Meet Anne Hanson of "Knitspot"

Pine and Ivy

I've long admired the work of the American knitwear designer Anne Hanson of Knitspot, so its with much pleasure that I'm now able to offer you her lace shawl and wrap designs. Anne's experience in fashion and graphic design as patternmaker/draper, technical designer and costumer in New York City's garment district provided her with a rich source of knowledge for garment construction and fit and on a wide range of fibers and fabrics. For you, these experiences translate into user-friendly pattern instructions tailored to all types of ability levels, designs and techniques.

Meet Anne Hanson: Knitspot owner and designer Anne Hanson, a life-long knitter with experience in the fashion and graphic design fields, enjoys an ongoing conversation with users, incorporating customer feedback into Knitspot products wherever possible. Anne also teaches and writes about knitting, spinning, and designing in her “knit spot”, and lives in Ohio with David, who loves wool, too.

Anne’s background as a patternmaker/draper, technical designer, and costumer in New York City’s garment district informs her work, providing a rich source of experience in garment construction and fit, as well as knowledge of a wide range of fibers and fabrics.

The most important concern at Knitspot is to provide user-friendly instructions for beautiful handknit designs. Knitspot offers fun and interesting patterns of all types and ability levels. In most cases, their patterns feature both written and charted instructions, with detailed explanations of technique.

A very special and important aspect of Anne's business is her program of recycling dollars back into the general fund for doing good in the world. Each month 10% of Knitspot proceeds go to an organization committed to world improvement. The focus is on non-religious organizations which keep administrative costs to a minimum, in order that more dollars reach those most in need.

Some recipients include: The National MS Society, Doctors Without Borders through Knitters Without Borders, Heifer International, Oprah's Angel Network and Cure Autism Now.

Dovecote

Anne breathes new life into the classic triangular shawl and rectangular stole by playing with size, shape as well as stitch patterns. Her designs often feature more than one size, petite or tall, and can be knit in more than one weight of yarn, allowing you to create a custom piece.

Knit a cozy triangular shawl like none other. A delicate Victorian composition Pine and Ivy drapes over your shoulders or wraps lovingly around your head and neck, this shawl can be worked in petite, medium or tall and features a dramatic horizontal hem. Lovely multiple stitch patterns make Bee Fields an interesting and pleasurable knit. Dovecote is knit from the top down with a knit-on edging at the hem and features a composition of multi-directional diamond patterns. And the array of swirling snowflake and pine motifs lends Whispering Pines its' name, its worked from the neck to the hem and has a knitted on lace edging at the outer border.

Lacewing

Explore gusset and shoulder shaping while creating a shawl that's both flattering and comfortable with one of Anne's Faroese designs. The array of lace patterns in Irtfa's Faroese Lace Shawl evokes the magical textures and colorful highlights of a raven's cloak, its worked from the top down with shaping at the shoulders. While Lacewing has an all over floral and fern pattern finishing with a banded motif just above the hem. The Maplewing pattern is written in two sizes and worked from hem to neck with deeply curving leaf motifs and dainty, undulating vertical panels.

Maplewing

Birnam Wood Wrap

Many of Anne's rectangular stole designs also allow for customization with petite or tall sizes. Palimpsest is worked in one piece and while the pattern is easy to work and memorize the lace knitting on both the wrong and right sides lend visual intricacy to the fabric. The Birnam Wood Wrap features a repeating diamond pattern over several pattern arrangements to evoke the confusing brambles and mysterious surprises of Shakespeare's Birnam Wood. Gnarled Oakwoods is worked from hem to center back in two pieces which are then grafted togther. The transitioning diamond and chevron patterns that combine to evoke textures and shapes of the ice and frost formations on the Icicle Dream stole are worked from center back to hem, with an applied lace edging.

Starlight Evening Wrap is a pretty rectangular stole featuring multiple lace patterns and a wide deep edging. Cluaranach is a cozy lace wrap or scarf in fingering yarn featuring thistle motifs and garter stitch selvedges.

Comfort yourself or someone special with one of these lovely square shaped shawls. Honey Baby, this magical square is worked in the round from the center out in lace patterns suggesting a field a buzz with bees and grasses. Work it in a washable fingering wool and this piece will be as turdy as it is pretty and practical to use at home or when traveling. Square shaped Snowflakes in Cedarwoods features an array of swirling snowflake and pine motifs and its also worked from the center out to the hem edge in the round.

Visit my website to purchase any of these Anne Hanson patterns.