Disappointment

I haven't worked with many variegated or nubbly textured yarns before, so after knitting up a swatch in my Shire Silk, I was quite disappointed to see that the Bead Stitch pattern, from which the more complicated Four Sisters pattern is derived, was quite lost amidst the nubbles.  I suppose a larger needle might have helped, but the stockinette portion seemed about right; I didn't want it any looser--nor did I think it was worth swatching the Four Sisters, given what I had already seen.  The Bead Stitch is at the bottom of the swatch, while at the top  is a simple rib; I was wondering whether any stitch pattern would show up in this stuff.

Then I thought that perhaps a big cable would be nice, so I tried that, with so-so results.  This "Framed Cable" pattern is really great, too, pictured on the far left in the book; I'll have to use it for something else.  So what to do with this Shire Silk, in what is a nicer color than it appears in the picture (mainly a light silvery green which reminds me of the foliage of a Russian olive tree)??  If it is destined to be a slouchy pullover in mostly stockinette, then I will definitely have to get one of those knitting machines.

So I shelved the Shire Silk for now, and moved on to my second choice:  Debbie Bliss Pure Silk.  Wow, this is slippery; so slippery that when I pulled it off my ballwinder, it promptly collapsed.  I tried to rewind it, and here is the resulting mess.  Not only is it slippery, but it twists around itself if given the chance.  I finally had to cut it in a couple of places, which for someone like me, who abhors working in ends, is highly annoying.

Stay tuned:  will the Pure Silk redeem itself once knit?  I wonder....

Comments

[Dawn]

Sorry about losing stitch patterns amid slubs. Yarns like that just cry out for a plain ol' slouchy pullover. Then the beauty of the yarn carries the sweater. As for a knitting machine, the slubs get stuck in the hooks and it's really not worth it.

[connie]

Ugh. I hate winding slippery silk. Good luck untangling it. I'm sure whatever you decide to do with it will be lovely. I've heard good things about the Pure Silk.

Yes, nubbly yarn can be a challenge to design with. So far, I've stuck with smooth yarns because I don't know how to make the nubbliness work for me rather than against me, but at some point, I'd like to try to design with textured yarns too. The Shire Silk looks lovely. And sometimes cables and tweed can be very nice.

[Tamara]

From what I've seen of the DB Pure Silk, it fuzzes up a good bit from handling which is sad. I'm sorry about the mess.

I think the first yarn would look nice as a wide-ribbed cardi?

[Sus]

Thanks for these yarn "mini-reviews". It's so helpful to read about others' experiences with particular yarns so as to not go into possible purchases completely blind. Good info!

[Macoco]

I think I would have cried over the Pure Silk. What a frustrating experience - I hope your knitting luck turns around. I had a bamboo yarn that was so slippery that it defied the ball winder for some reason. Refused to be wound.

[Knit*six]

The Shire Silk really is beautiful. I love the color. It's a shame it didn't work out as you'd hoped... But I'm sure it will become something wonderful one of these days :-)