Handspinning for Fair Isle
About Handspinning for Fair Isle
Start with a naturally dyed "fleece palette" from common and historic renewable dye sources and combine with natural Shetland shades for blends to spin and knit. Produce a small array of heather and multi color yarns to then design/knit a "Fair Isle" inspired pouch in stranded knitting. Included: wheel adjustment, combing, carding, color blending, plying, lessons on consistency, and yarn management. Explore yarn design and fabric finishing to see how it changes fabric character.
What will students learn:
proper wool prep techniques
hand spinning for appropriate yarns
combining colors in knitting
Materials, Equipment, and Supplies the Student Must Bring to Class
A spinning wheel in workable condition, extra bobbins, maintenance tools and oil bottle. (Hand spindles work too.) Make sure your wheel likes to spin fine yarn. A Louet can also work.
hand cards and/or drum carder
nostepinne (ball winder)
baby oil and small spray bottle,
optional: hand combs or a hair comb
card stock for wrapping samples,
favorite photos or postcards for color inspiration
notebook for note taking,
tape for securing samples,
Knitting needles for circular knitting ( dpn or long enough for magic loop) sizes 3-8
Tea cup and favorite tea.
Materials Kit and Kit Description
Your class registration fee includes a materials kit with a value of $30 which includes:
Home grown Shetland fleece shades and assorted naturally dyed colors , graphs and handouts.
Pre-class Homework
Practice the management of stranded knitting. 2 colors per row.
Age Range
Minimum age requirement for workshop: 12
Skill Level
Intermediate
What skills or knowledge do students need to take this workshop?
For ambitious spinsters able to happily spin a continuous yarn with any spinning style; beyond beginner to advanced skills in knitting requested. This is not a how to spin or how to knit class.
Contact the Teacher
Send a direct message from the teacher's profile page with any questions you might have about the class.
When
Single 6-hour live in-person seminar.
Class Location
Classroom 3
How It Works
Register and enroll above. Enrollment is not complete until payment is made on the next page, by credit card or Paypal via our secure platform. Enrolled students will receive an immediate email confirmation of enrollment..
Refund Policy: To cancel an enrollment or request a refund, contact [email protected]. For 30+ days before, we refund 95%. Between 30 and 5 days, receive a 75% refund. No refunds within 5 days of class start date.
Martha Owen
Martha Owen is an artisan/shepherd and resident artist at the John C Campbell Folkschool (www.folkschool.org) in Brasstown, NC. She oversees classes in spinning/knitting,crochet/feltmaking /surface design and dyeing. Her adventure in spinning began here in 1978.
Back to Carolina FiberFestAbout Lessonface, PBC & the Carolina FiberFest
Lessonface's mission is to help students achieve their goals while treating teachers equitably. Since 2012, we've hosted more than 30,000 students and 2,000 teachers for over 500,000 music, language, and arts lessons and classes online. The 20th annual Carolina FiberFest is March 13-14, 2026 at the NC State Fairgrounds, Raleigh NC. Workshops will be held Thurs. March 12 - Sat. March 14, 2026.