We are delighted to announce a pair of events hosted by SOK: Shetland’s Organisation for Knitters to honor the knitter Agnes Hunter and her iconic shawl.
Agnes Hunter was a knitter in Unst in the 1950s whose shawl was purchased by Patons and Baldwin with the understanding that they would reverse-engineer a pattern of it to sell to knitters worldwide. Over the last seven decades, this shawl has been many knitters’ introduction to Shetland Lace knitting. However, the Patons and Baldwin pattern did not stick to traditional methods, and many knitters were left with a misunderstanding of what is unique about Shetland Knitting.
Elizabeth Johnston of Shetland Handspun has rewritten the pattern to reinstate Shetland knitting techniques to the process.
Live Event in Shetland
Join us on Saturday 25 April from 1 – 4 pm in room 16 of the Islesburgh Community Centre to learn more about Agnes Hunter from one of her descendants and hear the story of the shawl and its return to Shetland ways from Elizabeth Johnston.
We will begin with a light lunch at 1 pm, followed by the programme. The event is unticketed, but SOK will accept donations on the day, and we ask everyone to please RSVP at this link so we can plan appropriately.
Online Event
For those who are not in Shetland, Elizabeth Johnston will be repeating her part of the program as an online talk on Saturday 2 May at 8 pm BST. The online event will be recorded and available for one week.
Tickets are available for sale here, and the link to the recording of the event will be mailed out shortly after the event is finished.
A limited number of spaces have been reserved for those who claimed the £75 or higher rewards during our 2025 Crowdfunder. Please check your email, including your spam or junk folders, for the instructions on how to use your free online ticket for this event.
Descendants of Agnes Hunter
If you are a descendant of Agnes Hunter, you should have been contacted about this event. If you have not, please contact SOK before registering for the event.