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.
Shawl Knitting History & Reading Your Stitches for the Dutchess County Geese Shawl with Sydney Crabaugh
Shawl Knitting History & Reading Your Stitches for the Dutchess County Geese Shawl with Sydney Crabaugh
Fiber Tales | Live, Hands-on, Interactive Virtual Class & Lecture
Taught by Sydney Crabaugh of Squidney Knits, hosted by Six Dutchess Farm via Zoom
Join Sydney as we explore the rich and exciting world of shawls!
With a focus on the Dutchess County Geese shawl, this class combines hands-on virtual learning partnered with lively teachings about the history of shawl knitting! Together, we will work through a section of the shawl’s triangle pattern and identify different tips and tricks to keeping in pattern and reading your work. We’ll go in depth through the Triangle One section, and learn how to recognize the shapes that are beginning to unfold on your needles, all while working with the beautiful shades of Six Dutchess Farm resident sheep!
MATERIALS NEEDED:
Please purchase a Dutchess County Geese shawl kit before class.
40” circular needles in size US 4 [3.5 mm] (or size needed to obtain gauge)
Multiple stitch markers
EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:
Basic knitting skills (knit, purl, cast on, bind off) and increasing. Students should feel comfortable working up the shawl to Triangle One on their own.
HOMEWORK:
Before attending class, please cast on your shawl and work up to Row 3 (RS) of Triangle One section.
We ask that all participants use Gotland yarn for this class, as we'll exploring the unique qualities and demands of this special fiber.
This class will be limited to 15 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 2021). 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.
An Introduction to Lace Knitting with Gotland Yarn Part 1
An Introduction to Lace Knitting with Gotland Yarn Part 1
Fiber Tales | Live, Hands-On Virtual Class
Taught by Anna Dalvi and hosted by Six Dutchess Farm.
What is lace? How do I select my yarn and needles? And how do I read lace charts?
In this class, we will learn all about the fundamentals of lace knitting. The class will cover a variety of topics, such as suitable lace cast-ons and bind-offs, how to join yarn, sew in ends, and how to use lifelines. We’ll also learn how to read our knitting and fix mistakes without having to rip out the entire project. And of course we’ll learn all about blocking - the magic that makes any lace project shine. And, in the process, we’ll discover the special qualities and nuances of breed-specific, natural yarn.
Materials Needed:
1 skein of Gotland or Natural Yarn, laceweight
US 5, 6, 7 or 8 Circular needles (if you have a variety of sizes, please bring them all)
Blunt tapestry needle
EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:
Basic knitting skills.
HOMEWORK:
Our limited-edition 2-ply Laceweight yarn is available for purchase and can be added on to your order during class check-out. We ask that all participants use pure or blended Gotland yarn, or other natural farm yarn, for this class.
This class will be limited to 12 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 2021). 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 | Anna Dalvi
Anna Dalvi is a Swedish-Canadian knitwear designer, author and educator with a passion for lace.
She has been publishing knitting patterns online since 2007. Her most popular designs are her intricate Mystic lace shawls, originally published in a mystery Knit-Along format, which has attracted more than 10,000 knitters worldwide.
She has published numerous print books on lace shawls, including Shaping Shawls (2011), Ancient Egypt in Lace and Color (2012), Fairy Tale Lace (2013), Mystic Shawls (2014), Mystic Shawls 2 (2017); e-books, Seven Fingerless Mittens (2011) and Reversible Lace (2017), as well as single patterns. Her designs have been featured in multiple knitting magazines, collections and knit-alongs.
In her knitting, Anna enjoys variety more than anything else—from intricate lace to sprawling cables, and differences in color and texture. She has taught knitting classes on Craftsy, as well as all over North America, at fiber festivals, conferences, local yarn shops, and even on cruise ships.
Anna is originally from Sweden (our Swedish sheep would love that!) but has made her home in Ottawa, Canada. You can find Anna and her designs on Ravelry, Instagram, Facebook and on her Knit & Knag Designs website.
Knitting With Gotland Yarn: A Beginner's Journey with Sarah Solomon
Knitting With Gotland Yarn: A Beginner's Journey with Sarah Solomon
Fiber Tales | Live, Hands-On Virtual Class
Taught by Sarah Solomon, hosted by Six Dutchess Farm
During the class, you will learn about the special qualities of Gotland wool, what makes it so prized among hand-spinners and knitters, and how best to work with this exceptionally light and fine fiber in your knitting projects.
Sarah will share with you her experiences knitting with Gotland yarn, how to select a knitting pattern the works best with this fiber's natural bloom and halo effect, and how to choose needles and blocking strategies that will enhance your final product.
During our time together, we'll start knitting The Pebble Scarf, casting on together, and working our way through one or two skeins of yarn. Through the option of a third add-on class, for those who would like to finish the scarf in February, we can bind-off together and talk about final washing and blocking.
This class is recommended for Beginners or Lapsed Knitters with some level of experience, even if very limited. However, if you are a total beginner, and one of your 2021 goals is to learn how to knit, we welcome you and will help you cross over to the wonderful world of knitting!
This class will be limited to 15 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 2021). 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.
In addition to her self-published patterns, her designs and articles have appeared in Interweave Knits, Knitscene, knit.wear, Wool Studio, PomPom Quarterly, and Vogue Knitting, and in collections by Manos del Uruguay, Woolfolk, Kelbourne Woolens, and Yak. 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.
She enjoys teaching traditional techniques of all kinds, including cables, colorwork, and twisted-stitch knitting, as well as modern garment construction with a particular emphasis on details and fine finishing. She teaches regularly at Purl Soho and Annie & Co in New York City, as well as at retreats and knitting events around the country. Sarah is also an avid sewer and spinner and loves handwork in many forms. In her design work, she focuses on creating garments and accessories from exceptional yarns, grounded in tradition but suited for modern life, that are knittable, wearable, and designed to last.
Follow her work on Instagram at @intothewool and at intothewool.wordpress.com.