‘Knitted fabric’ was being produced in Fair Isle as early as the 1690s. There is reference to ‘variegated colours’ but it is not known if that was patterns or stripes, or whether it was the natural colours of the sheep or dyed colours.
By about 1760 islanders were producing knitwear to trade or barter with ships. Again, the colours are not referred to but they do refer to the men wearing caps with red lining, so dyes were clearly being used by this point. The earliest extant examples of what we would visually identify as ‘Fair Isle knitting’ date from the mid-1800s and are held in the National Museum of Scotland. In 1886 three knitters from Fair Isle were exhibitors at Edinburgh’s ‘International Exhibition of Industry, Science and Art’, where they showcased the isle’s knitwear and knitting techniques.
The Scottish National Antarctic Expedition of 1902-04 placed an order with the Fair Isle knitters for around 100 sweaters, along with long stockings, short stockings, mitts, gloves with fingers, gloves with only a thumb, helmets (balaclavas), mufflers and tobacco pouches, all of which were hand knitted for the expedition by the roughly 40 knitters residing in the isle at the time.
In the 1920s ‘Fair Isle’ knitwear achieved cult fashion status after HRH Edward, Prince of Wales, sported a ‘Fair Isle’ jumper (actually made in Shetland) whilst playing golf and in which he was later immortalised in what is probably his most famous portrait, by the artist John St Helier Lander. This led to a viral craze for all things ‘Fair Isle’ and saw a boom in this style of knitwear being produced in Shetland and further afield.
As early as 1921 the knitters of Fair Isle applied for a trademark to safeguard the name ‘Fair Isle’ in the production of knitted goods made in the isle. In 1922 the Patent Office determined that “[we] cannot suggest a trademark suitable for your purpose.” During the Second World War the style of Fair Isle knitting had a resurgence, with many women’s magazines of the period featuring countless knitting patterns with Fair Isle designs. With materials for homemade clothes in short supply (e.g. dressmaking fabrics and commercially available yarns) Fair Isle was a popular technique as it allowed small amounts of different coloured yarns to be used – leftovers from other projects or yarn unravelled from outgrown or no longer wearable garments – rather than needing a large amount of just one colour.
By the late-1960s manual knitting machines were being used alongside hand knitting to produce knitted items in the isle. In 1980 Fair Isle Crafts, the isle crafts co-operative, was established and several new manual knitting machines purchased. This saw machine knitting supersede hand knitting as the predominant method of knitwear production in the isle. After Fair Isle Crafts disbanded in 2011, several former members set up their own knitwear businesses, continuing the knitting tradition in the isle that we still have today.
Whilst the method of production may have changed over time, the tradition itself has not, and part of that tradition is living here and absorbing knowledge through the other knitters. Regardless of whether an item is hand knit or machine knit, genuine Fair Isle knitting will have been made by a Fair Isle resident and, through that, contains the isle’s knitting tradition in the design and use of colour and motifs.
The term ‘Fair Isle’, or ‘Fair Isle knitting’, is nowadays commonly used to refer to the technique of knitting using two colours per row, rather than directly attributing other patterned knitwear to Fair Isle itself. In some cases, this may be accurate, but it is unlikely that this technique originated solely in Fair Isle and was likely to have been a common knitting technique used in many places around the world. However, ‘Fair Isle’ became the name that stuck and, as the term became associated with the technique and style more broadly, it started being applied to far more than the distinctive knitwear the island is known for. As such, we can’t say that all things nowadays called ‘Fair Isle’ have been inspired by the island’s tradition, but the tradition itself remains strong within the island.
Cultural significance of knitting in Fair Isle today
Genuine Fair Isle knitting, as produced in Fair Isle, is a special and important craft which has formed a huge part of the isle’s culture and history for centuries, almost exclusively for women, giving women an income in a world where they had no other opportunity to earn, despite the craft being systematically undervalued. Both Fair Isle hand and machine knitting, as well as finishing, are real skills which are an important source of income for about 20% of the population of the isle (current population 35 adults).
Using 100% pure Shetland wool and with no more than two colours in any one row, knitters combine geometric motifs of varying sizes with a balanced palette of colours. Traditional Fair Isle knitters don’t usually repeat the same motifs in one item and symmetry in the colour placement and motif design is considered a very important aspect. Figurative patterns are very rarely seen.
Traditionally all knitting would have been done by hand, using double-ended wires (needles) and a knitting belt.
Jumpers would have been knitted in the round up to the oxters (armpits) then the front and back knitted flat and the shoulders grafted or seamed together. The stitches round the armholes would have been picked up and the sleeves knitted down. If required, ribs would then be knitted onto the neck and sleeves.
By the late-1960s manual knitting machines were starting to be used (for example, to knit the plain bodies and sleeves of jumpers, onto which patterned yokes would then be hand knitted).
Using the knitting machine is a skill in its own right and a knitter will produce the individual parts of garments (for example, a jumper will be knitted as a front, a back and two sleeves). A ribber attachment is used to produce the waist, neck and sleeve ribs.
A skilled finisher will then ‘finish’ the garment by hand: grafting the shoulders together, grafting the ribs on and invisibly seaming the sides and sleeves.
Most cultures around the world have their own stranded knitting or weaving traditions with similar, geometric designs being seen all around the world – from Fair Isle to South America, Scandinavia to Central and Eastern Europe and the Baltic States to the Middle East, for example.
These refer to the knitters currently working in Fair Isle, although it is likely that those in Shetland will also experience similar issues.
Training and recruitment issues – Recruitment in the island itself is a challenge – whilst knitting businesses want to hire workers locally, the reality is that there are other jobs on the island that pay double what one can earn as a knitter or finisher, so it is difficult to attract workers willing to work for a comparatively low wage (see also ‘Market Issues’). Although one knitter runs knitting holidays and another used to offer internships in her knitting business, these skills are then taken off the isle by the recipients. A lack of housing means that although there are people who would like to move here with a view to joining the knitting community, there is no possibility for them to do so unless accommodation becomes available, which happens very rarely.
Market issues – The market is healthy and demand for genuine Fair Isle knitwear far outstrips supply.
However, one of the main challenges facing the market is making Fair Isle knitwear financially viable, and that is due to the cost of production. Whilst visitors to the isle are often willing to pay a premium for authentic knitwear, the pricing must also reflect the time, skill, and craftsmanship involved. Paying skilled knitters only the minimum wage does not reflect the true value of Fair Isle knitting, but charging more makes the final product significantly more expensive than the general market rate for knitwear.
Supply of raw materials, allied materials and tools – The majority of wool used by Fair Isle knitters is sourced from Jamieson’s of Shetland, the spinning mill in Shetland.
Small business issues – A large percentage of knitwear is sold in-person, direct from the knitters, to visitors to the isle. Partly due to Covid and partly due to the loss of the Bird Observatory in 2019 (the isle’s largest accommodation provider), visitor numbers in recent years have been very low compared to pre-2019 figures.
Travel on and off the isle is expensive and can be a factor that prohibits practitioners attending training or networking events as well as participating in craft fairs and suchlike. Flights and ferries can also be regularly delayed or cancelled due to weather issues. These transportation issues throughout the year mean that postage is an issue that affects both the knitters and their customers – knitters can be waiting weeks sometimes to receive essential supplies such as wool and, in a similar situation, customers can also be left waiting for long periods before their goods are even able to be dispatched from the isle.
The new GPSR export regulations for the EU have added further complications for small businesses, with knitters having had to pause orders to all EU countries. This limits potential sales and further impacts the viability and availability of Fair Isle knitting outside the island.
The main small business issue, however, is the small number of current practitioners and the lack of ability to recruit more knitters which is, in part, linked to the lack of available housing in the isle.
Ageing workforce – Out of the eight current professional makers, two are past retirement age and there are no younger knitters (of employment age) coming up to take their places.
Training in Fair Isle
In Shetland there is a scheme called ‘Peerie Makkers’ – which is run by volunteers and teaches hand-knitting to children – and we have a small Peerie Makkers group in Fair Isle.
As well as running knitting holidays where Fair Isle knitting skills are taught, Marie Bruhat has also recently launched The Fair Isle Academy. This online course was created primarily to be able to train new residents, as it was felt important to create support that could be available on demand, without having to rely purely on in-person teaching. The Fair Isle Academy contains 80 videos with over 7 hours of video tutorial for machine knitting and finishing and is available for free to anyone moving to Fair Isle (or living here already) or for a fee to anyone else. This was partially funded by Highlands and Islands Enterprise.
Apprenticeships
The UK Fashion and Textile Association has developed a Modern Apprenticeship in Fashion and Textiles Heritage at SCQF Level 7 which includes knitting.
Training and education in knitwear design
Whilst there is no formal training and education for Fair Isle knitting, there are higher education opportunities in general knitwear design.
Businesses employing two or more makers
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