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| Knitting Yarns |
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| Buying Yarn Purchase all yarn from the same dye lot. Check yarn label for washing instructions. Stay within two sizes of the recommended needle size. When substituting yarns, select a yarn close to the original in weight and type. Knitting With Cotton Cotton keeps us cool in summer and warm in winter. Cotton is soft and comfortable. Cotton comes as crepe, boucle, slubbed, ribbon, and chenille to name some of the varieties. Cotton does not have the same elasticity as other yarns. Nor does the yarn slide as easily on the needles. Always knit ribbing on smaller needles. Sew seams firmly. Generally, it is best to hand wash cotton knits. Do not dry in the sun, since sunlight discolours and weakens fibres. Knitting With Fine Yarns All fine yarns need not always be knit on small needles. Lofty and springy wools respond to pushing the limit on needle size. Sometimes the characteristics of the yarn are actually enhanced on larger needles. You may decide to finish your garment with tighter ribbing or a firmer border to solidify the looser softer fabric in the main sections. Wool and wool blends, alpacas, and fine mohairs respond nicely to larger needles. Fine yarns accommodate large pattern repeats that are impossible with heavier yarns. Lace is a great choice for fine yarn projects. The open work quality of this fabric type allows you to obtain a much larger gauge than you would imagine. If you are concerned about the looseness of the fabric, insert a cable at intervals to provide a stronger column of stitches. Standed colourwork lends a fine yarn body and stability. The easiest of stitches (e.g. stockinette stitch) make the sheer number of stiches seem smaller, especially when worked in the round on circular needles. Qiviut Qiviut is the fine, soft, light brown to grey underdown of the musk ox, a great shaggy beast of the tundra. The first qiviut was spun and woven into stockings. Qiviut is desirable because it is lightweight and warm. Its fibres lack crimp and scales and do not shrink or felt in washing or weaving. The soft neutral colour blends with almost any colour scheme. It has a luxurious hand, feeling very soft and silky against the skin. Without crimp, it has little elasticity. Fibres from the domestic herds are collected just as the musk ox is ready to shed in the spring. It comes off in large sheets. First dander is removed. Then the fibres are separated into three parts: stiff guard hairs, medium hair fibres, and fine underdown. The medium fibres can be saved to blend with wool. Carding is not always necessary. If you do card, card just enough to straighten and smooth the fibres. Typically, yarns spun of qiviut are fine to gossamer. The fibres are relatively short, smooth and fine, and must be spun with more twist to hold the yarn together. |
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