Sandra's Designing Blog

This is an exclusive area of my web site where you can find out more about my knitted designs, what inspires me, how I work and what I like (and don't like) to design. 
 
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Category: Yarn

  1. My haul of British Breeds yarn

    Posted on

    Hi there, 

    At the Knitting & Crochet Guild recent yarn sale I picked up a pack of 50 gram balls of Blacker Yarns, a colourful pack of blues and pinks along with some balls of Ecru. The yarn looked DK weight so I didn't investigate, just thought I could bring it all together into a wonderful colourful sweater. When I got home I looked at my haul in more detail and discovered that the Ecru DK was in fact a mix of different breeds of yarns and different yarn weights too. Just having these 5 balls in my hands really highlighted the different categories of British wool yarn, some being soft to touch whilst others being a lot courser and hairy,
    I decided to find out more.

    Categories and Uses

    • Fine wool: Soft, typically used for garments worn close to the skin (e.g., Merino).
    • Medium wool: Durable and versatile, often used for garments, blankets, and general-purpose knitting.
    • Longwool: Lustrous and strong, with excellent drape. Best suited for weaving and elegant, drapey projects.
    • Primitive breeds: Known for hardiness and often coarser textures, suited for outerwear, carpets, or more durable textiles.

    British sheep breeds are known for producing a variety of high-quality wools, each with distinct characteristics. The wool is categorised by texture, fiber length, and use, often classified into fine, medium, longwool, and primitive breeds. Here’s a summary of how my British Breeds yarn's fit into these categories.

    1. Welsh Mule

    • Category: Crossbreed (often between a Bluefaced Leicester ram and a Welsh Mountain ewe).
    • Characteristics: The wool is versatile, typically medium in texture with good softness and crimp. 
    • Use: Mainly in carpet blends.

    2. Portland

    • Category: Primitive breed.
    • Characteristics: Portland wool is finer than many other primitive breeds, with a short staple length. 
    • Use: Mostly by hand spinners in blends for apparel.
    • Location: This rare breed has a stronghold in the South West.

    3. North Ronaldsay

    • Category: Primitive breed.
    • Characteristics: This unique breed, has developed to adapt to the terrain of the Orkney Islands. The wool is variable, often with a mixture of fine undercoat and coarser outercoat fibers, suitable for different uses.
    • Use: Popular with hand spinners.
    • Location: North Ronaldsay Island, Scotland.

    4. Bluefaced Leicester (BFL)

    • Category: Longwool.
    • Characteristics: BFL wool is known for its fine, long, lustrous fibers. It's soft, drapey, and has excellent stitch definition, making it one of the most popular British wools for luxury garments.
    • Use: Ideal for next-to-skin garments, shawls, and accessories. Its fine, silky texture makes it a favorite for spinning and knitting.
    • Location: Mainly found in Northern England.

    5. Jacob 

    • Category: Primitive and multi-horned breed.
    • Characteristics: Jacob wool is medium in texture, with a range of natural colors, from white to dark brown or black. The wool has a medium staple length, making it versatile for different knitting and spinning projects. It is prized for its durability and loft, offering warmth and resilience while still being reasonably soft. Jacob fleece is often spotted, which allows for unique color blending in yarn.
    • Use: The wool is ideal for hand-spinning and felting, making it a favorite for those who enjoy working with natural, undyed fibers. It is also used for both outerwear and garments due to its balance of softness and durability.
    • Location: Jacobs are mainly found across the UK.
    Click here for 'The British Wool Org' incl lots of cute sheep photos

    *** CHECK OUT THE YARN SALE  ***

    Discounted yarns change all the time, so please keep checking them out for any bargains.

    I always discount the very last few knitting kits I have so then I can concentrate on developing new ones for you. Check them out here
     

  2. New Knitting Kit, Discontinued Yarns And Reduced Prices

    Posted on

    My newest kit is finally ready and its gorgeous ! lovely twisty cables in a floral design. The twists stand out well in this yarn too. The yarn is Stylecraft's Recreate which is a recycled yarn, so good for the planet.  I have designed just 1 standard size for the gloves and 3 sizes for the hat.   Find the kit here 

     
       
    Hi my friends
    It seems a while since I last emailed you, so I thought I'd give you a little update. 
    Firstly, on the designing front, I know early on in the year I didn't feel like doing much designing, because of Johnny's health issues I really didn't have the headspace. However, I couldn't stop knitting & playing and I ended up creating many knitted mandala's, a very mindful exercise. These are available from my web site shop just in case anyone is interested. I have also had some of them printed on the front of some pretty greeting cards just to try and recoup some costs. 
    Now  I'm back designing. You will see my designs in both Knit Now (a shawl & mitts/cowl set) and The Knitter (a hat, a cowl and a scarf) in the coming months.

    The kit above is the 1st new design for my shop and I've been looking forward to showing it off ! Available in 4 different colours (Smoke, Djon, Cherry & Ink) using recycled yarn from the Stylecraft range (remember their mill is just 5 minutes away from where I live).

    I have a brioche scarf all knitted up with the pattern in draft so will be released to you all soon. Also I'm in the middle of constructing a bag out of 3 slip stitch squares. It's looking pretty cool so far.

     
     
    West Yorkshire Spinners Illustrious yarn 70% Falkland Wool & 30% British Alpaca has been discontinued for a while now. I have a number of kits where this yarn is included - The Popple Gloves, Splash Waves Wrap, Diamond Shawl and the Kilana Socks.
    All these kits have been reduced in price.