Previous Classes & Events
An Introduction To Cable Knitting with Gotland Yarn ⏤ Slighe Mittens
An Introduction To Cable Knitting with Gotland Yarn ⏤ Slighe Mittens
Fiber Tales | Live, Hands-On Virtual Class | 1 Session
Taught by Jo Bint of Snowy Thistle Knits, hosted by Six Dutchess Farm
What is cable knitting, and how do I do it? Learn the basics of cables while knitting the perfect pair of early spring fingerless mittens to keep you warm. All the better paired with our Gotland yarn—a light and airy wool filled with small farm charm.
This class will focus on the cozy Slighe Mittens pattern by Jo Bint of Snowy Thistle Knits. As Gotland shepherds and market farmers, we absolutely ADORE these lush, warm mittens that give your fingers room to roam. Let’s make them together!
Prepare to gather in the Zoom room with new fiber friends and old for this 2-hour hands-on knitting class, hosted by Dutchess County shepherds, Jennifer and Hans, and led by Scottish knitwear designer and storyteller, Jo Bint. We’ll guide you through our latest series of Fiber Tales and welcome spring with knitting needles in hand!
Slighe Mittens give a great introduction to cable knitting for knitters of all skill levels. They are worked in the round, in simple ribbing, and use a combination of three- and four-stitch cable crosses to alter the paths of the columns of stitches.
In this class, we’ll discuss our favorite cast-on techniques, the symbols used in the patterns charts, and how to read our work so we always know where we are in the pattern. We’ll learn an abundance of useful skills, such as how to cable without a cable needle, join yarn, sew in ends and fix mis-crossed cables without having to frog your whole project!
Come armed with your yarn, needles, and all your cable-knitting questions to this relaxed virtual workshop and we’ll get you some answers, as well as a cute pair of fingerless mittens!
We’ll also learn about the special qualities and nuances of Gotland yarn from the fiber flock at Six Dutchess Farm.
Digital pattern included! You can purchase a Slighe Mittens Gotland Yarn Bundle here or individual skeins of Gotland yarn here.
MATERIALS NEEDED:
50-85g DK weight yarn (1 skein of Six Dutchess Farm Pure Gotland Yarn 2ply DK; 219m/240yds in 100g). Please note: Yarn requirement will vary depending upon size and length of mittens knitted.
US 3 (3.25mm) -or size required to obtain gauge- in preferred needles for small circumference (magic loop, 9” circular or dpns).
You will need dpns or magic loop in the same needle size to work the thumb.
Stitch Markers
Tapestry Needle
Waste yarn for thumb gusset
Copy of the Slighe Mittens pattern (digital copy included in the class).
GAUGE AND SIZE:
32 sts and 33 rows in 2x2 ribbing over 4" (10cm)
The finished length of the short mittens is 8.25”/ 21cm and the longer mittens is 9.5”/ 24cm.
The ribbing on these mittens allows them a generous stretch and they have been designed with approximately 2-3”/ 5-7cm of negative ease. The pattern is available in three sizes to fit hand circumference 5.5-7 (7-8.5, 8.5-10)”/14-17.75 (17.75-21.5, 21.5-25) cm.
Finished circumference: 5.5 (6.25, 7)”/ 14(15.5, 17.75) cm.
EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:
Basic knitting skills, should be comfortable knitting in the round on circular and double-pointed needles.
HOMEWORK:
Before class, please knit and block a swatch with your chosen yarn to determine which needle size will give you the correct gauge. Use the suggested needle as a starting point and reduce or increase needle size as needed.
YARN:
We recommend that all participants use Gotland yarn for this class, as we'll be exploring the unique qualities and demands of this special fiber. If you have another yarn close to your heart, you are welcome to use that instead.
This class will be limited to 20 registrants, first-come, first-served.
CANCELLATIONs
Please note, no refunds are given should you decide to cancel your registration, but we do accept ticket transfers. If you are unable to attend, we encourage you to gift your class to a friend or loved one, who can share the experience with you.
About the Instructor | Jo Bint of Snowy Thistle Knits
Meet Jo—a Scottish knitter, knitwear designer and teacher based in Nova Scotia, Canada. She is the creative force behind Snowy Thistle Knits.
Jo’s work has her native Scotland at heart, though she’s heavily influenced by her adopted home in Nova Scotia, Canada.
Her first career began as a dentist. She never dreamed of pursuing a path as a knitwear designer, but moving to North America meant she could no longer practice dentistry and that left plenty of time to explore her crafty genes. With ancestors who were tartan weavers in the borders of Scotland and a long line of knitters on both sides of the family, the fiber industry was deep in her blood.
Her passions for color and texture often take her outdoors, wandering in the forest, examining emerald moss or gnarly old trees, collecting pretty stones at the beach, or drinking tea, inside a comfy spot by the fire. A knitting project and a design notebook are never very far from her reach, as she delights in the challenge of transferring patterns and shapes into knitted fabric that other knitters can enjoy creating. Jo loves to teach and to help knitters realize the joy of mastering a new technique.
Snowy Thistle Knits designs are classically and thoughtfully styled with a focus on functionality, and will become staples in every wardrobe. The patterns are carefully written to make them easy to follow, allowing knitters to create stunning masterpieces with discrete details and simple accents of cables and lace. Jo also offers many helpful how-to videos on her YouTube channel.
Alongside knitting patterns, she also specializes in laser-engraved items, creating beautiful leather shawl cuffs and handy wooden notions for fiber folks— the perfect embellishments for your favorite new fiber pieces.
Find Jo’s patterns on Ravelry or her website, snowythistleknits.com and follow her work on Instagram as @snowythistleknits.
Add-On Class: An Introduction to Top-Down Sweater Knitting with Gotland Yarn⏤The Freya Sweater
Add-On Class: An Introduction to Top-Down Sweater Knitting with Gotland Yarn⏤The Freya Sweater
Fiber Tales | Live, Hands-On Virtual Class | 1 Session | 2 Hours of Live Teaching
Taught by Sarah Solomon, hosted by Six Dutchess Farm ⏤ Monday, March 11, 6:30pm - 8:30pm.
Please note this is an “add-on class” to our 4-part Intro to Top-Down Sweater Knitting class. Registration for this 5th session is limited to students who were enrolled in the February class and who are in the process of knitting the Freya Sweater.
New Year, New Knitting Goals! Learn how to make your very own gorgeous heirloom Gotland sweater, from start to finish, in four weeks. Join New York-based knitwear designer, Sarah Solomon, and the shepherds at Six Dutchess Farm, for an immersive, online sweater-knitting journey every Monday in February. Our aim is to teach you how to knit a beautiful, quality garment, using luscious single-source natural farm yarn.
The Freya Sweater was designed by Sarah specifically for Six Dutchess Farm’s fiber program. It was conceived as a piece to introduce new sweater knitters to garment making and as the perfect medium to showcase the very special properties of Gotland wool. The Freya pattern is simple and approachable and yet the result is an heirloom quality sweater that will last you many, many years. The sweater is knit from the top down, using a combination of flat knitting and knitting in the round. Options abound for the length of the sweater body and sleeves, and a sumptuous collar is added at the end with the option to make a turtleneck or a folded collar.
Whether for the novice sweater knitter or the more experienced, this course will include much useful information about sweater knitting, in general, as well as tips for knitting with Gotland yarn and other similarly-textured fine natural yarns.
In our four sessions together (and through an optional fifth meeting on the farm!), we will work through the entire sweater, address your questions about sweater knitting, and also talk about raising sheep and turning their wool into yarn. Check out our Freya Sweater Yarn Bundles here.
EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:
This class is recommended for novice knitters and beyond. Basic knitting skills are required. You should be comfortable knitting in the round and with increasing and decreasing as well as have completed a few knitting projects already. While conceived for the adventurous beginner, even if you are not new to sweater knitting, the construction of this top-down sweater may prove new and exciting to you. If you have a question about whether this class is right for you, just ask!
YARN REQUIREMENTS:
We encourage all participants to use Gotland yarn for this class or a yarn of similar quality and character. We'll be exploring the unique qualities and demands of this special fiber throughout the class. You can check out our blog post on Gotland Sheep, read more about our Gotland yarn here, and purchase a Freya Gotland sweater bundle in a color of your choosing here. From five to ten skeins of DK-weight yarn are required for the Freya sweater, depending on your sizing selection.
CLASS SCHEDULE:
Session 1 — February 5: Overview of sweater pattern and Gotland Wool. Casting on. Shoulder shaping. Knitting the back. Understanding gauge.
Session 2 — February 12: Pick up stitches for the front shoulders. Shape Armhole and Neck.
Session 3 — February 19: Join in the round to knit the body. Demonstrate picking up stitches around the armhole for the sleeves. Discuss the order of knitting in a top-down garment.
Session 4 — February 26: Working the body and hem. Shaping and length considerations. Possible modifications. How to block your final project.
Session 5 (Optional Add-On Class — March 11): Now that you have come close to finishing your Freya Sweater, this class will help you cross the finish line, tie up any loose ends and fix mistakes you may have noticed. We’ll re-visit wet blocking, pinning, Gotland sweater care and maintenance. Now that you have finished a whole sweater, what additional questions do you have? What might you want to tackle next? We’ll open the class up to any and all questions about sweater knitting and design to guide you in this project and your next one!
This class will be limited to 20 registrants, first-come, first-served.
CANCELLATIONs
Please note, no refunds are given should you decide to cancel your registration, but we do provide class credit up to ten days prior to the class (for use in 2024). After this time, if you are unable to attend, we encourage you to gift your class to a friend or loved one, who can share the experience with you.
About the Instructor | Sarah Solomon
Meet Sarah—a knitwear designer, writer, and teacher based in New York City.
Sarah Solomon is a knitwear designer, writer and teacher based in New York City. With a background in woven construction and dressmaking, Sarah brings a love of details and fine finishing to her hand knitting designs and enjoys creating and teaching techniques that are simple to master but yield beautiful, long-lasting results. As someone who learned to knit as an adult, she still remembers the frustrations of the learning process and loves helping people to improve their knitting skills and explore new techniques.
Her interests range from all aspects of traditional hand knitting to re-imagining ready-to-wear and machine-knit details for hand knitters. Sarah’s patterns and articles have appeared in Interweave Knits, Knitscene, knit.wear, Pom Pom Quarterly, Vogue Knitting and Amirisu, and in collections by yarn companies large and small.
In addition to her self-published work, Sarah has worked as part of the editorial team of Vogue Knitting Magazine and as Director of Knitwear Design for Harrisville Designs, a historic woolen mill in Harrisville, NH. In her design work, she enjoys creating garments and accessories from exceptional yarns that are knittable, wearable and designed to last. Sarah is also an avid sewer and spinner and loves handwork in many forms.
Find Sarah’s patterns on Ravelry or her website, sarahsolomondesigns.com and follow her work on Instagram as @intothewool.
An Introduction to Top-Down Sweater Knitting with Gotland Yarn: The Freya Sweater
An Introduction to Top-Down Sweater Knitting with Gotland Yarn: The Freya Sweater
Fiber Tales | Live, Hands-On Virtual Class | 4 Sessions | 8 Hours of Live Teaching
Taught by Sarah Solomon, hosted by Six Dutchess Farm ⏤ February 5, 12, 19 & 26, 2024, 6:30pm - 8:30pm.
New Year, New Knitting Goals! Learn how to make your very own gorgeous heirloom Gotland sweater, from start to finish, in four weeks.
Join New York-based knitwear designer, Sarah Solomon, and the shepherds at Six Dutchess Farm, for an immersive, online sweater-knitting journey every Monday in February. Our aim is to teach you how to knit a beautiful, quality garment, using luscious single-source natural farm yarn.
The Freya Sweater was designed by Sarah specifically for Six Dutchess Farm’s fiber program. It was conceived as a piece to introduce new sweater knitters to garment making and as the perfect medium to showcase the very special properties of Gotland wool. The Freya pattern is simple and approachable and yet the result is an heirloom quality sweater that will last you many, many years. The sweater is knit from the top down, using a combination of flat knitting and knitting in the round. Options abound for the length of the sweater body and sleeves, and a sumptuous collar is added at the end with the option to make a turtleneck or a folded collar.
Whether for the novice sweater knitter or the more experienced, this course will include much useful information about sweater knitting, in general, as well as tips for knitting with Gotland yarn and other similarly-textured fine natural yarns.
In our four sessions together (and through an optional fifth meeting on the farm!), we will work through the entire sweater, address your questions about sweater knitting, and also talk about raising sheep and turning their wool into yarn. Check out our Freya Sweater Yarn Bundles here.
EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:
This class is recommended for novice knitters and beyond. Basic knitting skills are required. You should be comfortable knitting in the round and with increasing and decreasing as well as have completed a few knitting projects already. While conceived for the adventurous beginner, even if you are not new to sweater knitting, the construction of this top-down sweater may prove new and exciting to you. If you have a question about whether this class is right for you, just ask!
YARN REQUIREMENTS:
We encourage all participants to use Gotland yarn for this class or a yarn of similar quality and character. We'll be exploring the unique qualities and demands of this special fiber throughout the class. You can check out our blog post on Gotland Sheep, read more about our Gotland yarn here, and purchase a Freya Gotland sweater bundle in a color of your choosing here. From five to ten skeins of DK-weight yarn are required for the Freya sweater, depending on your sizing selection.
CLASS SCHEDULE:
Session 1 — February 5: Overview of sweater pattern and Gotland Wool. Casting on. Shoulder shaping. Knitting the back. Understanding gauge.
Session 2 — February 12: Pick up stitches for the front shoulders. Shape Armhole and Neck.
Session 3 — February 19: Join in the round to knit the body. Demonstrate picking up stitches around the armhole for the sleeves. Discuss the order of knitting in a top-down garment.
Session 4 — February 26: Working the body and hem. Shaping and length considerations. Possible modifications. How to block your final project.
Session 5 (Optional Add-On Class — Date TBD): On-Farm Wrap-Up + Meet & Greet with the Sheep. Now that you have knit a whole sweater what additional questions do you have? What might you want to tackle next? Date and time will be decided by students in Session 4.
This class will be limited to 20 registrants, first-come, first-served.
CANCELLATIONs
Please note, no refunds are given should you decide to cancel your registration, but we do provide class credit up to ten days prior to the class (for use in 2024). After this time, if you are unable to attend, we encourage you to gift your class to a friend or loved one, who can share the experience with you.
About the Instructor | Sarah Solomon
Meet Sarah—a knitwear designer, writer, and teacher based in New York City.
Sarah Solomon is a knitwear designer, writer and teacher based in New York City. With a background in woven construction and dressmaking, Sarah brings a love of details and fine finishing to her hand knitting designs and enjoys creating and teaching techniques that are simple to master but yield beautiful, long-lasting results. As someone who learned to knit as an adult, she still remembers the frustrations of the learning process and loves helping people to improve their knitting skills and explore new techniques.
Her interests range from all aspects of traditional hand knitting to re-imagining ready-to-wear and machine-knit details for hand knitters. Sarah’s patterns and articles have appeared in Interweave Knits, Knitscene, knit.wear, Pom Pom Quarterly, Vogue Knitting and Amirisu, and in collections by yarn companies large and small.
In addition to her self-published work, Sarah has worked as part of the editorial team of Vogue Knitting Magazine and as Director of Knitwear Design for Harrisville Designs, a historic woolen mill in Harrisville, NH. In her design work, she enjoys creating garments and accessories from exceptional yarns that are knittable, wearable and designed to last. Sarah is also an avid sewer and spinner and loves handwork in many forms.
Find Sarah’s patterns on Ravelry or her website, sarahsolomondesigns.com and follow her work on Instagram as @intothewool.