No, this is not a post about those (I imagine) beautiful islands. While ago, I bought some Shetland wool on cone and I’ve been eager to play with it since. Finally, my vintage ball winder arrived, so I set out this weekend to make some yarn cakes… yummy.
A small part of the cakes produced so far…
I made a very little swatch with double strands, just for the washing test. It had to be small: using 2mm needles, work progresses very slowly (and I’m already no fast knitter!).
In the beginning I was a bit worried because this wool is a rather fine 2ply and also had a fairly rough feel. I heard from other people that wool on cones is oiled and usually blooms once washed, so I was hopeful that this would have been the case. Indeed, it was so, to my joy. After gently washing it with washing up detergent, it turned into a fluffy, soft wool. Absolutely beau-ti-ful.
The swatch before washing
…and after washing
Yarn comparison: before (top) vs. after (bottom)
I had in mind to use my Shetland wool for swatching patterns I created inspired by some Donegal fabrics seen not long ago – just wasn’t sure it would turn out fine. Now I’m relieved to see such a beautiful swatch.
I love my old Toyota ball winder (made in Japan) and the Shetland wool in all those shades… I can’t wait to find some time to play with it. In fact, right now, I wish I had nothing else to attend to. Do you also get such a feeling?
weestorybook 
wow. that wool IS beautiful!! and it looks so soft! that purple is incredible. and congrats on getting your vintage ball winder. sounds like that makes you LEGIT!!! i can see you sitting at home winding all day long now. ha. 😀
the problem is, i can see myself doing that too… but that’d be no good, as i should really study for my exams, at least during the week! thanks for the support 🙂
i keep thinking of all those (many more) beautiful shades of wool sitting in the living room and waiting to play with someone….
What an awesome collection of colors! That yarn will make some incredibly beautiful things.
Thanks! I hope it will… at least I won’t be able to put the blame on the yarn 😉 I got many more shades, as I thought to try a few different colour schemes
What beautiful colors! I bought 3 lbs of Shetland top for spinning awhile back. I am perfecting my spinning skills on a smaller lot of less loved fiber right now. But I have visions of spinning up my shetland some day and dyeing it with some natural dyes and making a yummy sweater coat. Thank you for the inspiration!
Thank you! I look forward to seeing the wool once you get to spin it… what shades are the tops? I’ve not yet tried spinning but it does sound to be a fascinating activity 🙂
omgosh, that wool looks so cozy. I like the before and after pics. 🙂 _heather
I kept touching it each time i passed by the blocked miniswatch, lol 🙂
Lol
beautiful colour palette (I happen to be right just now in a talk about young women and weaving in Europe and China in 17-19 Century!)
weaving sounds fascinating! i love fabrics and their textures, in fact i drawn some colourwork patterns (that’s were colours are alternated in knitting, so it creates a pattern) inspired by woven fabrics… was the talk to do with your work research?
[…] contained some Jamieson and Smith Shetland yarn, some Shetland wool on cone that I mentioned in another post, and some circular 2mm needles in 20, 30 and 40 cm. Now I’d only need an app to keep track of […]
Q – Great colors! Super buy.
thank you! Love the colours you were spinning too 🙂 hope to give spin a try at some point soon
[…] Shetland 2-ply 100% wool in shades purple, grey, midnight or flintstone blue, a fine 1/9nm yarn that gives ca. 900 metres per 100 grams. You can choose all in one colour or some of each shade. The yarn comes from cone and is oiled but blooms once hand-washed. The total weight will be circa 300 grams (approx. 6 yarn cakes) and will be winded up in yarn cakes, either single or multi-stranded (that is, simply winded up, no plying) to your choice. You can read more about this yarn in my previous post Shetland […]
Shetland fiber is really nice to spin too.
haven’t had a go at spinning yet, although i found it fascinating reading posts about it 🙂
PS Loved your natural dyeing stories!
I’m warning you, if you ever do try it, there will be no turning back. 😉
just waiting for an opportunity, i.e. to meet someone who spins already 🙂 i know there are plenty of videos about it online but it feels that seeing it in person would be even better!
have a lovely weekend 🙂
I don’t know, I’ve yet to see somebody else spin IRL. 😉 And thanks, you as well.
[…] also changed to a shade that I prefer – a fairly vibrant purple, which you may remember from my previous post on Shetland yarns. Changing the weight of the yarn and the size of the needles, I slightly modified the pattern by […]
[…] Shetland yarn I’m using is 100% Shetland 2-ply wool, used double stranded, and seems to have a different look from that […]