Live Stitch @ Little Knits

Happy July 4th everyone!  I hope you are all well and celebrating this beautiful day with a smile.

For those of you who are in the Seattle area and wanted to know, yes, we are open on Monday the 5th and hope to see you at the store.  We hope it will be a sunny day.  We will have some new things for you at our West Seattle location.

I thought this may be a good day for a quick yarn review.  I am a big fan of Fly Designs and Pat Fly’s fiber-magic.  I am always amazed when she manages to get deep, intense, jewel tones on most unlikely fiber combinations.  This is especially true for Flutterby, a 70% angora and 30% Polyamide blend with a soft hand and a great feel next to skin.   

When dyed, angora usually dilutes colors and in hand-dyed yarns this usually results in a pastel color range.  Not so for Flutterby.  Unless intentionally left as pastels Fly Designs’ color lines are rich and saturated, which results in beautiful finished garments whether knitted

or crocheted.            In addition, Flutterby has an incredibly reasonable price point for a 70% angora yarn that come in comes in 4 ounce hanks with 900 yards of sport weight yarn. 

While working with Flutterby we have found that it has a soft hand and feels wonderful next to skin.  Here is what HelloKnitty of Ravelry had to say about her experience with Flutterby:

I worked with the Roses color line of Flutterby, which I thought to be a beautiful combination of light to dark pinks.  I like variegated yarns but sometimes have a hard time finding the right pattern to complement the colors.  With that in mind I set out to find the perfect stitch pattern for my Flutterby.  After a few tries I decided that the woven look of linen stitch worked well with this color. 

I started my wrap over three times and I can tell you from experience it is easy to frog (given the high angora content I was surprised).  I would recommend tugging gently as the yarn can snap when pulled hard.  The polyamide component of Flutterby provides strength that you will not find in 100% angora.

In my multiple attempts to come up with the right gauge I saw that linen stitch made a very firm fabric so I finally settled on U.S. size 9 needles, which gave me a soft, flexible, and almost a gauzy fabric.  I knit the wrap length-wise with 603 stitches.

The finished size for my scarf/stole ended up being about 110 inches long and 9 inches wide.  I think half as long and twice as wide would also be very functional depending on how you like to wear your scarves.  I can easily wrap this scarf/stole around my neck 3 times making a nice cocoon for myself.  

A quick note, I did wash and block a swatch while testing needle sizes but I did not block the finished wrap (I am too busy wearing it).  I was surprised to see my swatch was colorfast as in my experience intense reds and pinks – especially in hand-dyed yarns – have a tendency to bleed.

Overall, I enjoyed working with Flutterby.  While Flutterby is 70% angora and has a nice halo somehow this has been achieved without yarn being too fluffy.  This is a very soft and non-prickly yarn that is lightweight and warm at the same time.  Flutterby comes in beautiful colorways and has a wide color palette that can please everyone.

Welcome to the world of Evilla Artyarn!  I was expecting a Kauni Effektgarn clone but I found something a little different.  The color repeats are long, the same as Kauni, the weight is the same as Kauni; not proving my point too well, am I?  The difference is . . . the feel.

Evilla Artyarn is a fingering weight Shetland yarn.  Shetland has a reputation of being coarse and a little rough on the hands and skin when worn.  I happen to LOVE Shetland so I definitely don’t have a problem with knitting it or wearing it.  A quick FYI, you can get Evilla in different hank sizes – anywhere from 100 grams to 400 grams – and the yardage and prices change based on the weight of each hank.

Those with sensitive skin will be pleasantly surprised.  When I began to wind it into cakes, this color is A46 – repeats of plum, cranberry and rose; rich, soft, subtle and very beautiful.  I noticed there were no breaks, it was smooth and even – I couldn’t wait to try it!

I wanted to try a pattern and had been on Ravelry.com in the Little Knits group Activity tab.  Someone had in their queue the Cables and Eyelet Cowl and I absolutely love the pattern.  I am working on a pattern which may use some elements of this pattern, so this became my swatch pattern.  At first the yarn felt coated, like a lotion (this is the natural lanolin on the fiber).  I wasn’t too sure about that but kept going.  Within a few minutes I realized I was gliding along.  

I had cast on with US 5 (3.75mm) needles and setup 4 pattern repeat rows with a 3-stitch garter stitch edge. This is not a tight gauge (5.5 – 6 sts/inch).  After blocking and drying, the cables popped as the swatch flattened out, and the stitches were defined and even.  Even though I knitted a 10” x 7” swatch, I still didn’t see any color change. . .this may give you an idea for how long the repeats are.  And you could go down a needle size or two for a denser fabric.  

I wanted to see what another color looked like as well as create a stockinette stitch swatch. So I pulled out the Evilla in A97 – Basil/Sage. . . well, green. 

Again the yarn feels soothing to the skin. The stitch definition is great if you are using texture stitches in your pattern.  But for straight stockinette stitch, it is a nice smooth finish.  The gauge is the same as the patterned swatch above. If you want to create a timeless garment in a yarn that will show off your pattern and last, Evilla should be on your list.

Please feel free to let Fulay or me know if this review is helpful to you or if there are other yarns you are interested in seeing a review posted.

If you have been lurking, chatting and/or posting on the Little Knits Group on Ravelry, we have probably crossed paths.  I am gwynneknit, please stop by and say “hi!”   

Blessings,

Gwynne

I know I have been absent for a while and my excuse: we have been working on updating the site and the blog.  Sadly, our work is still not done.  And I noticed that for some reason comments for the last post was deleted magically by the system – I have no idea how – and I could not recover them.  My sincere apologies for those of you who posted comments.  Please post again; I will make sure your comments are published.

And, now to a much juicier topic, Fly Designs Wooly Singles.  You might have noticed, Winter Knitty is up and Ann Weaver of Weaver Designs has a new jacket pattern, Everybody Knows.  I love the easy construction of this jacket and the way it is fitted.    My favorite part of the design is the fact that the jacket has a futuristic look with a softly fitted body.  Everybody Knows makes me want to knit one for myself, wear it while riding a Ducati to meet my Klingon friends all at the same time (note I am running a 103 degree fever as I type this so I hope the last sentence makes sense – it sure makes sense to me).

I also like the fact that Ann’s pattern uses Fly Designs’ Wooly Singles, a fine single ply wool with a rustic look.  My personal experience with this yarn is such that I can wear it next to my skin but it is not a super soft fiber, at least not at first.  If I were to compare this yarn to a similar hand-dyed product I would say that it is something between Manos del Uruguay only softer and Malabrigo’s worsted weight merino only a little more rustic and slightly heavier.  Wooly Singles can be used for jackets, sweaters, cardigans, accessories and if one would like to do so, for felting.

With every new yarn I try to request a review from one our friends and this time was no different.  This is what Samantha has to say about Wooly Singles:

I am a huge fan of Fly Designs. From their sock yarns to the Flying Sheep it is all beautifully hand-dyed in colors ranging from dreamy soft to brash and wild. And most of their yarns come in fat, generous hanks just begging to be turned into whatever design your imagination can conjure up. What’s not to love? And now, there’s a new kid in the Fly Designs family, Wooly Singles.

According to its label Wooly Singles is a “single ply fine count wool” and comes in big half pound skeins with 520 yards. In the hank, the strands appeared broad and flat with very little twist reminding me a little of a wrapped cotton I have used for summer knitting. The yarn is not at all scratchy but it did not feel particularly cushy-soft either. On the other hand, the fiber does get softer and cuddlier with blocking, washing and use.

I wound my hank of Wooly Singles it into an enormous cake and decided to try it out with a baby jacket. I love the homespun look of baby items made in a heavier yarn and the soft lavenders and palest blue of the colorway I was given made the choice an easy one.  I worked the jacket on aluminum size 8 straight needles knitting from the top down in the round. The body of the jacket and the sleeves are stockinette so I could see how the colors played out and the yoke had a bit of pattern to it so I could judge elasticity and stitch definition. With size 8 needles I got 4.5 stitches and 6.5 rows to the inch in stockinette stitch.

My first impression, given that I was beginning with the patterned yoke, was that Wooly Singles worked okay on size 8 needles but would probably be happier on size 9 or even 10. I tested this theory later with a few swatches and found that the 10’s led to the most comfortable knitting and nicest finished product.  The yarn knits up much more smoothly than its appearance in the hank would suggest. I expected it to look slightly like a thick-n-thin yarn but it does not. Even with a single ply with little twist the good folks at Fly Designs have managed to make a consistent yarn that makes a lovely finished product.

Plain stockinette stitch shows even the slightest imperfections in the yarn and I never found a one. The patterned area of the jacket shows up nicely with clear definition and the eyelets at neck and hem were opened up perfectly even before blocking. This is a fairly rugged yarn and I don’t think it would be ideal for lacy patterns but I could easily see it with twists, cables, and knit-purl patterns. A moss stitch would likely play up Wooly Singles’ ruggedness nicely.

Fly Designs’ color work on the yarn impressed me hugely. It is hard to pull off multiple colors in a hank even if they are all a shade or two apart from one another. Things can get muddy and colors can pool when knitted. I knit Wooly Singles in four different needles sizes and every finished piece had excellent color distribution with absolutely no pooling. I wondered if the sleeves of the jacket would look vastly different from the body given that they were worked over a little more than a third of the stitches for the body but it looks just fine. When I looked closely I saw that the sleeves looked a little more striped than the rest of the garment but it is subtle and the overall look is harmonious.

I do think that Fly Designs has another hit on their hands. I would probably treat Wooly Singles like a chunky yarn if I were to knit with it again and I’d love to see a warm, wooly sweater out of it – you know, the kind you put on and just sink right into when it’s blustery outside. It’s definitely not a delicate flower of a yarn, but it’s beautiful and behaves nicely on the right size needles. Those of you who like your yarn with a little more heft are going to fall head-over-heels for this.

Ramen appeared at our shop by happenstance when a group of wild and crazy knitters showed up right before their Alaskan Sock Cruise.  They made us laugh, shared their projects, their lovely bags (I actually considered hiding one of the bags), cheerful smiles and then showed me a pair of socks they were knitting.   This is when I saw Ramen – dyed by Emma of Dragonfibers – and knew I had to have some.  No spoon for this Ramen or even a fork, all you need is a desire for great color and a sense of adventure (a pair of needles would help too).

The infamous test knitter who got me hooked on this yarn is Shannon and she was punished for her deed by having to write a review for Ramen!  Here is what the sock addict had to say:

OK, I’ll admit it from the start, I’m prejudiced. And it’s not just that Emma, the Queen Dragon of Dragonfibers is a close friend, or that I’m a charter member of her sensational spinning fiber club, or even a regular customer of her other yarns and fibers. I am a sock yarn fanatic. Given this fact, I have to admit that I was predisposed to like Dragonfibers’ Ramen Sock yarn from the very beginning. But Ramen is something special.

The whole concept is based on the popular sock yarn “blanks” that we have seen recently from popular dyers and yarn companies, where fingering weight yarn is knitted into a double-knit piece of material on a knitting machine. The fabric is then dyed and offered as is to be knitted directly from the fabric.

Knitters generally praise these for their innovative form and for the way in which they knit up. In a nutshell, some truly wild and beautiful color patterns and gradations result from these yarns. However, one issue that has been raised by knitters is that the blanks are just plain hard to wind and that they are difficult to knit from.

This is where the Dragonfibers’ genius comes in. The Ramen Sock yarn is dyed as a flat sock blank by Emma, but then frogged and wound into two 2 ounce balls of socky deliciousness. The name derives from the crinkly, kinky texture of the yarn once it has been frogged and wound into cakes. All the gorgeousness of the sock blanks and none of the frogging pain! And what gorgeousness it is. Instead of sharply defined stripes or variegations, Emma’s magic dyeing fingers produce a gradual, Noro-esque gradation of colors. This opens up a whole range of patterns for knitters to use. Ramen would look equally good in simple knit and purl patterns as well as lacy eyelet patterns. Unlike some other multi-colored yarns Ramen color schemes does not detract from more complex sock patterns.

As a test knitter I was gifted with what we jokingly called “Shrimp Ramen Yarn” because it resembled the colors on a package of shrimp flavored ramen noodles: a shrimpy peach, soft yellow, and mulberry. I used my Ramen for socks for ladies’ size 9 feet while using the Anastasia pattern with U.S. 1.5 double points. As an experiment, I also knitted the leg a bit longer than I ordinarily would have taking the yardage for a test drive too.

Maybe I’m easily amused but I was utterly fascinated by the color changes as I knitted along. I loved how the colors smoothly blended into each other and transitioned from one to another. The wavy texture of the yarn was easier to work with than I had expected. Knitting with Ramen felt different than the usual sock yarn texture but not at all unpleasant and once washed the fabric maintains none of the crinkle, the resulting fabric is firm and smooth.

Ramen is made of a 3-ply superwash wool and nylon blend (75/25), and it is soft. In addition the yarn has generous yardage with 425 yards per 4 ounce. I knitted calf length legs in my socks and still had an amazing amount left over. I also think Ramen is more than a just-a-sock yarn. This yarn is made for a variety of projects; I’m considering a hat and mitten set next.

PS. Mom, you HAVE to return my Ramen socks back to me! I am your only child for goodness sake!

Something about Kauni reminds me of Noro, the length of the color runs, the very subtle transitions from color to color and even the occasional plant matter.  

I really like working with Kauni but I thought there needs to be a bit more versatility in gauge and texture, which is how Kauni Lace came about – a single ply roughly spun yarn that imitates the qualities and the texture of a hand-spun yarn.  For the time being (while we wait for Kauni to resolve their shipment-delivery issues), we have only one color in stock and hope to receive multiple colors later in the year.

As with any unique new yarn we sought a review for Kauni Lace and this time it was Lisa’s turn, author of Knit Fix, published in 2006.  Lisa, an impressively super fast knitter, got back to me with her feedback in record time:

A couple of Friday nights ago I was on the phone with Sue talking about yarn.  We’d been working with yarn all day, though in different cities, and there we were talking about Kauni multicolor lace-weight when the rest of the world is out playing (this may define yarnaholics).  Little Knits has a trial batch of lace-weight Kauni but only in one color at this point, and even though I’m not a fan of pink, I wanted to try it, too (OK, maybe this defines yarnaholic). 

Sue sold me a skein with instructions to review it.  My father was a captain in the U.S. Navy.  Occasionally I do as I’m told.  And sometimes not.  Sue instructed me to wind the yarn by hand, that a swift would tear it.  I swifted the yarn, it tore, but hey, this yarn is born for spit-splicing.  Besides, look at this:

Seductive stripes in situ.  Easy to imagine knit up as the Revontuli shawl, which is designed for Kauni sport-weight.

At first knitting, I have to admit the Kauni lace put me off.  Compared to the soft stuff I’ve been running through my hands lately, this is rough yarn.  But it’s tough, and the colors are glorious.  Even at its thinnest, the yarn never broke during knitting.  Once I began coating my hands with lotion – Heal My Hands, a solid cake of balm in a tin – the knitting became a pleasure.  I started the shawl (begins at neckline) on size 6 needles, moved to size 7 after the first few inches, and ended up using an 8 for the final two-thirds.  Despite its fine weight, Kauni lace really looks better on the larger needle given its slightly fuzzy halo.

After blocking, the fabric softened somewhat.  It’s not scratchy.  I must say, though, that I’ve rarely seen a yarn keep its blocked shape so well.  Here’s the finished product, as modeled by Karen:

Knit up, Kauni lace is almost sheer. It floats.

Another friend who loves these colors has already put in first dibs for the beta test shawl.  I’d like to make this shawl again, in another colorway for me.  Not pink.  Hint, hint, Sue.

When I first saw Yummy by Universal Yarns it was on a hank with a test label that had no specifics about the yarn itself that is, no info on yardage, fiber content or gauge.  But I fell in love anyway.   I liked the tight spin of the yarn, the deep jewel tones of the colors, and the subtle silky sheen.

Yummy comes in big 4 ounce hanks (approx. 130 grams), with 370 yards per hank, which is more than enough for an average size pair of adult socks.  This beautiful yarn is hand-dyed – label reads ‘pot dyed’ – by Turkish artisans and has beautiful color quality and depth.  And, a must for me when it comes to sock yarn, it is machine washable.  Please don’t let all this sock yarn talk limit you, Yummy would also work great for any lace weight project that can be worked with a hand-dyed multi color yarn.

Of course, every good new yarn deserves a good review and this is why we called Samantha, our no-nonsense reviewer and this what she had to say:

My first impression looking at the Yummy was all about the colors.   Rich and vibrant, the whole skein is saturated with colors ranging from a warm plum through a bright pink to a spicy coral.  The yarn made me want to pick it up and start knitting with it, just to see how it would come out.  I also noticed that Yummy was smooth, silky smooth with a tight twist and none of the beaded effect that some sock yarns have.  There’s no halo or fuzziness to this yarn, although in some lights it does appear to have a subtle sheen (EDITOR’S NOTE  – actual skeins received does have a very slight fuzz/halo).  The sample skein had no content listed, but it feels like a high quality merino.

I like socks that are woven fairly tightly, so I swatched it with a size one needle.  I used a set of double point needles with Canadian sizing, so it was actually a 1.25mm set.  I got 7.5 stitches and 10 rows to the inch and liked the smooth, polished look of it.  However, even by my standards this was not comfortable going and I switched to a 1.50 set of needles for the socks (there is no American equivalent, they are both loosely referred to as a size 1).  On these, I got 8 stitches and 12 rows to the inch.

Since my double point needles are quite pointy, I was amazed and delighted to find that this yarn doesn’t split at all.  I knit an entire sock without ever splitting a stitch, even when I was watching TV and not looking at my knitting.  It’s the tight twist that does it and boy, does it make a difference.  The finished product is smooth and with superb stitch definition.  Even my husband (a non-knitter), looked at the swatch and was impressed.  He couldn’t quite say why but finally said that it looked clean and sharp,” which it did.  Cables worked in this yarn would pop , as would any stitch pattern.  The downside of this, of course, is that any mistakes are instantly obvious – no fudging with this yarn.

Yummy stands up quite well to washing and blocking.  I used cold water and a mild soap to wash my sock, then rolled the pieces up in a white towel and gently pushed out the water before laying it out and nudging into shape.  The yarn didn’t seem to get any softer, but it was soft to start with.  In truth, it didn’t really change at all – a plus if, like me, you don’t want to guess at how the final product will look.

The only negative I found with this yarn was while I was grafting the toes.  The tight twist on this yarn makes it tend to twist back on itself.  This isn’t much of a problem while knitting, but it created some problems on a darning needle.  I would definitely knit with Yummy again and I am anxious to see the rest of the available colorways.  I can already picture a sock with cable rib and little cables running down the sides… .

PS. I know, I could not do 10 posts in 10 days – major burn out as I have tons of new stuff that I have to photograph and share with you, which made the 10 for 10 deal impossible.  Sorry.

I have been super quiet I know. But, I have so much that must be written that I plan to post everyday for the next 10 days! That is my challenge (well, that and a few other things including getting in shape to run a long race early next year). Will you count with me? Here is post #1.

Quick note, Seattle needs a notice that it is April 15th! We still have cold weather, rain, wind and the weather guy is calling for snow later this week. Someone please notify the weather channel, we need some warm weather here. I will even take 50 degrees and up, I would not mind some serious sunshine either. To be fair, we did have a great Saturday but it was as though someone was teasing us…it was here and then it was gone. Sunday we were back to the same routine. Bet my tulips wish they could go back in.

Just in case you did not notice, we have a new yarn line in at the store, Universal Yarns. We tried to pick a few of their many yarn lines that would be interesting for us all. One of their yarns, Classic Worsted Tapestry, has been up at our webstore for a while as quite a few of our friends and customers requested it and we like this self-patterning worsted weight yarn that comes in big 100 gram skeins. Dizzy – I am sure most of you know who she is – has made socks with Classic Worsted Tapestry (as with quite a few of our customers), and she is now working on a top. This is a machine washable yarn that is soft and not itchy next to skin so it is also great for kids garments and accessories.

Another new yarn from Universal Yarn is Poems. It is their take on Noro Kureyon. The yarn has approximately the same gauge but it is significantly softer and the colors are more subtle. I decided I would try this yarn especially given its price and the fact that it has a much softer hand than Kureyon. And then I requested one of my favorite yarn reviewers, Samantha, to take a skein home and to let me know her thoughts and this is what she said (thank you Samantha!):

I’ll admit, it wasn’t love at first sight. Not that I disliked it but, at first glance, the ball of Universal Yarns’ Poems in shades of brown seemed somewhat unassuming.

I remained unimpressed until I swatched it (4 1/2 stitches and 6 rows to the inch in stockinette on size 8 needles), but then oh my. I was absolutely captivated by the incredible softness, as well as the absolutely stunning shifts of color. Soft almond blending into the cocoa, espresso, and palest honey. The subtle blending from shade to shade, each one warmer and richer than the last. I was hooked.

I was also struck by how the movement of color reminded me a bit of some of Noro’s colorways. I dug around in my stash and produced a single skein of Kureyon and sure enough,the yarns had a lot in common. The balls were wound almost the same, as well as having the same yardage (~109 yards), same composition (100% wool), same recommended needle size (7 – 9), and even the same style of ball band. And, of course, long, gently shifting color runs. For fun, I decided to make a pair of fingerless mitts, one in each yarn, and see how they compared (I used the Dashing pattern from Knitty at www.knitty.com, in the smaller size. The pattern is knit on size 7 needles, so my gauge changed: 5 1/2 stitches and 7 rows to the inch in k4 p1 rib with the Wisdom; 5 stitches and 7 rows to the inch with the Noro). Here’s what I found out:

The immediate and most obvious difference is the softness. Poems is significantly softer than the Noro. It feels gentler on the hands while knitting, and the finished glove didn’t scratch or itch, even on the tender skin of the inside wrist. The Noro definitely felt rougher, and a bit scratchy on that same wrist area. Both yarns are thick-and-thin yarns, but there are differences there, too. Poems has subtler shifts in thickness, and they are less frequent. The thick areas are much less so than with the Noro, which frequently thickens so much that the yarn feels unspun and these areas show up obviously in the finished work, creating a rustic feel. Poems never gets this thick and the finished work is smooth without obvious texture changes.

Another difference between the two is the absence of vegetation and knots. If you’ve worked with Noro yarns, then you’ve almost certainly had the experience of pulling tiny bits of what appear to be dried grass out of the yarn, as well as areas that have broken and been re-knotted (not always at the right place in the colorway). Not so with Poems – I knitted almost the entire ball and found not a single foreign item or knot in it.

Poems seems to have a very slight halo to it, reminiscent of yarns like Lamb’s Pride or Mountain Creek , but less dramatic. Since it has no mohair, this is a bit of a surprise, but it adds to the softness and I didn’t find it to be a negative. This quality would tend to make it unsuitable for intricate cable work; however, for the large, simple cables of the mitt, it was perfect and showed off the detail just fine. The Noro lacks this fuzziness but the extremes of texture make it just as unsuitable for really fine cabling.

Overall, Poems is more pliable, drapes more nicely (at least when knit to this gauge) and knits up far more smoothly and evenly than the Noro. Researching colors, I found that it does have fewer colorways and the ones they have, while quite lovely, tend to be a bit less adventurous,none of the vivid and improbable combinations so familiar to Noro fans.

If you prefer a wilder knitting experience,extremes of texture, dramatic colors, a raw feeling to the fiber,you will likely be happiest with the Noro and find the Poems to be a bit tame. If, like me, you love the color gradations of Kureyon but prefer a softer yarn and smoother-looking product (with no plant life), Poems is the perfect solution,definitely a welcome addition to the stash.

I have been on a hand-dyed kind of mood for a long while.  I am very much into deep and rich yet subtle color variations that can usually be produced and reproduced only by some of the more experienced dyers.  So when a friend said yes to my request to hand dye our cashmere, Indie, I was very happy (really, I was – you should have seen me do the jig at the store).

I wish you were here to see the beautiful color combinations that have been coming in, including some of my favorites, this deep deep ruby like crimson with a color-on-color variation.   If I could name this color it would be ‘Lust for life.’ 

Then there is the Ocean with deep sapphire like blues, sky and jean blue combinations.   If you like jewel like blues this is your color.  There is also the lavender the plum  and of course the sea foam blues.   They are simply lovely.  Then the yarn itself, soft soft soft, luxurious and heavenly.  So when Kersten asked me if I would like to hear her opinion of Indie I said yes.  Here is what she said:

Cashmere, schmashmere. It should be called crack-mere.

I decided to use Little Knit’s Indie for my first lace project.  Oh so very scrumptious and cuddly, its softness belies its strength.  After making it safely through one pattern repeat, on row 12 of the next repeat, tragedy struck. I blame jet lag, flying across Canada, and listening to too much French.  I had to rip out a repeat section (get this…) 8 times.      Fearing that the yarn would become frazzled, frizzy, and weak, I was afraid that the section would resemble cat-yak.  Ah, but it was not to be.  The yarn maintained its beautiful softness, strength, and overall exquisiteness.  After a few more rows, the catastrophe was imperceptible.

Like any good cashmere, this yarn is warm to the touch and so soft, I can’t find words to describe it.  I love the feel.  If only I hadn’t made such a poor pattern choice!   The pattern stinks, but the cashmere makes up for it.

This lace project is clearly becoming a labor of love.  The pattern, a candle flame lace, takes forever for each repeat.   The only way I am able to concentrate for a length of time for that hard is when I’m flying coast-to-coast.  It has become my airplane project.  This explains why it’s taken me 9 months to get to where I am.  I will be an old lady when I finish.  Please no over 40 jokes.  They just aren’t funny since last summer.

100% cashmere, approx. 400 yards for 50 gram hanks, under $20 for naturals and $25.75 for hand dyed colors, the expectations have been set very high!  I saw the hand-dyed skeins of this yarn this past weekend.  Holy Cow!  I didn’t know such colors existed!   I can’t wait to see what other delectables Fulay discovers for the Little Knits fans!

The weekend before last I left a sunny Seattle for a trip to Santa Clara for Stitches West.  My first trip away from home and my first overnight trip away from my two little boys since they have been born.

Somewhat naively I expected sunshine and warmer temperatures, silly me.  We left Seattle at the crack of dawn (had to leave my house at 4 AM!), and landed in Santa Clara around 8:45 AM.  It was cold and raining.

Almost right away we headed to Santa Clara Convention Center.  The market had not yet opened.  There were lines that went on and on, which lead into the 3 doorways that opened into the Convention Center floor.  Right before the market floor opened the women closer to the doors started counting backward in unison.  I knew then I was in for an experience.

We walked in to find most of the rows easy to get through and I headed straight to my vendors.  After much walking around I ended up at the Malabrigo booth.  This is where I meat Tobias and his brother-in-law Antonio.  After a little while, somewhat timidly, I asked Tobias whether they had a skein of their mythical sock yarn.

 The ever smiling Tobias was kind enough to grace me with a sample skein of yet-to-be Malabrigo sock, a super soft 2-ply sock yarn that was kettle dyed in a monochromatic amethyst-lilac color line, very much in character with their usual lovely color work. 

 The test skein weighs 3.5 ounces and has approx. 440 yards of fingering weight yarn and it is made of 100% superwash merino. I have yet to swatch this surprisingly soft yarn but while I type this I stop to touch my skein and the yarn feels like it has cashmere content.  The fiber has some bounce to it as well, when I squeeze the hank it springs back to shape, which makes me think that semi-solid color lines would work well for intricate pattern work.  Did I tell you that this yarn is really soft?  May be even softer than Malabrigo Lace.   

Next step – One of our designers is going to knit with the Malabrigo sock and give us her unbiased opinion.  I myself think this lovely yarn is too nice for a pair of socks and would be ideal for a lace project.  I would love to wrap a stole/scarf/shawl made with this Malabrigo yarn around my neck and shoulders.

Going back to Tobias and Antonio, I did not have that much time and therefore, did not spend a substantial amount of time with them.  That being said, they are some of the nicest yarn-folk I have met.   They are sweet, accommodating, kind and very focused on their customers and of course, their product quality.  I was told to caption their photo with “two pretty faces” but I think two good men is much more appropriate.  More on the sock yarn later this month.

On the second day of my trip I made some purchases (ehem, not all will be disclosed here).  To be able to knit on the plane on my way back home I also needed needles (I did not bring any with me!)  This is when I decided it was time to purchase my first pair of glass needles, with some trepidation – glass needles, what happens when they break!?  NOTE – They have a life-time warranty.

 I ended up purchasing one of the simplest sets from Sheila & Michael Ernst; I selected the tips for my circulars and Michael connected them to the cord right then and there.  At $30 a pop I was still a little leery especially given my smooth relationship with Addi Turbos.  My new needles looked nice and channeled candy but how would it be to knit with them?

I cast on at the plane 15 minutes after we took off and I was happy!  The needles allowed the yarn to slide off easily without being too slippery, tips were pointy without being too sharp and my favorite, the transition from the needles to the cord was smooth like butter.  Absolutely no catching, none.  Another positive, the cord is slightly thicker than what I had come to expect from my Addis making it better for the consistency of gauge and for using my circulars in place of straight needles.  Finally, the dreaded circular needle cord coil – the kind you would have to soak in hot water to get straight - is a none issue for the glass needles.

For me the only disconcerting issue was the fact that once in a while when the tip of one of my needles rubbed against the body of the other, the sound and the feel was similar to that of hitting a flint with a sharp object to start a fire.  That I did not like much though I must admit 20 minutes into my knitting that too became a non-issue.

I like my needles and probably would have gone for a fancier set had I known that I would enjoy working with them this much.  They are an acquired taste – especially given their price – but given that majority of them are a one of a kind art-work and come with life time warranties they are well worth it.

I have a couple of yarns that I would really like to share with you but I think for now it is good night for me.  Hope you are all well and knitting with a smile.

The long waited Kureyon Sock is here and it is everything I had expected plus some.

I actually had a skein of Kureyon Sock for the last month or so.  I knitted a swatch and then gave the rest to a customer of ours for a review.  I wanted to have an independent perspective on the yarn.  Below are my thoughts on the yarn and then his feedback.

Kureyon Sock is a single ply yarn much like the regular Kureyon line.  It is also spun roughly and has a slight thick and thin texture.  Each 100 gram skein has approximately 457 yards of yarn, which is sufficient for a pair of average size socks.  I have been asked often if the yarn is too rough and/or itchy and my answer to both questions is no.  However, if you are looking for a soft sock yarn or a super soft knitted sock this is not the yarn for you.

On the skein Kureyon Sock feels slightly softer than the regular Kureyon but with a twine like texture.  When I knitted my swatch with my skein (color #180), I started with US size 1 needles, which I found too small for the yarn.  So I switched to US size 2 needles and that worked much better.  On size 2 needles I got 6.5-7 stitches to an inch and I was able to enjoy the texture of the yarn much better.    

Both on the swatch and the sample sock knitted by our independent reviewer Steven, the thick and thin texture showed nicely and added a rustic look to the knitted fiber.

Before blocking my swatch had a slight overall fuzz, much like other single-ply wool yarn.  The swatch was softer than I had expected, definitely softer than the yarn as it was on the skein.  I blocked my swatch by soaking it in cool water and then gently pressing the water out.  The gauge or the size of the swatch did not change but it did get slightly softer.

 The sample sock was knitted by Steven and I did not block it (the photo to the left is pre-wash).  I wanted to find out what would happen if I were to wash the sock.  While the yarn band recommends gentle hand-wash only I have read multiple posts on Ravelry that this was not a must.  So I threw the sock in with the heavy wash in warm water with jeans. 

I was surprised to see that our sample sock came out OK.  It did not shrink at all but the fiber became a little fuzzier and looked more like it was felted.  The colors held steady and none of the yarn came loose.  So I threw the sock in to the wash one more time and again nothing much happened!  I did not machine dry our sample sock both times I simply laid it flat to dry.  

While our sock survived machine washing well I would not recommend this process for your socks.  I believe our sample sock did not change in size due to Steven’s tight gauge – he knitted the sample sock with size 1 needles, which did not leave an allowance/space for felting.

I also had my 2.5 year old wear the sample sock all around the house for a day (pre-wash).  If you know little boys you know that they can clock in quite a bit of mileage on an average day.  The sock held and with one day of use it did not pill at all.

 What appeals to me the most about Kureyon Sock is the richness of the colors and the way color lines show on the knitted fiber.  Currently Kureyon sock comes in 12 colors that are same as the regular Kureyon colors lines.  However, given the yardage on each skein colors show a little differently on Kureyon Sock; one gets a wider range of colors for each skein.  I know I should not single out one color line but I cannot help myself, color #188 is simply dreamy.  I love the combination of deep moss greens, lilacs, deep lavender and finally amethyst like purple with occasional silver like beige.

In summary, if you like the regular Kureyon line you will like the Kureyon Sock line.  If you have never used the Noro line and you would like to try the Kureyon Sock be ready for a unique experience.  It is my humble opinion that with its new line Kureyon Sock, Noro will have a dedicated following.  One final note, if you would like to have a small sample of Kureyon Sock please let us know, we will include one with your next order.

With all that here are Steven’s thoughts: