What comes first when you start a new knitting project? Do you already have a yarn in mind or maybe even in your stash? Do you have a favorite fiber or do you always have to try something new next time? Here we will review the most common fibers and their properties as well as give some examples of our favorite yarns.
Which fibers should I choose?
Yarn is made from textile fibers. It can be animal, vegetable, regenerated or synthetic.
There are countless yarns, spinning types, fibres, manufacturers and considerations you can take into consideration when choosing yarn for a new project. In Denmark (and around the world), there are several yarn dealers who buy leftover lots and sell them at good prices. If it is not important to you that the yarn comes from a specific manufacturer, you can e.g. visit the yarn specialist (this link is an affiliate link - read more about what this means here ).
Animal fur fibers include wool, alpaca, camel, goats etc. The animal fur fibers typically have some attractive natural properties that the animal they come from enjoys. The fibers are quite different, but the vast majority have an insulating and heat-regulating effect - because the animal needs that. It allows the skin to breathe, but for some it can feel harsh against the bare skin. There is a big difference in softness between the different animal fibres. The natural elasticity of fur fibers makes wool very good for beginners as it contracts and gives a beautiful mask image with quite a bit of practice. Bio Shetland is a gots certified 100% organic wool yarn from BC yarn. It is a good example of the pure traditional woolen yarn. You can find it here (ad link)
Silk is in its way an animal fiber but does not come directly from the animal. Rather, it is a product of the animal's work. The silkworm's cocoon is processed in different ways, for knitting purposes you typically come across 3 types: Tussah silk is matte and a little rough on the surface, this comes from the wild silkworms. Mulberry silk is from farmed silkworms. The name refers to the leaves the worms eat, the mulberry silk is glossy, smooth and relatively difficult to work with. Raw silk, also called bourette silk, is a residual product from the other silk productions. Jaipur Peace Silk is the finest natural silk - not mulberry silk, but from a different species of silkworm that eats a different plant. It is extracted completely "cruelty-free", as the worms are allowed to go through their metamorphosis to the end, gnaw their way out of the pupa and fly away before the cocoon is harvested. It is not quite as shiny as the mulberry silk, but it is completely fabulous. You can find BC yarn's Jaipur Peace Silk here (ad link)
The vegetable fibers are cotton and linen, more exotic ones are occasionally found on sedge fibers and hemp. Cotton is available in a myriad of versions and qualities. It's great for scratch-sensitive skin, but isn't particularly elastic and can be quite unforgiving of uneven knits. Linen has a little more structure, it is typically a little stiff but fines after washing. You must be aware that vegetable fibers can be hard on the hands because they are inelastic. You can often find yarns which are a mixture of different fibres, it can alleviate the stiffness of the yarn if it is a wool-cotton mixture rather than pure cotton. There are also many sustainable yarns with vegetable fibres, both organic cotton and recycled cotton are available in many shades. Erika Knight's Wild Wool contains 15% viscose extracted from nettle fibers. This makes the yarn softer and more durable than pure wool. You can find Wild Wool here (ad link)
Regenerated/biosynthetic fibers is a term that covers yarns that are based on natural fibers that cannot be immediately spun into yarn. It is necessary to go through a longer processing often involving chemical treatment in order to become knitting yarn. Regenerated fibers are rayon, viscose, bamboo, modal, tencel/lyocell and more. What they have in common is that they are typically soft, durable, smooth and not particularly expensive. They are inelastic and can appear a bit "flabby".
Synthetic yarns are e.g. acrylic, nylon and polyester. These "fibers" are entirely man-made. Synthetic yarn is typically very durable, but has poor memory and gets out of shape. It is not breathable but can give a bit of a feeling of being dressed in a plastic bag. Synthetic fibers do well when mixed with natural fibers because they add durability to the yarn and thus your finished knit. There are e.g. typically 15-25% synthetic fibers in stocking yarn.