Bonsall Framework Knitters' Workshop

06/10/2026

Framework knitting comes back to Bonsall

This past weekend, Adam and I brought the craft of framework knitting back to Bonsall for the first time in over 100 years. As part of Heritage Open Days, we opened our doors to the public. Over the weekend, we recorded 152 visits. We also held 8 events, covering project talks, knitting demonstrations, and history talks, and all of them sold out....

This past weekend, Adam and I brought the craft of framework knitting back to Bonsall for the first time in over 100 years. As part of Heritage Open Days, we opened our doors to the public. Over the weekend, we recorded 152 visits. We also held 8 events, covering project talks, knitting demonstratio...

31/08/2026

Framework Knitters Reassemble

Our 18th-century framework knitting machine has been reassembled at Bonsall Framework Knitters' Workshop, with expert support from the Framework Knitters Museum in Ruddington — the first time a frame has run here in over a century....

Watch our 18th-century framework knitting machine come back to life at Bonsall, rebuilt with expert help from the Framework Knitters Museum in Ruddington.

19/07/2026

We're back online! 🎉

Our website went down for a couple of days, but everything's fixed and running as normal. Thanks so much for your patience, and sorry if you tried to visit us and hit a dead end.

If you spot anything still not working properly, do let us know.

14/04/2026

Repointing is coming along! Not much of a challenge to tell old Vs new.

17/03/2026

Sold Out in Two Hours: Our Heritage Building Sessions with DHBT

Friday 13th March turned out to be a very good day for us - our first heritage building skills session with Derbyshire Historic Buildings Trust sold out within two hours of going live. We hadn't even had time to put it on our own website....

Friday 13th March turned out to be a very good day for us - our first heritage building skills session with Derbyshire Historic Buildings Trust sold out within two hours of going live. We hadn't even had time to put it on our own website.

20/02/2026

We’re excited to be giving a free talk at the Framework Knitters Museum in Ruddington on Thursday 30 April 2026, 1pm–2pm.

The talk Dilapidation to Demonstration: A Framework Knitting Revival in Bonsall will walk through the restoration of the 1737 framework knitters’ workshop at Yew Tree Farm, from the early findings and decisions we’ve faced, to why we’re using traditional materials and how we’re bringing the building back into use.

This event is part of the museum’s free lunchtime series and is held at Ruddington in Nottinghamshire. It’s a lovely way to spend your lunch break if you’re nearby and interested in heritage, textiles and conservation.

More info and booking here:

Located at Yew Tree Farm in Bonsall, Derbyshire, is a Grade II listed framework knitters’ workshop built in 1737 and left largely untouched since one of the last local knitters passed away in 1911. Behind the characteristic wide knitters’ windows, … Read More

16/02/2026

Rain. More rain. And three people who just keep turning up anyway.

Andrew, Craig and Jess. Proper heritage specialists who understand old buildings and don’t try to force modern solutions onto them. Everything they’re doing here is with traditional, breathable materials so the workshop can function the way it was designed to in 1737.

Most days recently have involved mud, wet stone and a lot of tea breaks in between showers. They just crack on. Rain or shine. Mostly rain.

We feel very lucky to have a team who care about doing this properly, not just quickly.

Thank you to Andrew Churchman Limited for treating this little building with the respect it deserves.

04/02/2026

Hello 👋
We thought it was about time we said hello properly.

We’re restoring a small Grade II listed framework knitting workshop in Bonsall, tucked away behind our farmhouse on The Dale. After a few years of planning, research and paperwork, building work is now officially underway and we’re hoping to open the workshop to visitors by the summer.

The project has been made possible thanks to funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and the Historic Houses Foundation, alongside a lot of help from local historians and supporters.

Our website is now live too:
👉 https://bonsallframeworks.uk/

It includes an interactive village map showing other former framework knitting workshops in Bonsall, a historical timeline of the building, and some of the research that’s already been uncovered. A big thank you to Jeanette Moss for the huge amount of work she’s done on the history of the site.

We’ll share updates here as the restoration progresses and as plans develop for opening later this year.

Thanks for following along.