover. Also note that the many yarns used in the piece under the armhole are tied together and trimmed short, rather than laboriously sewn in.
I have not as yet knitted anything from that book, but i love to look reread it and look at the illustrations. Dec 21, 2016 ive admired fair isle to the extent of having bought alice starmores fair isle knitting as one of the first knitting books i bought in the late 1980s. In this example, the dominant color, carried in my left hand, is the contrasting color blue, while the background color, carried in my right hand, is the main color charcoal. You will usually want to hide the back side of the work. Clearly, knitting is a deeply ingrained facet of the culture of scotlands outer hebrides. Stranded colorwork originating in scandinavia norway, sweden, denmark, and finland is very different from fair isle. Sep 11, 2017 i arrived on fair isle, in scotlands shetland islands, intent upon buying a sweater. The biggest challenge in stranded knitting is maintaining your float tension floats are the strand of yarn that isnt in use thats carried behind your work so that you dont get puckering from too short floats and big, loose stitches from too. May 26, 2015 one of the rookie mistakes when knitting fair isle for the first few times is to pull the yarn floats the strands between the stitches knit in a given colour tightly across the back of the work, which can compress the gauge of the fair isle section relative to your stockinette stitch gauge. Steeking is used in traditional nordic sweaters for armholes, and you can use it to turn a pullover sweater into a cardigan. As you saw yesterday, the basic fair isle technique covers the back of the work with what are called floats. This method leaves floats, which are lengths of yarn carried across the back of the work that can be easily snagged. The knitters pride royale 16 needle set i use in the video can be found here.
Starmore doesnt just provide 14 terrific fair isle patterns, she overs the history of fair isle, the development of stitch patterns, provides an extensive compilation of patterns, and a lengthy chapter on designing your own cap, tam, and gansey. How to knit with two colors of yarn knitting basics. Sep 30, 2011 as you saw yesterday, the basic fair isle technique covers the back of the work with what are called floats. It is frequently used when machine knitting a fair isle design. If you are curious how ambitious your project has become, do the following. With this system, the knitter can carry both colors over the left index finger, picking the color needed with the right needle tip. Fair isle crochet patterns can give you a similar look, including the yarn floats on the wrong side.
205 1480 427 1237 155 742 420 82 943 1406 190 982 562 1398 689 757 1429 862 128 523 1293 1379 1438 713 1506 541 1068 984 1177 1130 1020 932 362 1135 246 816 1339 803 1071 917 215 482 290 727 700 1449 1049