Help a Really Cool Yarn Company Make More Yarn

August 2, 2013 by Sarah White

It always amazes me the innovation that is still happening in knitting. From different ways to cast on and bind off to new techniques and new materials to knit with, this is definitely a good time to be a knitter.

One really cool yarn that’s come out very recently is LanaMudi Yarns’ SilverSpun, distributed by Feel Good Yarn Company. As the name implies, this is a yarn that’s spun with a silver filament (along with cotton and Lycra).

Why would you want to knit with such a thing? Well, silver is very conductive, so it makes cotton yarn feel warmer than it normally would. It also makes it possible for you to work electronic devices with touch screens while still keeping your gloves on.

Silver is also touted for anti-microbial and pain-relief properties, so your socks may end up less stinky and your wrists may feel less pain from marathon knitting sessions if they’re wrapped in silvery mitts.

I don’t know about all that, but it’s still a soft, pretty yarn that’s fun to work with and certainly a conversation starter.

The yarn came out in April and is sold out, but the company is in the midst of a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for a new batch. Silver, as you can imagine, is pretty expensive, and they have to buy a large quantity to make it more cost effective. Anyone who pledges $75 or more will get a skein of the good stuff to play with, and there are lots of other great incentives, too.

Would you knit with silver yarn? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

[Photo via Feel Good Yarn Co.]

100 % cotton yarn

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Have you read?

A Blanket Knitting Pattern Where Yarn Selection is Everything

Many times when I write these posts I will say something like “you can use any yarn you want” or “this would be a great stash-busting project.” That’s just how my mind works. And my stash, too, since I probably have sweater quantity of two or three yarns at most, but tons of singles and odd balls and leftovers.

Blankets are generally a really good way to use up those bits, but in this case, I think you’re going to want to plan it out a bit better.

Looking at photos of the Color Study Blanket from Purl Soho, it looks like it’s made with two yarns held together, and that block in the center is worked with one of each color from the adjoining sides to make a mixed up color.

But that’s not actually how it’s done. This is three separate colors (four, really, with the neutrals in the corners) chosen form a yarn with an expansive palette so they play off each other. The project calls for a worsted weight superwash wool, which is a great choice for a blanket that’s both warm and washable.

This pattern was originally designed by Laura Ferguson and was updated by Hiromi Glover. It is worked in one piece in garter stitch intarsia, which is a great way to learn the intarsia technique if you don’t already know it. It comes in crib or throw sizes.

Despite the introduction to this post, I am going to go ahead and say that, yes, of course you could do this blanket with scraps or odd balls or even just choose five colors that don’t blend together so easily. But I really do love the look of the color play, and I think it would be worth your time to find colors that play well together to get a similar effect.

This pattern is available for free from Purl Soho.

[Photo: Purl Soho]