And Now To Knit

Day 180: Handspun yarn can present its own unique challenge to knit in that it may or may not conform to the gauge required in any particular pattern. I tend to spin almost all my double-ply wool in an approximation of worsted-weight, and I am rather proud of the fact that out of 41.8 ounces of "cinnamon twist," I only have a variation of 3 yards/ounce between the thinnest of eight skeins and the thickest. I've worked with machine-produced yarns with greater variation than that! This morning, I knit up a test swatch and was pleasantly surprised when it came in at exactly the gauge given for my favourite raglan pattern, so now I can jump straight into knitting without having to make adjustments to the pattern itself. There is more than enough wool here for the sweater/jumper, but I may incorporate a design into the yoke in pure "cinnamon" and/or white Corriedale "sugar" which, you might have guessed, I spun up at the same weight. In fact, in some countries, spinners show a preference for spinning at a single thickness, then plying two, three or four strands to obtain different weights of yarn. This "practice makes perfect" technique makes it easier for the spinner to judge and control the amount of raw wool slipping between the fingers and therefore they are able to achieve a more uniform thread.