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Join renowned knitting expert Frederica Patmore for an inspiring 3-night weekend retreat at Nottingham Belfry Hotel & Spa. This relaxing and creative getaway includes one full and two half-day knitting workshops, designed for knitters who already have a good grasp of the basics and are eager to learn and connect with like-minded enthusiasts. Throughout the retreat, Frederica will guide you through a variety of techniques, sharing her expertise in a relaxed and supportive setting. You'll also enjoy a group excursion to the award-winning Framework Knitters Museum. Step back in time to explore the rich history of knitting and textile craftsmanship in the region, discover the stories behind traditional framework knitting, and see historic machines in action. With comfortable accommodation, delicious meals, and access to the hotel’s luxurious spa facilities included, this retreat promises to be a perfect blend of creativity, relaxation, and community.
Please choose your preferred 4 day itinerary
Skill Level: You will need to have a good grasp of the basics in knitting (casting on, knit and purl).
Requirements List: 5-6 x 2.75mm double-pointed knitting needles, scissors, darning needle.
Check in to your room from 3pm. Join Frederica, your Retreat Manager and fellow guests for dinner this evening.
Today is dedicated to Fair Isle ‘doodling’. Face your fear of knitting with more than one strand at a time and pick your own patterns as you go, learning how to hold your yarns correctly and create an even tension in your multi-coloured creations.
Having covered the technique of stranded knitting yesterday, this morning you’ll start to apply your skills to a multi-coloured sock pattern. Working the stranded colourwork techniques throughout, you’ll also learn how to turn a heel.
The award-winning Framework Knitters Museum is one of the only places left in the country to find the working and living conditions of this industry, perfectly preserved for you to experience and explore. A unique surviving example of a 19th-century framework knitters’ yard, the site has been lovingly restored as a living history museum.
Here, we'll discover how framework knitters and their families lived and worked in Victorian times and learn about the 400-year history framework knitting, from its role in the Industrial Revolution to the infamous Luddite riots of the 1800s, and how framework knitting gave birth to the Nottingham lace industry.
This morning we’ll continue with our multi-coloured socks and working the stranded colourwork techniques. We’ll learn how to graft a toe closed for an absolutely perfectly finished pair of Fair Isle socks. Depart after lunch.
Please Note: In the hotel, you will need to be able to make your own way between our workshop room, your bedroom and the restaurant, which could involve walks of up to 5 minutes. For the excursion, you will need to walk a short distance from the hotel to the coach, and you should be able to board the coach unaided. On arrival at the museum, you should be able to alight the coach unaided and there may be a walk between the coach drop off point and the museum itself. By their nature museum visits can involve being on your feet for a significant amount of time. Whilst our excursions are taken at a leisurely pace, for the enjoyment of everyone in the group you should be able to keep up with your fellow travellers. The Framework Knitters Museum is in 19th-century buildings; some of the stairs are steep and the ground a little uneven.
You will stay for three nights at the 4-star Nottingham Belfry Hotel & Spa.
The 4-star Nottingham Belfry Hotel & Spa is just a 15-minute drive from the city centre of Nottingham. The property offers free Wi-Fi and free on-site parking. Each room has a flat-screen TV with Freeview channels, a walk-in shower and tea and coffee-making facilities. The on-site leisure club and spa is free to use for hotel guests. The hotel’s beautiful restaurant, The Lawrence, and its Oaks bar and lounge serve simple or refined dishes.
Single Room Supplement from £110.00