Fair Isle knitting doesn't have to be intimidating. Author and knitwear designer Tanis Gray guides you through the basics of this classic style, from color theory to chart-reading, so you can dive in with confidence. Fancy colorwork, here you come!
Fair Isle Fundamentals
Discover the joys of the Fair Isle style. Author and knitwear designer Tanis Gray guides you through the basics of this classic style.
Overview
About
Tanis Gray is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design and has been involved in the creative industry for many years. Having worked at Martha Stewart, Vogue Knitting and Knit.1, among others, she prefers to be tangled up in yarn and knitting whenever possible. Tanis is the author of eight knitting books and has 450 published knitting designs.
01: The Power of Color
Meet Tanis Gray! Tanis starts class with every knitter's favorite topic: color. Follow along for some helpful pointers that will help you choose the hues that best express your project, purpose and even mood.
18 min
02: Design Impact: Yarn & Charts
Make sure you're choosing the right fiber for your Fair Isle. Tanis guides you through the effects of yarn on the texture and durability of your knits, before breaking down chart-reading in the round.
18 min
03: Fundamental Techniques
Managing multiple strands can get messy, but not with Tanis' tips. Discover how to hold multiple strands of yarn, controlling which colors are dominant to get the look you want.
14 min
04: Trapping Floats
Keep the even tension you need to make every row look perfect. Tanis shows you several methods for trapping floats and shares her secrets for preventing (and fixing!) any puckers that might pop up.
21 min
05: Making the Fair Isle Hat
Once you've got the fundamentals down, it's time to practice with a fun project. Tanis walks you step by step through a color-packed hat, including the ribbed brim, decreasing in pattern and blocking your piece to perfection.
23 min
06: Next Steps: Fixing Mistakes, Steeking & More
Want more Fair Isle? Class ends with a few extras that are sure to come in handy: fixing missed spots of color, using jogless joins for flawless rings in the round, and even steeking.
23 min
