fibernerd

[fibernerd]

Fiber of the Week: Silk

Above: my handspun Muga silk.

Diamonds have 4 C's, silk has 4 S's. Silk is soft, smooth, strong, and shiny. These qualities stem in part from the incredibly fine individual filaments. Silk is a warm fiber, but because it can be spun very fine can create exceptionally light, airy fabrics. It has a fairly dry feel and is very nice to wear against the skin. Silk is not very elastic, but has a wonderful, elegant drape.  Silk also takes dyes readily for wonderful deep colors!

When combined with other fibers silk adds all 4 of its S's to the mix.

There are several types of silk distinguished in large part by how the fibers are harvested and processed.

There are several types of silk, two of the most common are bombyx and tussah.

Bombyx silk is cultivated reeled silk. The silkworms spin their cocoons and then are harvested and the worms are killed still in the cocoon. The cocoons are soaked and unwound or 'reeled'. This process produces the smoothest most luminous fiber.

Tussah silk is wild silk. The worms spin their cocoons and hatch from them. The empty cocoons are harvested afterward, soaked, and then the fibers are carded and spun into yarn.

Now, on to the yarns!

KFI Luxury Collection Luxury Silk Sport 100% Silk - Bombyx approx 289 yards per 100g

This is a truly luxurious silk yarn! Smooth, strong, luminous, and dyed in beautiful, deep, slightly tonal colors.

Pashmina Shawlette by Kelene Kinnersly Turbinado by Sharyn Anhalt 165-11 Evening in Paris by DROPS design

Dance Rustic Silk form Dragonfly Fibers 100% Silk 450 yards per 113 grams

I love this yarn! Soft, and strong, with a refracted luminousity. This yarn comes in a beautiful range of Dragonfly's exceptional colors!

Salad Days by Anne Hanson Tidewater by Laura Aylor Lustrous by Kristina Vilimaite

Silky Wool by Elsebeth Lavold

This is a wonderful wool silk blend! It's a workhorse that can be used to make lovely garments with excellent drape. The wool brings elasticity and warmth, the silk lends a dry feel and just a hint of shine. It's available in a wonderful, wide range of colors!

Morning Mist by Annie Rowden - Polular at Hook & Needle now! Cristi finished hers and it’s gorgeous! Dahlia Cardigan by Heather Zoppetti Branching Out by Susan Lawrence

Summer Silk by Berroco

This yarn has a light, airy, chained construction. The silk adds a luminous quality and a lightness to the yarn and the nylon and cotton add durability.

Beetroot Salad by Julie Tootill - This is what Cristi at the Hook & Needle is working on now! Grenache by Alison Green Semillon by Alison Green

Umber from Misty Mountain Makers

This is an absolutly delicious blend of merino, yak, and silk! It's dyed by the lovely Emily at Misty Mountian Makers in a range of deep jewel tones. If you're a fan of the books or TV series The Magicians you'll love the names! For now, this one is a Hook & Needle exclusive, but check out Emily’s Etsy shop for more of her wonderful yarns and fibers!

This post has gotten looong! Here are a few more silk blends to check out if you’re so inclined: Nuna,  Sulka Legato,  Bloom, and Melilla. If you’re in the Maryville, TN area come and see them in person at the Hook & Needle!

[fibernerd]

Fiber of the Week: Cotton

The look, the feel of cotton...I might get in trouble if I finish that sentence, what with trademarks and all. For me, at least, it’s true. The vast majority of my wardrobe is made up of cotton fabrics. My towels, sheets, washcloths, all the things I would refer to as household linens, all cotton. That shift occurred during the Industrial Revolution for, I’m sure, many reasons, but I’m not going to lecture!

So, what makes cotton such a ubiquitous fiber? Like linen, it’s strong and gets stronger when wet. It’s also a cool fiber, conducting heat and moisture away from the body. It really shines when it comes to absorbency! According to The Knitter’s Book of Yarn by Clara Parkes (a great resource for fiber nerds, btw) “it can absorb more than twenty times its weight in water and release it quickly through evaporation.” It also takes dyes easily, can be spun in any weight from very thin, think thread, to super bulky, and is fairly inexpensive.

Enough singing the praises of cotton, let’s look at some yarn!

First up Sprout from Classic Elite Yarns: 100% Cotton, 100 grams, 109 yards, Bulky, Machine Washable.

This is one, bulky, lightweight ply wound around with one skinny ply to hold it together. It’s surprisingly lightweight for a bulky cotton.

Pattern Suggestions:

Leaf & Seed Pillow by Lauren Ruff (That’s me!)

Sprout Tee with Lace by Kristen TenDyke

R is for Rabbit by Emily Ivey

Up next Cleo Cotton from Plymouth Yarn: 100% Mercerized Pima Cotton, 50 grams, 125 yards, DK.

This is a workhorse yarn! Great for bags & dishcloths, but also for clothing. The mercerization makes it both stronger, shinier, and less susceptible to mildew.

Pattern Suggestions:

Simply Washcloths by Lisa Carnahan

2466 Carefree Cover-Up by Plymouth Yarn Design Studio

Farmer's Market Bag by Haley Waxberg (I’ve made this one and really enjoyed it!)

And last but not least, Pima Splash from Mirasol Yarn: 100% Pima Cotton, 100 grams, 210 yards, Worsted

Miss Woolfenden's Reticule by Divina Rocco

Tala Tank Top by Wool and the Gang

in threes: a baby cardigan by Kelly Herdrich

Yarns and patterns are available for purchase at the Hook & Needle in Maryville, TN.

~ L

2/28/17

[fibernerd]

Fiber of the Week: Linen

It’s been so warm this February I haven’t been able to work with many of my wool or alpaca yarns, so I’ve turned to linen!

Linen is one of my favorite fibers. It’s great for warm weather projects & household linens.

100% linen yarns tend to be stiff to handle at first, feeling almost like crunchy grass, but the more the yarn is handled the more it softens creating garments that will drape beautifully.

Linen has a soft sheen. It doesn’t have the shine of silk but is shinier than non-mercerized cotton. It is a strong fiber and becomes even stronger when wet. That fact combined with its long staple length allows linen to be spun very fine.

Fibra Natura Flax 100% Linen Yarn - 50 grams, 137 yards. 4 ply. Machine Washable.

Pattern Suggestions:

Abria by Bonne Marie Burns

Slip Stitch Dishtowels by Purl Soho

Ilene Bag by Hannah Mason

My Abria cardigan in Flax.

When mixed with other fibers linen adds strength and sheen. 

Juniper Moon’s Zooey is a 60% cotton, 40% linen crepe construction yarn. Crepe means 3 2-ply yarns plied together. It’s slightly thick and thin. The cotton adds immediate softness while the linen brings the strength. It’s suitable for garments and household linens since it’s machine washable.

Pattern Suggestions: 

#409 Cool Hemp Ponchette by Lana Hames

Sommer sleeveless top by Mari Chiba

Gemini by Jane Richmond

In Soft Linen the linen again adds strength and a bit of sheen but also contributes to a slight halo.

Classic Elite Yarns Soft Linen, 35% wool, 35% linen, 30% baby alpaca. 4 ply. Since it’s handwash I wouldn’t use it for household linens, and the wool and alpaca content will make it a bit too warm for warm weather garments. It would make lovely cooler weather garments, scarves, and shawls.

Pattern Suggestions: 

Soft Linen Lace Beret by Meg Kealey (Myers)

Digitalis Mitts in Soft Linen by Alegria DaSilva

Stripie Scarf by Amy Loberg (FiberWild!)

Yarns and patterns are available for purchase at the Hook & Needle in Maryville, TN.

~ L

2/14/17