Yarns made from natural fibres, chosen one at a time. Norwegian wool and merino for sweaters that last for years. Mohair and cashmere for fine, warm layers. Alpaca for soft drape and warmth without weight. Linen and organic cotton for everything you knit in summer. If you don't know where to start, start from the project: below you'll find which fibre suits it.
Almost every disappointing choice starts in the same place: you buy the yarn before you know what you are making. The order that works is the reverse. Project first, then fibre, thickness last. A winter sweater and a summer top ask completely different things of a yarn.
Both are wool, but they behave differently. Peer Gynt is Norwegian wool: hard-wearing, structured, it holds its shape, and a sweater knitted from it looks the same after several years of wear. Merino, like Double Sunday or Fine Merino, is a different thing. It feels much softer against the skin, so it is the right pick if you are knitting something worn next to the body, or for someone who says wool scratches.
Almost always held together with another yarn, not on its own. It adds halo, that fine fuzzy layer around the stitches, plus warmth without weight. One ball of Tynn Silk Mohair held with a merino completely changes how the same pattern looks, without making the garment heavy. Pearl Mohair does the same with a more fluid drape, because it is blended with mulberry silk.
Alpaca is warmer than wool at the same weight, but it drapes much more heavily. The fabric flows instead of standing up. It is perfect for long cardigans and anything you want to hang beautifully, and less suited to pieces that need to hold their shape. Alpakka Ull is blended with wool precisely to balance this.
It is the softest and the most expensive. It makes sense for small pieces worn directly against the skin: a collar, a hat, a fine top. On a large garment the cost adds up quickly and the difference in feel no longer justifies it in the same way. Classic Cashmere is pure cashmere.
Plant fibres do not hold heat, they breathe and stay cool against the skin. Linen can fool you: it feels rough in the ball, but it softens with every wash, and after a few wears it becomes the nicest fibre in the drawer. Linen Bloom is pure linen. Line and Nepal blend organic cotton with linen or viscose, so the fabric drapes more smoothly and does not turn out stiff.
It depends on the pattern, the size and the yarn. Two yarns of the same thickness can have different meterage per 50 g, so the amount you need differs too. Instead of guessing, run it through the yarn calculator: you pick the pattern and the yarn, and it tells you how many balls you need in your size. It also works the other way around, if you want to substitute the yarn recommended in the pattern.
Yarn thickness decides how fast you knit and how dense the fabric turns out. A simple rule: the higher the meterage per 50 g, the thinner the yarn. Every yarn page lists the exact meterage and the recommended needles. Treat them as a starting point, not as law. Always knit a swatch before you begin, because your gauge may not be the designer's gauge, and that is where most badly fitting garments come from.
Yes. The colour on a screen is not the colour in your hand, and how soft a fibre feels cannot be read from a description. You can order free samples of the yarns you are interested in before buying for a whole project.
Sandnes Garn is a Norwegian spinning mill that has been spinning since 1886, and its yarns are the most knitted in Scandinavia. Majo Garn is a French brand, with fine fibres and blends made for wearing next to the skin. Pascuali works with organic and certified fibres, many of them vegan. Cardiff brings the cashmere and cashmere blends.
All our yarns work with the patterns in our collection, and each pattern page lists the recommended yarn and the amount by size.
