As the range of our activities is so diverse, we have a number of different websites. The main Flamborough Manor site, which is where you are now, focuses primarily on accommodation (bed & breakfast) but has brief details of all our other activities. To allow for more information to be presented on these other activities, we have other self- contained web-sites and some of the links you will encounter while browsing these pages will take you to these separate sites. To return to this site, simply go to the LINKS page, which is common to all our sites.

For full information on the current range being offered by Flamborough

Marine, please visit the main Flamborough Marine web-site:

Views of Flamborough Head

Flamborough Marine

Flamborough Marine commenced trading in 1981. Initially the stock consisted of readily available machine-knitted sweaters of traditional design (for example, Guernseys and Bretons). As an antique shop was also run from the same premises we began to receive inquiries for ‘antique sweaters’, that is, the hand-knitted Ganseys which were once so much a feature of the fishing communities, but which had become generally unavailable. We contacted long-time resident of Flamborough, Nora Woodhouse, who knitted our first Ganseys (from memory) in several different North-East Coast patterns. She had originally been taught to knit Ganseys before the war by her fisherman father after her mother had been drowned at Robin Hood’s Bay. From Nora’s Ganseys we were able to make charts of the patterns which, beforehand, had not normally been written down but, rather, were passed on by word of mouth. Our idea was two-fold. First to offer an outlet for the sale of Ganseys once we had recruited knitters; and second, to package a kit containing the wool, needles, and our own charts so that the art of Gansey knitting could be spread even more widely and not limited to those within our immediate vicinity. As the first step in this plan we advertised for experienced knitters who might be interested in knitting with five steel needles and showed them what we wanted. Of the hundred initial replies only ten decided to persevere. We supplied these first ten with needles, wool, charts and instructions and began to build up a stock of Ganseys. During the succeeding years some knitters have dropped out and others have taken their places. One thing however has remained constant and that is the premises in Flamborough where the various Ganseys are displayed. We believe that we offer the only outlet for the authentic finished product. Without this outlet the knitters would have nowhere to sell their wares and the art of Gansey knitting (for, although a craft, the work itself is so intricate as to be rightly called an art form) would again be in danger of disappearing.

Classic Filey Pattern Gansey in Dark Navy

The Gansey? :

A Gansey is a distinctive woollen sweater, originally designed to provide protection for fishermen from wind and water but which is ideal for all outdoor activity. Using a tightly spun 5-ply worsted wool (popularly known as "Seamen's Iron") the intricately patterned Gansey is knitted in one piece on five steel needles. The patterning to back and front and, in some cases, the upper part of the sleeve provides an extra layer of protection, while the combination of seamless construction, fine wool and tight knitting produced a garment that is both wind and waterproof. Indeed, every part of the garment is designed with practicality in mind. The wool is knitted tightly so as to "turn water"; the lack of seams ensures greater strength and impermeability; the underarm gusset allows freedom of movement; the lower sleeves where most wear is sustained, are left plain so the worn part can be unravelled and re-knitted, while the patterning across the chest provides extra insulation. Note that the patterning is the same, back and front. This means that the Gansey is reversible, so that areas which come in for heavier wear, such as the elbows, can be alternated.

Filey Steps & Cables pattern in Falmouth Navy

Scarborough pattern in Dark Navy

Special Commissions

We were approached by Canadian film and television actor, artist and musician, Rajiv Surendra with a commission for a Gansey based on little more than an old photograph in a reference book. Using the expert knowledge of our longest-serving knitter, Marion, we were able to produce the exquisite garment shown above left, worn (and loved) by Rajiv. This stunning Gansey demonstrates what our knitters are capable of; but, as a special commission, this particular pattern cannot be repeated. So successful was this first commission, that it led to a second, and then a third.

Scarborough pattern, knitted by Melanie Jones

We offer an extended range of beautiful colours in 5-ply worsted Guernsey wool, including the unusually named “Herring Girl’s Pink”, shown at left in the Scarborough pattern, knitted by Melanie Jones, who kindly sent the photograph, taken on the ferry returning from the Isle of Jura.

A surprise was in store for David Wright when he visited our shop in Flamborough on Father's Day, accompanied by his daughters. Waiting for him was the Scarborough Gansey previously ordered and knitted by one of our skilled knitters. A thrilled Mr Wright could not wait to try his Gansey on (complete with tag) and kindly consented for us to use the photograph at left.

While the majority of Gansey patterns are to be found in Yorkshire and the North-East of England, other patterns originate from Cornwall and East Anglia. Shown at left is a beautiful Cornish Knit-frock in the Polperro design.

Polperro Knit-Frock

Henry Freeman (29 April 1835 – 13 December 1904) was a Whitby fisherman and lifeboatman. Born in Bridlington, Yorkshire, Henry worked in his youth as a brickmaker, but with the decline of the brick trade Henry turned to the sea and fishing. He moved to Whitby and became a fisherman and a lifeboatman. He was the sole survivor of the 1861 Whitby lifeboat disaster when a freak wave drowned all his companions. It was his first mission and he was the only member of the crew wearing the newly developed cork flotation jacket. Henry was a lifeboatman for more than 40 years, 22 years as coxswain. He participated in many rescues and saved many lives and became a respected ambassador for the lifeboat cause and a prominent spokesman for his fellow fishermen.

A satisfied customer, descended from Henry Freeman (opposite), tries on his Whitby Gansey, knitted in denim colour 5-ply wool, in our shop at Flamborough.

Whitby pattern in Navy

Seahouses (Tree of Life) pattern in Dark Navy

Flamborough pattern in Bottle Green

Flamborough Gansey in Denim colour 5-ply wool

Shown above are two views of a Scarborough pattern with straight (split) welt instead of the usual ribbed welt. Note also the “false seam” whihc runs up the side of the Gansey (actually just a purl stitch), which gives an indication of back and front. But rest assured that the Ganseys are all knitted entirely in one piece.

Gansey Knitting Kits

Each Gansey or Guernsey Knitting Kit contains the appropriate quantity of 5-ply worsted Guernsey wool, a set of five double-ended 2.5 mm steel needles, individual body and sleeve charts, and full instructions for the pattern of your choice. A copy of the fully illustrated soft-back book "Patterns for Guernseys, Jerseys & Arans" by Gladys Thompson is also available as an optional extra.

Gansey knitted by Carolyn Swinton from our Kit

Shown at left is a Gansey knitted by Carolyn Swinton from one of our Kits. Carolyn wrote to us: “ I've just completed my first gansey! Proudly modelled by my son. The longer sleeves and thumb holes were his special request. I just wanted to thank you for the excellent quality yarn and the very well explained pattern that resulted in such a lovely garment. Now the rest of my family want one too!! Expect further orders soon! “

The Manor House, Flamborough, Bridlington, East Riding of Yorkshire. YO15 1PD Telephone: 01262 850943 [International: +44 1262 850943] E-mail: gm@flamboroughmanor.co.uk

The Manor House Accommodation, Books, Traditional Knitwear & Hand-Knitted Ganseys, Breton shirts Lesley Berry and Geoffrey Miller The Manor House Flamborough Bridlington East Riding of Yorkshire YO15 1PD United Kingdom Telephone: 01262 850943 (Mobile 07718 415234) International: +44 1262 850943 E-mail: gm@flamboroughmanor.co.uk

“The Greatest Sweater of a Generation?” - This was the opinion of ”Put This On” on-line magazine when images appeared of Daniel Day-Lewis wearing his Staithes pattern Gansey, hand-knitted in one piece by one of our expert knitters.

We were first approached by Daniel Day-Lewis, after he had unearthed some photographs of his father, Cecil Day-Lewis, wearing a Gansey. An internet search brought him to the Flamborough Marine web-site where he was very much taken with this image (at left) on our site, of a proud Victorian Gansey-wearer in a classic pattern. One of our knitters was then able to replicate the pattern in a Gansey for him. So successful was this that a second Gansey was then commissioned by Sir Daniel, to match the one worn by his father. We were able to establish that his father’s Gansey was, in fact, not knitted in one piece, but we were again able to replicate the pattern (with a few alterations, such as the addition of a sleeve pattern) with the end result being a stunning Gansey which, it appears, has become one of his favourites. Daniel Day-Lewis in his “Staithes” Gansey, supplied by Flamborough Marine Photograph by kind permission of Tim Walker

A Flamborough Marine Gansey “The Greatest Sweater of a Generation?”

This is the mobile variant of our web-site, specially designed for viewing on smartphones, but lacking some of the more detailed information available on our full-size site..

Views of Flamborough Head

Flamborough Marine

Classic Filey Pattern Gansey in Dark Navy

The Gansey? :

Filey Steps & Cables pattern in Falmouth Navy

Scarborough pattern in Dark Navy

While the majority of Gansey patterns are to be found in Yorkshire and the North-East of England, other patterns originate from Cornwall and East Anglia. Shown above is a beautiful Cornish Knit- frock in the Polperro design.

Polperro Knit-Frock

Flamborough Gansey in Denim colour 5-ply wool

The Manor House Flamborough Bridlington East Riding of Yorkshire Telephone 01262 850943

Seahouses (Tree of Life) pattern in Dark Navy

Gansey Knitting Kits

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The Manor House, Flamborough, Bridlington, East Riding of Yorkshire. YO15 1PD Telephone: 01262 850943 [International: +44 1262 850943] E-mail: gm@flamboroughmanor.co.uk