Because it's nice to know what other spinners
think about a fiber you haven't yet tried,
welcome to the Knittyspin Fiber Fiesta feature!
Each type of fiber is tested by 2-4 average
spinners, each with a different background
and level of experience. Each spinner is
provided with the same amount of fiber, and
each spinner spins, plies, finishes and knits
each fiber as it speaks to them. Their feedback
is collected on a standardized form and
summarized below.
Fiber that did not receive good feedback will not be featured
in Knitty, in accordance with our review policy, so if
a fiber is featured here, it means the majority of spinners
liked it!
Key:
1: dislike/disagree/bad
5: deep love/total
agreement/great
Each yarn is rated on scale of 1-5 in a variety of categories.
Retail prices are in USD unless otherwise noted.
Forbidden
Woolery This batt is light and fluffy,
spinning up with no effort. It is meant
to be stripped width-wise and then spun
from the fold to create the self-striping
effect. Perfect for House scarves or socks!
Fiber
Superwash
BFL
Color
Gryffindor
Weight
1 oz
Put up
batt
Price
$5.00
# of spinners
4
overall
impression
• Bright
and brilliant color combination; puffy
soft BFL with a kick of color • I wouldn’t
normally pick this colorway, but I
love the way the colors knitted up • Really fun to play with • Wow bright!
how does it feel? 1= pot scrubber
5= baby’s
bum
how much predrafting
needed?
1= a ton
5= none
how did it spin? 1= fought me like Moby Dick
5=
aaaaaah
dye leak? 1=lots
5=none
describe it
in a phrase
• Fun
and interesting colorway • Tequila sunrise • The whole package – stunning
color, buttery softness and smooth
spinning • Yummilicious
how did you spin
it?
• I
spun this worsted as I intended to
Navajo ply. It spun up just fine. I
Navajo plyed and it fought me. The
stickiness of the superwash is what
I am blaming it on, and the tight twist
I generally employ. The resulting wool
is on the high-spun side of things
and not what I intended. I was hoping
for softness. • Spun worsted
thinking of sock yarn, stripped into
strips and spun from the end. • Stripped lengthwise
and spun worsted • Stripped the
batt lengthwise into 4 strips and spun
worsted with the colors as mixed as
possible
how did you
ply it?
• 3
ply • 2 ply • Navajo • 2 ply
WPI
• 11 • 12 • 14
• 20
how did you finish
it?
� Soak,
menace, soak, hang to dry � Washed and whacked � Super hot soak with
SOAK, whacked and hung � Hot soak, hang dry
did
it do what you expected, or were you
surprised?
� I
stripped this batt into long strips
and spun up a single which spun up
nice and happy. � Lots of color definition
and nice swirl. A festival of hot orange
and yellow. � The batt was prepared
very well and it spun up very easily.
I was very happy with the knitted fabric. � Really surprised, there was a fair amount of marling
in the yarn which I’m not fond of, but knitted up it was wonderful!
what
would you make with it?
� A
hat for hunting season. � Soft enough and
since it’s superwash, baby or
child garment – also great for
socks.
• Happy, happy Harry Potter socks � Anything – sweater,
hats, mitts
Happy
Fuzzy Yarn I’ve been spinning and dyeing
for 20 years, and knitting for even longer.
I love to put colors together, and total
strangers have stopped me on the street
to tell me they loved the sweater I was
wearing. There’s nothing I’d
rather do, and my hope is that others will
get to experience the joy these things
bring me.
Fiber
BFL
Color
Brick
and Mystic
Weight
4 oz
Put
up
combed top
Price
$16.50
#
of spinners
4
overall
impression
� In
love with the color, really well prepared � Loved the melding
of the colors as I spun � Beautiful colors,
fantastic spin
how does it
feel? 1= pot scrubber
5= baby’s bum
how
much predrafting needed?
1= a ton
5= none
how did it
spin? 1= fought me like Moby Dick
5= aaaaaah
dye leak? 1=lots
5=none
describe it
in a phrase
� Dreamy
and luscious � Wooly earthy rosy � Moody blues � Rusty rose
how did you
spin it?
� woolen,
medium whorl, average speed � woolen � stripped lengthwise
and spun worsted � pulled apart in
thin sections to get quicker color
changes, spun worsted
how did you
ply it?
� 2
ply � single � 2 ply � single
WPI
� 9 � 15 � 10 � 18
how did you
finish it?
� soaked
in hot water to set twist, let
dry unweighted � really hot soak
in SOAK, hung � really hot soak
in SOAK, hung � hot soak and hang
did
it do what you expected, or were you
surprised?
� it
did what i expected, but it was springier
than i expected. � Crazy wonderfully
prepared fiber, zero compacted, effortless
spin � The roving felt
nice, but I had to predraft a little
more than expected and was really happy
with the knitted fabric. � It was really well prepared
what
would you make with it?
� it
would make a great sweater, vest or
other garment. it would also make a
cushy pair of socks, though you might
need to add nylon reinforcement at
heel. � Texture stitch cardigan
with a yoke � Something cozy,
sweater, mittens hat � Sweaters, anything
Indigodragonfly I love colour,
deeply. But
even more than that, I love to play
with colour. I'm an improv dyer.
I throw colours together and see what
happens. Sometimes I know. Most
times I don't. My colour names
are inspired by the colours themselves...and
a slightly warped sense of humour.
Can't help it. It's genetic.
Fiber
superwash
merino/ bamboo 50/50
Color
Rapunzel
Weight
50g
Put
up
roving
Price
$10.00
#
of spinners
4
overall
impression
� Rapunzel
let down your purple highlighted tresses.
Amazing what highlights in the color
would come out when you spin. This
fiber began more on the dark purpled
persuasion. Rapunzel ended up with
silver purpled tresses. � Purple dappled cloud � Bamboo adds a lot
of luster and shine
how does it
feel? 1= pot scrubber
5= baby’s bum
how
much predrafting needed?
1= a ton
5= none
how did it
spin? 1= fought me like Moby Dick
5= aaaaaah
dye leak? 1=lots
5=none
describe it
in a phrase
� Liquid
Purple Haze � luscious � love in bag
how did you
spin it?
� I
stripped the fiber down the middle
and then each strand was split again.
I spun two nice fat plump singles,
loose and puffy on my largest whorl. � Woolen, fine-ish � Split in half lengthwise and spun in reverse order
to blend color, worsted � Split in 4, spun fine worsted single. Attempted
to cable, but I didn’t have enough twist in the initial plies
so the final cable yarn is looser than I wanted – it doesn’t
look cabled
how did you
ply it?
� 2
ply, nice and loose. � 2 ply � 2 ply � cable
WPI
� 10 � 16 � 16 � 10
how did you
finish it?
� Rinse
and whack � Hot soak and hang � Rinse and hung � Soaked it hot and
then plunged it into cold, then thwacked
it on my house and hung it to dry for
all to admire
did
it do what you expected, or were you
surprised?
� I
expected a rich dark purple and ended
up with a brilliant, shining silver
purple, as the bamboo took the highlights
and ran. Very nice. � Bamboo was not fuzzy
at all � Spun itself; it
was that easy
what
would you make with it?
� Lace
cardigan � Hat � Spring cardigan
or shawl to take advantage of the shine
Jela’s
Fibers When it comes
to fiber, I’m
a bit of mad scientist. The deliciously smooth,
easy to draft batts I specialize in are
the result of countless hours in the ‘laboratory’,
experimenting with new blending techniques
and testing new fibers to add in to my
signature superwash merino base.
My colors are typically the result of
spontaneous combustion and never an exact
science. And because I rarely repeat
colorways, rest assured, every batt I
create will always be a one-of-a-kind.
Fiber
merino,
milk fiber, glitz
Color
varied
Weight
4 x 2 oz
Put
up
batts
Price
$18.00 for 2 2-oz
batts
#
of spinners
4
overall
impression
• Understated
elegance, layered simply with a twinkle • Deeply silky • Squishy • Beautiful,
my colors!
how does it
feel? 1= pot scrubber
5= baby’s bum
how
much predrafting needed?
1= a ton
5= none
how did it spin? 1= fought me like Moby Dick
5= aaaaaah
� I
stripped the bat long ways in small strips
and spun up a single. I used my largest
whorl. The colors spun up independently
and blended together in a lively swirl.
I was happy with the effect and kept
it as a single. • Woolen chubby • Stripped it and laid different colors on top of each other so they would
draft at the same time to blend the colors – worsted • Tore in half and spun chunky worsted
how did you
ply it?
� no
plying required, she stood on her own � single � 2 ply � 2 ply
WPI
� 8 • 8 • 8 • 6
how did you
finish it?
� Soak,
menace, soak and hung to dry • Hot soak, hang • Hot soak and hang • Rinsed and hung
did
it do what you expected, or were you
surprised?
� I
was happily surprised at the lovely spin
with this fiber. The colors stood out
and showcased themselves as they were
not blended in the batt, but layered. • Was going to
ply for super bulky yarn, but liked the
single too much to risk the color blend
in the ply • I wanted a blended fat single but I wasn’t happy with the way it
looked so I plied it and magic happened • All batts
that I have spun have been lumpy. This one was so easy to control I couldn’t
believe it, it spun so smoothly
what
would you make with it?
� Erk
hat • Fat cowl • Anything where
you’d want a pop of color: hats,
mitts, cowl • Big chunky barn sweater
Woolgatherings Woolgatherings
is a family business, started over 20 years
ago by "Twisted
Mom" Sandy Sitzman, and continued
today by principal dyer, Kate Sitzman.
Kate’s fibers are hand painted
in very small batches in a continuously
evolving range of color combinations.
Fiber
50% Merino/50%
silk
Color
blues
and greens (none of the Woolgatherings
fibers have named colorways, and may
or may not be repeated)
Weight
4 oz
Put
up
top
Price
$29.00
#
of spinners
4
overall
impression
� Reminded
me of the summer and the water and how
much I look forward to the coming season,
ahhhhh • Shimmering silk
swirls • Loved the cool
colors and silky feel • Really
like the color
how does it
feel? 1= pot scrubber
5= baby’s bum
how
much predrafting needed?
1= a ton
5= none
how did it spin? 1= fought me like Moby Dick
5= aaaaaah
dye leak? 1=lots
5=none
describe it
in a phrase
� pondlakewoods • summer
blue sky and grass • great colorway
and silky soft feel • deep
blue sea
how did you
spin it?
� Worsted.
I split the fiber into two strips and
then again and spun it up. • Fine worsted • Stripped lengthwise
and spun into thick single • Split vertically
into thirds, spun each worsted. When
plying, plied two from same end and one
from the reverse end, so the colors would
pool instead of marl.
how did you
ply it?
� Navajo • Navajo • single • 3 ply
WPI
� 12 � 11 � 10 � 16
how did you
finish it?
� Soak,
menace, soak, hang to dry • Hot soak, whack and hang • Hot cold rinse • Rinse and hang
did
it do what you expected, or were you
surprised?
� Merino
Silk goodness • It was really
well prepared, but my hands keep snagging
on the silk. Next time, sugar scrub first! • I was not surprised; it was silky and smooth roving
and it spun silky and smooth. When it rinsed when rinsed the singles plumped
up – this
surprised me. • Beautifully smooth
what
would you make with it?
� A
shrug • A Romi lace shawl • Shawl • Cabled shawl
