May 18, 2018

Knitting baby blanket with wool yarn

By John Vorhaus

Once upon a time, I spun my own yarn from the fiber of our sheep, dog, angora rabbits, and Angora goat. I would go to sheep and wool festivals and purchase cashmere, silk, alpaca, lama, and have a grand time turning them into yarn. I do not have the time nor the access to fiber such as I used to so today purchase commercially spun yarn but I heard a lot about how fiber influences the yarn and what qualities and properties are attracted to the final yarn.

I would like to talk concerning the universal fiber, wool. Wool is a phrase that refers to a lot of sorts of animal fibers. The most commonly known is the fiber out of sheep. Wool has very unique properties. It is great insulating ability that keeps in heat, or in warm climates, keeps heat out. It is naturally flame retardant. Rather than flashing into flame when a match is used, it is going to smolder often extinguishing itself. Sheep’s wool makes excellent sock material since it is absorbent and will keep the wearer warm even when it gets wet. Scotsmen from the highlands would eliminate their kilts and soak them in streams and put them back on to keep out wind and stay warmer. Very few manmade fibers can boast these features. It has three significant drawbacks. Some individuals are allergic to the proteins in the wool, the fiber is appealing to clothing moths that eat it and cause holes, and you must use care in washing things made from it to prevent felting and shrinkage.

baby blanket

 

Wool varies in texture and use based on the strain of sheep it comes from. There are sheep especially bred to produce the finest, best yarn for baby blanket. The most famous breed is merino. Incredibly soft yarn is made of merino fiber. Rambo let is another soft wool breed. Yarn made from these kinds of fiber can be worn next to skin with very little discomfort in the means of scratchiness. The very finest and softest merino is known as cash wool. It is as soft as cashmere. On the opposite end of the spectrum is extremely rough, thick fiber used in making rugs and felt. All the rest between types vary in softness and are what makes up the majority of knitting yarns. Needless to say, there are also a great many combinations using wool among the components. Wool consistently adds it is possessions to the mix.

Wool of all kinds can be spun airy and soft, hard and powerful. Softly spun lofty yarn is the warmest since it traps air between the fibers and this also assists in keeping the wearer warm. Tightly spun yarn is extremely strong and is not typically used for clothes but for weaving rugs and other programs that require strength.