November 2018

New "Filters" feature in YarnSub

This month we have introduced a new feature on the YarnSub website. You can now filter the substitution suggestions to exclude certain types of yarn. For example, if you only want to see Vegan options, you can exclude animal and animal-derived yarns (such as silk) from the results. Or if you want to substitute a wool for an acrylic, you can exclude synthetic fibers from the results. You can also choose the price bands you're interested in.

The new "Filters" button can be found just above the list of suggested substitutes:

People have often contacted me to say that they're looking for a yarn that not only works for their pattern, but is also different to the original yarn in some way.

One lady who mailed me was living in a hot country and only wanted to knit with cotton or linen. She will now be able to start with a wool or alpaca yarn, untick the checkboxes marked "Animal Fibers" and "Synthetic", and the suggestions she sees will only be made from plants or silk.

Another person said her hands hurt when she worked with plant fibers, as they can be so inelastic and unforgiving. She can untick the "Plant fibers" box, and all the cotton, linen, bamboo and hemp yarns will be removed.

Many others have said that their budgets don't stretch to the most expensive yarns. In this case, unticking "$$$$$" means that yarns in the highest price category won't be shown.

Of course, designers often come up with patterns with the specific properties of a yarn in mind, and using a completely different fiber will have an effect on the finished project. We don't include yarns in the results if we don't think they will work at all—if the gauge or the texture are too different for example. But once you're filtering out the closest matches, it does become especially important to check the notes given for a potential substitute and consider whether they flag up a problem for your project.

As an example, if the substitution notes say that a yarn has more drape than the original, it might not be a problem if you're making a shawl, but you'll probably want to rethink if you're hoping to make a thigh-length cardigan, else there's a good chance you'll end up with something that stretches down to your knees.

So if you've ever wanted to find a vegan alternative to wool, or you want the look but not the price tag of brushed mohair and silk, give the filters a try. Reply to this mail to let me know what you think.

Newly-published books

Ultimate Sweater Book by Amy Herzog is the perfect book for someone who wants to design for themselves but isn't quite ready to go it alone yet. It looks like a great resource and is going on my Christmas list.

Interweave Knits' 100 Knits is just a fantastic selection of beautiful patterns. One hundred of them!

And then there's Guys Knit by Nathan Taylor. I feel sad that there are men who wouldn't even think about knitting because they don't see it as something that men do. Some will have tried it and been teased for it—I taught a boy in an after-school knitting class who stopped coming because he was teased by his own parents. I hope lots of men—lots and lots of men—will see this book and think about giving knitting a try.

October was such a great month for new knitting and crochet books that I'm going to break with my "3 books" tradition and mention a couple more! Corner to Corner by Jess Coppom has useful tutorials and attractive patterns to get you started with the the corner to corner crochet technique, while Something New To Learn About Helical Knitting by Jen Arnall Culliford is another book going on my wish list. I first tried helical knitting as part of Mason-Dixon Knitting's Year of Techniques, and it blew my mind a little bit. I'm looking forward to understanding and using it more.

New and discontinued yarns

New

Bergère de France
Cocooning – Bulky – 47% Polyester, 27% Wool, 26% Acrylic – Fiber-filled net – Semi-solid colors

Bernat
Softee Baby Cotton – DK – 60% Cotton, 40% Acrylic – S on S plied – Solid colors

Caron
X Pantone – Bulky – 60% Acrylic, 20% Merino Superwash Wool, 20% Nylon – S on S plied – Gradient set, Complementary color set, Solid colors

Cygnet
Watercolour DK – DK – 100% Acrylic – 2 ply – Self-striping (gradient marl)

Fibra Natura
Lina – Sport – 68% Linen, 32% Cotton – Z-plied – Solid colors

Harrisville Designs
Nightshades – DK – 85% Cormo Wool, 15% Wool – Plied (woolen-spun) – Heathered colors, Shades of black

Hjertegarn
Organic Cotton – Sport – 100% Organic Cotton – Plied – Solid colors
Silk Tweed – Fingering – 50% Merino Wool, 25% Nylon, 25% Silk – Tweedy – Tweed colors

James C. Brett
Mega Multi – Super Bulky – 100% Acrylic – Plied – Self-striping (gradient marl)

Knitting Fever
KFI Luxury Collection Indulgence Brushed Merino – Bulky – 60% Merino Superwash Wool, 40% Acrylic – Fuzzy – Self-striping (gradient transition)
KFI Luxury Collection Indulgence Merino – Sport – 75% Merino Superwash Wool, 25% Nylon – Plied – Multicolored

Lana Grossa
Fatto – Aran – 62% Merino Wool, 26% Mohair, 12% Acrylic – Chained – Solid colors, Heathers
Gomitolo Puno – Fingering – 75% Cotton, 15% Merino Wool, 10% Baby Alpaca – Single ply – Gradient
Insieme – Super Bulky – 50% Merino Wool, 20% Baby Alpaca, 20% Mohair, 10% Nylon – Chained – Semi-solid colors
Lala Berlin Lovely Fine Tweed – Bulky – 37% Baby Alpaca, 35% Nylon, 26% Merino Wool, 2% Viscose – Fiber-filled net – Tweed colors
Lala Berlin Shiny – Heavy Worsted – 36% Baby Alpaca, 30% Cotton, 18% Nylon, 8% Merino Wool, 8% Polyester – Fuzzy chain – Tonal colors with metallic
Only Tweed – Aran – 76% Merino Superwash Wool, 16% Acrylic, 5% Silk, 3% Viscose – Single ply – Tweed colors
Peru Tweed – Heavy Worsted – 40% Baby Alpaca, 32% Viscose, 20% Nylon, 8% Merino Superwash Wool – Fuzzy – Tweed colors
Slow Wool Canapa – Aran – 90% Merino Superwash Wool, 10% Hemp – Plied – Tweed colors
Slow Wool Lino – Sport – 85% Merino Superwash Wool, 15% Linen – Plied – Tweed colors

Lang Yarns
Wool Addicts Air – Bulky – 84% Merino Superwash Wool, 16% Nylon – Single ply – Heathered colors
Wool Addicts Earth – Bulky – 50% Superfine Alpaca, 35% Acrylic, 15% Superwash Wool – Plied – Solid colors
Wool Addicts Fire – Super Bulky – 98% Merino Superwash Wool, 2% Polyester – Plied – Solid colors
Wool Addicts Love – Light Fingering – 92% Merino Superwash Wool, 8% Nylon – Chained – Solid colors, Semi-solid colors
Wool Addicts Water – Aran – 100% Baby Alpaca – Fuzzy – Solid colors

Lion Brand
Comfy Cotton Blend – Worsted – 50% Cotton, 50% Polyester – Plied – Multicolored
Touch of Merino – Sport – 90% Acrylic, 10% Merino Wool – S on S plied – Solid colors
Touch of Mohair – DK – 90% Acrylic, 10% Mohair – Plied with a soft haze – Solid colors

Louisa Harding
Enorme – Jumbo – 50% Wool, 49% Acrylic, 1% Nylon – Single wrapped with thread – Multicolored
Luci – Fingering – 41% Acrylic, 41% Superwash Wool, 18% Viscose – Plied – Self-striping marls

Malabrigo Yarn
Susurro – Sport – 50% Silk, 25% Linen, 25% Merino Wool – Single ply – Tonal colors, Multicolored
Washted – Aran – 100% Merino Superwash Wool – Single ply – Tonal colors, Multicolored

Manos del Uruguay
Cabrito – Lace – 80% Mohair, 20% Nylon – Brushed bouclé – Tonal colors, Multicolored
Feliz – DK – 70% Merino Superwash Wool, 30% Modal Rayon – Plied – Tonal colors, Multicolored

Marie Wallin
British Breeds – Fingering – 25% Blue Faced Leicester Wool, 25% Exmoor Horn Wool, 25% Romney Wool, 25% Zwartbles Wool – 2 ply – Heathered colors

Marks & Kattens
Raggsocksgarn – Aran – 70% Superwash Wool, 30% Nylon – Plied – Solid colors, Heathers, Marls, Multicolored

Noro
Kiri – Sport – 47% Silk, 39% Wool, 14% Mohair – Tweedy – Self-striping (gradient transition)

Schachenmayr Original
Casual Soft – Aran – 73% Cotton, 19% Superwash Wool, 8% Viscose – 2 ply – Semi-solid colors

Wendy
Botanics Chunky – Bulky – 100% Acrylic – Single ply – Multicolored
Noir Chunky – Bulky – 80% Acrylic, 16% Superwash Wool, 4% Metallic – Slubby single wrapped with thread – Multicolored with metallic

Yarn Bee
Caterina – Sport – 90% Acrylic, 10% Nylon – 2 ply – Self-striping (gradient marl)

Discontinued

Baa Ram Ewe
Dovestone Natural Aran – Aran – 50% Blue Faced Leicester Wool, 25% Masham Wool, 25% Wensleydale Wool – 2 ply – Undyed

Bernat
Dazzle – Super Bulky – 76% Acrylic, 15% Metallic, 9% Wool – Fiber-filled net – Solid colors with metallic

Debbie Bliss
Bohème – Super Bulky – 52% Wool, 34% Acrylic, 14% Nylon – Chained – Multicolored
Botany Lace – Fingering – 100% Superwash Wool – Plied – Multicolored
Pure Bliss Collection Lhasa – Heavy Worsted – 50% Cashmere, 50% Yak – Chained – Solid colors
Rialto Chunky – Bulky – 100% Merino Superwash Wool – S on S plied – Solid colors

Lion Brand
Alpine Wool – Bulky – 77% Wool, 15% Acrylic, 8% Rayon – Single ply – Heathered colors

Moda Vera
Cup Cake – Worsted – 50% Acrylic, 50% Nylon – Plied – Solid colors
Harmony – Aran – 50% Acrylic, 50% Superwash Wool – Single ply – Tonal colors
Mousse – Bulky – 70% Wool, 30% Soy Viscose – Single ply – Solid colors
Pure Wool 8-ply – DK – 100% Wool – Plied – Solid colors
Socks – Fingering – 75% Wool, 25% Nylon – Plied – Self-striping (fair-isle effect)

Patons (North America)
Iced – Super Bulky – 68% Acrylic, 29% Wool, 3% Polyester – Single ply – Marled colors with glossy haze
Peak – Bulky – 83% Acrylic, 17% Nylon – Thick and thin – Solid colors with colored slubs

Pickles
Angora – DK – 70% Angora, 20% Nylon, 10% Wool – Fuzzy

Robin
Comfy Baby – Sport – 80% Acrylic, 20% Nylon – Plied – Solid colors, Color dots
Crepe DK – DK – 100% Acrylic – Crepe – Solid colors

Rowan
Alpaca Merino DK – DK – 83% Alpaca, 10% Nylon, 7% Wool – Chained – Solid colors

Schoeller + Stahl
Pantino – Heavy Worsted – 60% Cotton, 40% Acrylic – Plied – Solid colors

Shilasdair
Aran – Aran – 100% Wool – Plied
Luxury 4-ply – Fingering – 40% Angora, 40% Merino Wool, 10% Camel, 10% Cashmere – Plied with a soft haze – Tonal colors
Luxury DK – DK – 40% Angora, 40% Wool, 10% Camel, 10% Cashmere – Plied with a soft haze – Tonal colors

South West Trading Company
Bamboo – Worsted – 100% Bamboo Viscose – Chained

Stacy Charles Fine Yarns
Ritratto – DK – 53% Rayon, 28% Mohair, 10% Nylon, 9% Polyester – Fuzzy

Trendsetter Yarns
Smoothies – DK – 52% Cotton, 48% Acrylic – Plied – Gradient
Transitions Tweed – DK – 52% Cotton, 48% Acrylic – Loosely plied – Gradient

Twilleys of Stamford
Freedom Wool – Super Bulky – 100% Wool – Single ply – Solid colors, Heathers

Wendy
Merino 4-ply – Fingering – 100% Merino Superwash Wool – Plied – Solid colors

If you'd like to get in touch, please send a mail to hello@yarnsub.com (you can simply reply to this mail) or find me on Ravelry, Instagram and Facebook.

See you in December!

Wendy

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