The last time I held yarn double to knit something was years ago, when I had some scrap worsted weight yarns that I wanted to use up by making a pet blanket. I really tried to make the colors match, but that was trickier than I thought. I didn’t like how the colors marled either. I tried to fight the twisting of the two yarns first and gave up. Then I tried to deliberately twist the yarns evenly, to no avail. I just didn’t like the look. So what led me to consider doing this again? Well, it was mainly being in love with qualities of certain yarns, but not finding a yarn that had all the qualities in one. I chose Lina and Whisper Lace by Fibra Natura.
Swatch of two yarns held together, Lina and Whisper Lace, both by Fibra Natura.
What are the qualities I was looking for?
First, I wanted to have a worsted weight yarn instead of a DK or sport yarn because I wanted to knit a garment more quickly at a gauge of 18 to 20 sts per 4″. I wanted to use fibers that have a decent amount of drape, like linen and silk, but I also wanted the fiber to have a little bounce to it, so a little elasticity and memory, like that in wool. I wanted the garment to be great for the in-between seasons…when many days are cool, but you don’t want to feel bulky like a marshmallow and jumping from pulling layers on or off.
Lina comes in hanks that need to be wound up, but Whisper Lace is neatly wound into soft balls that are ready to be knit from.
Worsted weight linen is very heavy and because it has no elasticity, it really grows with gravity, so I wanted to blend a lighter linen or linen blend yarn with something else. I found out about Fibra Natura Lina which is listed as a light-weight yarn, and it behaves somewhere between a Sport (2) and DK-weight (3) yarn. Then I wanted a really fine yarn that was wool or mohair-based for the elasticity and looking through other Fibra Natura yarns I found Whisper Lace.
I swatched with different stitch patterns to see what I liked.
Having the really fine lace weight that is multicolored mixed with the solid DK-weight is also a whole different experience than when I held two strands of worsted weight together. The marled or tweedy look from the mix of Whisper Lace and Lina really makes a difference. The main color of the Lina truly shines through, but the variations in the Whisper Lace make the fabric have more depth.
In this swatch, I started experimenting with different textures to put into the sweater I was designing. Stick around this week for different patterns and more information about each of these yarns and on Thursday and Friday, I’ll share the pattern for this sweater.
There are many color pairings possible for these two yarns. Lina in Fern green and Whisper Lace in Reeds greens and blues were perfect for my spring sweater.
