The Lancaster Knitter's Retreat 2025 takes place in an inspiring rural setting with excellent teachers and in the good company of knitters from near and far. We will gather at the at the beautiful Amish View Inn in Bird-In-Hand, Pennsylvania, April 4 - 6, 2025. We are so pleased to welcome Beth Brown-Reinsel, Kate Atherley and Carson Demers as this year’s featured teachers!
LKR2025 is SOLD OUT
To be added to our wait list, please call the shop.
Friday begins with LKR2025 check-in starting at 4:00. CLASS 1 is 6 - 9, followed by a casual knitting reception in the Great Room.
On Saturday, CLASS 2 is in the morning, CLASS 3 is in the afternoon, followed by a Banquet Dinner and Keynote speaker, and then more knitting in the Great Room.
On Sunday morning, join us for The Knitting Salon! We’ll spin a yarn or two, share songs and ideas and projects and learn from each other – all to inspire you and your knitting. Enjoy the Hand Knit Runway, special guests, live music, and more!
LKR2025 Classes - all attendees take all three classes!
Unique Latvian Cuffs – Beth Brown-Reinsel
Intro to Garment Alteration – Kate Atherley
Knitting Comfortably Ever After – Carson Demers
LKR2025 $ 545.00
The cost includes three class sessions, Friday night reception, Saturday lunch, Saturday banquet dinner with Keynote speaker, and the Sunday Knitting Salon. Tea, coffee, refreshments will be available throughout the weekend.
NO REFUNDS AFTER FEBRUARY 15, 2025
Please note any refund will be less a 15% administrative fee.
You are responsible to book your own lodging. There are many hotels and inns in the area. All classes and included meals will take place at Amish View Inn & Suites/Plain & Fancy Restaurant. A block of rooms has been reserved at a special rate for this event. Please CALL Amish View Inn & Suites and mention Lancaster Knitter’s Retreat to receive this special rate: (866) 735-1600.
CLASS DESCRIPTIONS
UNIQUE LATVIAN CUFFS
Some of the beautiful mitten cuffs of Latvia will be studied in this class. Three
types of knitted cuffs will be started in class to learn these unique techniques. Students can then complete the wristers outside of class, or choose to create mittens from the cuffs. The following techniques will be covered: a scalloped cuff, the twisted garter edge, and biased ribbing. Information about Latvian mittens will be discussed: the history of Latvia mitten knitting, other design details used such as braids, the waste-yarn (“afterthought” thumb), and pointed-tip shaping.
Level: Intermediate. (Knitter must be proficient with either double-pointed needles, Magic Loop, or working in the round with two circular needles.)
INTRO TO GARMENT ALTERATIONS
Found the perfect pattern but can't find a yarn that matches gauge? Want to change the size of a pattern? Need shorter sleeves, or a longer body, or a different neckline? In addition to sharing methods for changing aspects of garments, we’ll delve deep into strategies for approaching the problem that reduce both the work and the risk. We’ll also discuss how to choose patterns that are easiest to alter, and good designs that can be leaping-off points for your own inspirations.
Level: Intermediate. Suitable for knitters who have worked a couple of garments from a pattern or knitters who are anxious to learn more about planning garment knitting projects.
KNITTING COMFORTABLE EVER AFTER – Ergonomics for Knitters
Ever known a knitter who hasn’t said, “Just one more row”? Me neither! I’ll bet they’ve also complained of aches and pains while knitting. In this class, you’ll learn how knitting effects the “fabric that makes the fabric” - your body, and see how your knitting technique impacts your efficiency and productivity. By completing a Risk of Injury assessment in class you’ll learn how
knitting contributes to those aches and pains throughout your body. But more importantly, you’ll learn how to reduce them. A little knowledge and some simple changes can keep you knitting comfortably and safely ever after. Students who’ve taken this class have said that it should be “required learning for all knitters regardless of experience level!” and, “it’s as important as the knit and purl stitches!” This class is taught by a passionate knitter who is also a physical therapist. This class is not an individual knitting assessment.
Level: All levels of experience.
TEACHER BIOGRAPHIES
Beth Brown-Reinsel has been passionately teaching historic knitting workshops around the world for over 30 years. Her book Knitting Ganseys has been deemed a classic. She loves to prowl the storage section of museums around the world to look at old knitted things for inspiration for her patterns and classes, which are well known for her tiny sampler sweater projects which teach technique within the context of a garment. She lives in Vermont, and loves winter!
Kate Atherley is an internationally known knitting author, teacher, and editor. She has written nine books about various aspects of knitting, including a series of four about customizing projects for perfect fit and style. The combination of her university degree in mathematics, professional experience in software development and usability, and training in garment and fashion design give her a unique perspective. Her next book, Math for Knitters is due out mid-2025. She lives in Toronto with her husband and their rescue dog Winnie.
By day, Carson Demers is a physical therapist who manages an ergonomics program for a San Francisco Bay Area medical center. Every other moment, he’s knitting, spinning, designing, teaching, writing, or otherwise up to some fiber fun, always with a watchful eye toward ergonomics. His passion and experience in fiber arts combine with his expertise in physical therapy and ergonomics to create a unique skill set that he eagerly shares with the fiber community. Carson is the author and publisher of Knitting Comfortably: The Ergonomics of Handknitting, and a regular contributor to Ply magazine, and several other fiber publications.
"What knitter doesn't want a weekend surrounded with their passion
and their people? Sign me UP!”
--Laura Nelkin on the Lancaster Knitter’s Retreat