Yarn Bases
If you are new to yarn, here’s a great place to get some info on the differing yarn weights.
Hand-dyed yarn needs to be wound into a ball or cake before it can be worked. There are lots of great online tutorials about this and if you are planning on Getting Really Into Yarn, a swift and ball winder are a good one-time investment.
Also, let’s all just have a good giggle about the fact that my most frequently used yarn weight is called “fingering.” I’ll wait.
LACEWEIGHT
Mohair Silk
72% Kid Mohair/28% Mulberry Silk
459 yards/ 50 grams/single ply
It has a lovely halo and is a treat to work when held double with a fingering weight yarn (IT'S SO FLUFFY!)
Suri Silk Floof
74% Baby Suri Alpaca/26% Mulberry Silk
328 yards/ 50 grams/single ply
Suri has less stitch definition than mohair and looks like a wet Muppet in the skein BUT it is lovely and soft and provides a wonderful texture. It's a little beefier weight-wise than the mohair silk, and is also great for those of y'all who are allergic to mohair!
FINGERING
Bluefaced Leicester Wool Bases
Bluefaced Leicester (BFL) is a British sheep breed that produces the most glorious wool: it's soft but a little sheepier than merino, which means it is less prone to pilling. It has a beautiful luster, takes dye wonderfully, and has good stitch definition. (I love it so much.)
BFL Sock
75% Superwash British Bluefaced Leicester Wool/ 25% Nylon
464 yards/100g/4-ply
Pure BFL
100% Superwash British Bluefaced Leicester Wool
438 yards/100 grams/4-ply
BFL Silk
55% Superwash British Bluefaced Lecister Wool/45% Silk
438 yards/100 grams/4-ply
Targhee Sock
Targhee is a US sheep breed that produces the most glorious, springy, sturdy-yet-soft wool. The Targhee Sock base is more of a heavy fingering (giggles)-to-sport weight and is excellent for socks, accessories, and garments.
90% Superwash US Targhee Wool/10% Nylon
465 yards/115 grams/3-ply
Highland 4-Ply
Highland 4-Ply is a properly sheepy non superwash fingering base. It doesn't take dye as intensely as a superwash base, so colors aren't quite as saturated and speckles aren't crisp as on some of the other bases, but it's a lovely workhorse of a yarn and shines in garments and colorwork.
100% Peruvian Highland Wool
459 yards/100 g/4-Ply
Merino Wool Bases
Merino Sock
80% Superwash U.S. Merino Wool/20% Nylon
434 yards/115g/4-ply
Supersoft Merino Sock
75% Superwash U.S. Merino Wool/25% Nylon
463 yards/100g/4-ply
Sparkle Sock
75% Superwash Merino Wool/20% Nylon/5% Gold Stellina
400 yards/100 g /2-ply
Silver Sparkle Sock
75% Superwash Merino Wool/20% Nylon/5% Silver Stellina
400 yards/100 g /2-ply
Bronze Sparkle Sock
70% Superwash Merino Wool/20% Nylon/10% Silver Stellina
438 yards/100 g /2-ply
DK
BFL DK
100% Superwash British Bluefaced Leicester Wool
246 yards/100 grams/4-ply
WORSTED
Rambouillet Worsted
100% U.S. Grown and Processed Superwash Rambouillet Wool
196 yards/115 grams/5-Ply