The magic of Kidsilk Haze

As I write this, we are getting a powdered sugar dusting of snow - it looks so magical and feels like a warm fire, hot chocolate, fuzzy sweaters all wrapped up in one.   

I have a soft spot in my heart for fuzzy sweaters. My first project was a pink fuzzy vest, and I still swoon over angora, but I these days I get my fuzzy fix with mohair, adding a strand of Rowan Kidsilk Haze  whenever I can. And I almost always can.

Last week when I wrote about gauge for Cocoknits, I mentioned that the strand of KSH I was carrying with my Viola wasn’t going to change the gauge of that yarn, but rather the look of it, which is still true.  

What’s confusing, I think is that you can carry a strand of KSH with lace weight yarns and work them together at a much looser gauge.  Same with fingering weight yarn and dk.  So, I  thought I would talk about how this works, and show this lovely frothy fiber’s ability work with other yarns to create the fabric of your dreams.

Let’s look at KSH plus laceweight, as in the Stockholm sweater by Petiteknit

We did a knitalong for that sweater, and many of us used a strand of Rowan Fine Lace plus a strand of KSH and knit it at a gauge of 21 stitches per 4 inches.  Did KSH change the gauge of the Fine Lace?  No.  The Fine Lace was still a lace weight yarn. You could have knit the Stockholm with just the Fine Lace at a gauge of 21, but the fabric would have been too sheer to wear, and would have had too much drape to hang nicely.  The addition of the KSH changes the fabric, as we talked about last week.

Think about it this way.  Any yarn plus KSH together became a different yarn, You have not changed the gauge of either yarn, but rather created an entirely new yarn with a completely different gauge.  

The extent to which KSH impacts the yarn it’s carried with depends on how fine or thick the base yarn is.  With lace weight yarns, KSH has a huge impact, making a fuzzy statement and allowing you to create a wearable fabric at a gauge anywhere between 21 and 27 stitches per inch.

A strand of KSH with a fingering weight yarn can be worked at a gauge of 18 to 23 stitches as in this cardigan

With a dk weight, as in the Terrazzo sweater it will get you anywhere from 14 to 19

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And finally, as we’ve seen with both Magnolia Bloom and Emma, KSH fills in the gaps of a worsted weight yarn knit at 12 stitches.  

That’s about the limit, though.  Once you get much bulkier than a heavy worsted weight or light bulky yarn, the proportion of KSH to the base yarn is too small to make a difference.  I can’t imagine bothering carrying KSH with Big Wool – it just wouldn’t have an impact.  

Bottom line here is that you can create a new, heavier yarn that knits at a different gauge by carrying a strand of Kidsilk Haze.  If you have a bit of this magical yarn lying around, grab it and start swatching.  You’ll be amazed.  

Honestly, try this.  It will open you to an entirely new world of possibilities, gauges, and subtle color play you have to see to believe.  

Let me know in the comments your thoughts. 

Warmly,

Ellen