Knit Crochet Weave Spin
Grist - the word you have unknowingly searched for
Grist is a word weavers use to describe the density of a yarn. Now, not to leave you hanging on the 10/2 thing - the 2 refers to the number of plies in a yarn and the 10 refers to the weight of each ply. What grist does is help us understand why a cotton yarn is so much heavier than a wool yarn - even if they are both DK weight.
Grist is most easily understood at the meters per gram or yards per ounce. If you have ever felt the weight difference between 100% cotton and 100% cashmere? Two skeins of the same "weight," say DK, and the same grams will have very different yardage. A 50g ball of DK weight cotton has 106 meters. A 50g ball of DK weight Cashmere has 224 meters. So if you compare how much each meter weighs you get a very good idea of the different density: With Cotton one gram has 2.12 meters of yarn vs Cashmere that has almost 5 meters in one gram - so it is half the weight!
Now imagine that you are following a pattern written for cashmere yarn that calls for 100g of yarn and you substitute with 100g of cotton. You will soooo run out of yarn!
There are some serious CocoKnits fans here! And the latest CocoKnits pattern, Cleo is what got me thinking about grist. The pattern uses a 50g skein of wool/cotton blend with 146 yards. We do not happen to carry that yarn - and frankly we may or may not want to make this lovely Tank/Vest out of wool. So the question is - what plant based yarn should we use to substitute. We want something of the same "weight" meaning gauge (unless we want to alter the pattern) so we need a worsted weight yarn. But if we pick 100% cotton in a worsted weight yarn, the yarn will be so dense and the piece so heavy we will not be happy!
So it is a pleasure to find plant based yarns with unique construction! Riserva is a fantastic yarn by Lana Grossa that finds a way to introduce "lightness" to the yarn. So it makes the perfect substitution yarn for Cleo.
As a quick comparison, the grist of the original pattern yarn was 2.56 and the grist of Riserva is 2.5! Practically perfect!
Successfully Working with Alpaca Yarns April 1, 2021
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We have the joy of interviewing Jamie and Susan from Humming Oaks Farm on Thursday. They have three fabulous Alpacas right in our area! And have created some lovely pure alpaca and alpaca blend yarns. We wanted to spend a little time talking about the properties of alpaca and how to make successful choices. There are literally books written about this so I am just giving you my highlights!
Alpaca is soft - it is often referred to as the "poor man's cashmere." Not that Alpaca is cheap! It is still a luxury fiber and in the Andes is referred to as the "fiber of the gods." The softness comes from the fineness of the fiber, the lack of scales, and the fact that Alpaca do not produce lanolin. They do have guard hairs so if you have ever felt alpaca that poked at you it is because it was not well processed. If you are wool sensitive you might find that you love Alpaca due to the lack of lanolin. The possible drawback of the lack of scales is that alpaca yarns can grow and often do not have much memory. Memory in yarn comes from crimp and alpaca can range from no crimp to lovely crimp - it never has as much as a Merino wool. Combine the less crimp with the lack of scales and the finished project can grow. Avoid this by using stitch patterns with texture, knitting at a slightly firmer gauge - but not so firm that you make the fabric mean. Blends really help offset the growth while maintaining the softness.
Alpaca is warm and wicking - Alpaca is considered one of the warmest fibers and is almost twice as warm as wool. Given the fact that we live in a hot place, you might wonder if it is right for you. And it is very breathable. If you ever wondered how Alpaca could live in the warmer climate of SoCal, it is because the hollow fibers also help insulate the critters from the heat. The fiber is pretty water resistant. Because it the fiber is hollow it will not absorb the water and causes it to dry faster, hence, alpaca is also a wicking fiber - meaning it will pull sweat away from the body. And because it does not absorb water it is odor resistant! So socks are an awesome choice - especially for alpaca blends.
Alpaca is a strong fiber - Alpaca is considered one of the strongest fibers to come from a mammal. And it is a fiber that lasts the test of time. Blankets in the Andes are passed from generation to generation. This also makes alpaca really amazing for weaving! And in fact the Andes textile traditions are steeped in woven alpaca.
Alpaca has fabulous stitch definition - And this is both a really positive and negative thing! It will show off textured knits so beautifully. And cables are lovely (although they add weight so use with some caution). Lace is a beautiful way of extending this luxury fiber. But, if you have any inconsistency in your tension, you will see every bit of it in your knitting so plain stockinette may not be your friend.
So what should you knit? With pure alpaca, avoid items that have to fit and retain their shape - like hats. Try you hand at scarves and cowls. Especially textured knits like Purl Soho's No Purl Scarf. Or Isabel Kraemer's Gryer that is mostly garter. Diamond and Willow Cowl is beautiful lace cowl. The Beeswax Scarf is a beautiful blend of lace and texture - and would be gorgeous in Julio! And anything with a Gansey patterning would be amazing, like the Inshore Legwarmers. Gauging is always advised to see what the final product will look like. Take the time to swatch to see if you will like it!
With alpaca blends - the sky is the limit!
One last thought - I loved this image that showed the difference between the scales in wool, alpaca, and cashmere:
We asked you for your Silver Linings from 2020
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