Why Wool Is Stubborn Sometimes But We Love It Anyway

Sometimes the wool lies very well beside us, ready to turn into soft stitches. Everything flows so effortlessly that we think we have reinvented knitting. And then there are the other days. Days when the yarn suddenly has its own opinion. It wriggles, splits into individual threads or simply refuses to do what we want it to do. In short: the wool shows off its capricious side.

The reason for this? Each fiber has its own character. Some are uncomplicated and slide through their fingers, others behave like little divas who only give up their full potential with a lot of patience and attention. Merino snuggles softly, but needs a firm hand, otherwise it stretches to infinity. Cotton remains stoically in shape, but does not forgive mistakes. Mohair is a fluffy cloud that makes us sigh in love – until once we try to separate it. And linen, well, at the beginning it is as stubborn as an old garden hose, but over time it develops the softness of a summer breeze. Wool is not a soulless industrial product, but a material with character and attachment.

If we agree to it, then we quickly realize: the wool does not want to be tamed, but understood. Sometimes it helps to relax them a little before knitting, to pick up the appropriate needles or to touch their peculiarities with a stitch sample. Above all, however, serenity helps. Because most yarns shed their stubbornness at some point, as soon as they have found their rhythm in the knit piece.

And next to the stubborn wool, there would be the wrong stitches. We all know it: right stitches run like in our sleep, they are fluid, even and simply fun. Left stitches, on the other hand, disrupt the flow and suddenly make knitting seem more cumbersome. No wonder, then, that many of us don’t exactly count them among our favorites.

But this is exactly where a real highlight comes into play: the new Sandnes-Kollektion. It makes the knitting life so much easier and more beautiful that you wonder why you do not always knit everything exactly like this. In the Scandinavian style, all models are worked “top down” so from top to bottom in rounds.

This means: no individual parts that you have to sew together later on laboriously, but a continuous knitting pleasure. Because you are constantly working on the front, the unloved left stitches disappear almost completely from the scene. When knitting with many colors this is the biggest anyway, you have the beautiful pattern always in mind and no disturbing back. And as if those weren’t enough advantages, you can adjust the length of knitting at any time – shorter, longer, as it pleases.

This time we find the collection extremely beautiful. Every single design is really special. There are really noble parts that you would like to take on the needles immediately. And those color combinations! So cool, so consistent – we couldn’t decide what we want to knit first. Honestly, every time we look at the pictures, we are a bit more in love.

^{„We would also have a little tip for everyone who dares to knit a knit dress: If you knit towards the end, wet the dress very easily, hang it for a day and let it hang out a bit. So the length remains exactly as you want it and the dress sits really nice at the end. „}

Such small tricks often make the difference and show that knitting sometimes does not depend on big theory, but on simple tricks. We do not have to conquer the wool or suddenly idolatrously love the unloved left stitches. It is much nicer to approach the matter with a wink, get to know the peculiarities of the yarns and resort to practical tips or clever knitting ideas. Because it is precisely this mixture that ensures that our knitting life goes away from the hand easier and at the same time makes even more joy.

A project that is guaranteed to bring joy and also easily goes by the hand, is the Honey Jacket by our favorite Anne Ventzel – of course also “top down” knitted. The fine combination of Isager Silk Mohair and Isager Spinni as a companion thread. We are one of the few in Austria to have original Isager Yarns in our range. All the more beautiful that designers like Anne Ventzel and Petite Knit always process these high-quality treasures in their models – that makes us a little bit proud every time.

And because the designs in this post have been so dreamy so far, we have a special treat for you: Dreamy Knits by Johanna Ekström-Partanen. A knitting book where the name is really program. Inside you will find 21 beautiful models inspired by walks on the coasts of Helsinki. The atmospheric photos take you to Suomenlinna – an island with a Nordic flair, pastel-colored houses and sea views to melt down.

After all the beautiful inspirations in this article, it is worth planning a bit of anticipation for two real highlights. In 14 days we will present you the new Lana-Grossa-Heft which we have been eagerly waiting for since the spring. There is also the new Lamana-Heft Already in the starting blocks and will be available for pre-order very soon.

Until then, we wish you, as always, a lot of fun and good luck!