Alice Starmore (''née'' Alice Matheson) is a professional needleworker, photographer and author of books on needlework, born in Stornoway,

Western Isles The Outer Hebrides () or Western Isles ( gd, Na h-Eileanan Siar or or ("islands of the strangers"); sco, Waster Isles), sometimes known as the Long Isle/Long Island ( gd, An t-Eilean Fada, links=no), is an island chain off the west coast ...

, Scotland. As an author she is best known for her widely-read ''Alice Starmore's Book of Fair Isle Knitting'', a guide to the complex technique of knitting pullovers and other items using a palette of five colours, on which she is an acknowledged expert. Her photographic work is devoted to the natural world, especially birds and insects.

Life and career

Growing up in a traditional Scottish fishing community with Gaelic as her

native language A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongu ...

, Starmore learned knitting and created her own designs by the age of five. In 1975 she produced a knitwear collection which was sold in London boutiques. In 1978, Starmore was awarded a Winston Churchill Fellowship, under which she travelled to

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

, Sweden and

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

to study their textile traditions. She is an authority on Celtic and

Fair Isle Fair Isle (; sco, Fair Isle; non, Friðarey; gd, Fara) is an island in Shetland, in northern Scotland. It lies about halfway between mainland Shetland and Orkney. It is known for its bird observatory and a traditional style of knitting. Th ...

design and technique through her books, as well as articles for ''Threads'' and ''Vogue Knitting'' magazines. She markets her own lines of threads and

yarn Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibres, used in sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving, embroidery, ropemaking, and the production of textiles. Thread is a type of yarn intended for sewing by hand or machine. Modern manu ...

. In 1991 Starmore founded Windfall Press, which began with knitting titles and moved to Scottish Gaelic. Alice starmore design

Starmore put on an art exhibition called "Mamba" at An Lanntair, Stornoway, Isle of Lewis during Summer 2008. She has appeared at a number of textile and knitting events, including the Dutch ''Stitch 'n' Bitch'' Day (Rotterdam, 2006) and

I Knit London I Knit London (often shortened to I Knit or IKL) is a knitting organisation based in London, England, UK, comprising a knitting group, knitting shop and knitting events. I Knit London was formed in December 2005, and is run, by Gerard Allt (b. Liv ...

's ''Weekender'' (September 2009). Starmore photographs the natural world, particularly birds and insects, and she contributes to publications of the British Dragonfly Society. She is regarded as an authority on Scottish moorland habitats, and is employed by the

Royal Society for the Protection of Birds The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a charitable organisation registered in England and Wales and in Scotland. It was founded in 1889. It works to promote conservation and protection of birds and the wider environment thr ...

(RSPB) as their Education Officer for the Isles of Lewis and

Harris Harris may refer to: Places Canada * Harris, Ontario * Northland Pyrite Mine (also known as Harris Mine) * Harris, Saskatchewan * Rural Municipality of Harris No. 316, Saskatchewan Scotland * Harris, Outer Hebrides (sometimes called the Isle of ...

. Her daughter Jade is a professional needleworker and artist, and has published her own books.

''Alice Starmore's Book of Fair Isle Knitting''

Starmore is best known for her book on Fair Isle knitting, a traditional knitting technique used to create complex patterns with multiple, typically up to five, colours. Sarah E. White, on ''About.com'', writes that Starmore's ''Book of Fair Isle Knitting'' "makes my head hurt in a good way." The ''Knitters Bookshelf'' editor writes of the book that "Alice Starmore's incomparable unveiling of the art of Fair Isle knitting is not just the most complete resource on the subject that is available, but also a journey into the world of color and fiber and design that both inspires and enlightens." Alessandro De Luca of ''Yarns of Italy'' writes that it is a book he can read, not as a book of ready to use patterns but a book which explains the history, theory and techniques involved. He writes "If you've ever wanted to create fair isle patterns that are uniquely your own, this is the must-have book. If you've ever wondered about knitting history, this is the book. And if you've ever wondered about steeking, carrying yarn in colorwork, or combining colors in a pattern, this is the book." Michael Stillman, on ''AE Monthly'', notes that while knitting books no longer dominate the top ten most sought after old books where once they used to, Starmore's ''Tudor Roses'' is still (2010) in 10th place.

Published works

* Starmore, Alice. ''Aran Knitting'' (Interweave Press US, 1997. Expanded edition Dover US 2010). * Starmore, Alice. ''Scandinavian Knitwear'' ( Bell & Hyman UK, 1981) * Starmore, Alice. ''Knitting from the British Islands'' (Bell & Hyman UK, 1982) * Starmore, Alice. ''Children's Knitting From Many Lands'', (Bell & Hyman UK,

St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, in the Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under si ...

US, 1983) * Starmore, Alice. ''Alice Starmore's Book of Fair Isle Knitting'' (

Taunton Press Taunton Press is a publisher of periodicals, books, and websites for the hobbyist and building trades based in Newtown, Connecticut. It was established in 1975 by Paul Roman and his wife Jan. Publications and Products Periodicals published by ...

US, Blandford Books UK, 1988) ''(Also published as: The Fair Isle Knitting Handbook'', Blandford Press UK, 1990) * Starmore, Alice. ''Sweaters For Men'' ( Ballantine Books US, Pavilion Books UK, 1988) * Starmore, Alice. ''The Celtic Collection'' (Anaya, UK,

Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, laid out in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. At its centre is a high column bearing a statue of Admiral Nelson comm ...

US, 1992) * Starmore, Alice. ''Charts for Colour Knitting'' (Windfall Press, UK], 1992, expanded edition Dover US 2011) * Starmore, Alice. ''Fishermen's Sweaters'' (Anaya UK, Trafalgar Square US, 1993) ''(Also translated into Swedish and published as: Fiskar-Tröjor'', Raben Prisma, Stockholm 1995) * Starmore, Alice. ''Celtic Needlepoint'' (Anaya UK, Trafalgar Square US, 1994) * Starmore, Alice. ''In The Hebrides'' (Windfall Press US, 1995) * Starmore, Alice. ''Stillwater'' (Windfall Press US, 1996) * Starmore, Alice. ''Pacific Coast Highway'' (Windfall Press US, 1997) * Starmore, Alice. ''Tudor Roses'' (Windfall Press US, 1998, expanded edition Calla Editions, 2013) * Starmore, Alice and Jade Starmore. ''The Children's Collection'' (Interweave Press US, 2000) * Starmore, Alice. ''Road Movies Volume 1'' (Windfall Press UK, 2008) * Starmore, Alice. ''Glamourie'' (Calla Editions, 2018)

References

External links

Mamba: An Exhibition By Alice StarmoreVirtual YarnsWindfall Press
{{DEFAULTSORT:Starmore, Alice People in knitting Scottish non-fiction writers Year of birth missing (living people) Living people People from Stornoway