Meet the Yarn: Luster, part 2

I love yarns that are luxurious without being so precious I'm too nervous to work with them. I find blends a wonderful way to have the best of both words and Luster is one of my favourites. It checks all the boxes for me: Luster is a 3-ply fingering weight yarn and a blend of 50% Tussah Silk and 50% Merino. If that weren't enough, each generous 114g skein is 405 yards (370 meters). It’s the fingering weight sibling to It Could Be Worsted.

I find pure silk beautiful, but often challenging to work with as it doesn't have the elastic fiber qualities of wool. Blending it with the merino creates a yarn that holds shape and still offers the amazing drape of silk. The subtle shine of the silk helps all the gorgeous colors that make Anzula special to glow.

Luster is versatile and works well with many different stitches. I knew from Jill's post and from browsing Ravelry, that there were many possible options from plain stitches, to colorwork, lace, twisted stitches and more. I love how Luster looks in what I call the simple stitches, plain knitting and the basic crochet stitches. I feel the silk lifts your projects to the next level simply by being there. I love when simple is sensational.

Luster knit swatches

Luster in stockinette

Luster in garter stitch

Luster crochet swatches

Luster in single crochet

While I focus on crochet for these posts I love how Luster makes all these different stitch examples shine. The granny square motif is definitely a luxurious upgrade from those of my childhood. I was surprised by the definition in my textured swatch, I now plan to try some post stitches and cables. When I do I’ll make sure to share them to instagram. The drape of the lace swatch has me wanting to work up an open-work wrap.

Luster in granny square motif

Luster in crochet texture

Luster in crochet lace

Luster in crochet lace, drape detail

Pattern Ideas

Purless | Stonelace Cowl | Kiona

I found three pattern ideas that I think showcase Luster’s versatility:

• Purless by Rosemary (Romi) Hill

• Stonelace Cowl by Stephannie Tallent

• crochet — Kiona by Ambur Hsiao

Have your own design idea? A reminder that you can send a Yarn Support Request to Anzula here.

—Charlie interrupting this post to let designers know that we are accepting requests for crochet, knitting, and weaving in a variety of bases. Email me your ideas! I love all of you!—

Luster is a yarn that I think is uniquely suited for a variety of projects. What might you make?

All swatches in this post are shown in the Saffron colourway with 3.75mm needles and hooks, any perceived differences in shade are due to the photographer.

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Penny Shima Glanz spends her days spinning yarn and code into memorable projects. Small businesses rely on her for smart technology decisions. Designers rely on her to sample, test, and edit their hand-knit and crochet patterns. She loves muddy trail runs, fosters kittens, and lives in Westchester, NY with her husband and cat (or two). www.pennyshima.com

Meet the Yarn: Luster

Jill Wolcott
passion.fashion.knits

Miles Davis said he had to quit playing ballads because he loved them so much.  Not sure what a ballad is?  Check this list, you have probably heard many of them. I had to step away from Luster in the same way!  Luster is a fingering version of It Could Be Worsted. As much as I enjoyed It Could Be Worsted, fingering is more my gauge.  I almost lost myself on the swatches of twisted stitch rib with cables and lace from the Japanese Knitting Stitch Bible.

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I have done my usual exploration swatch of garter, stockinette, seed, and 1x1 rib. The yummy blend of 50% super wash merino and 50% tussah silk means it looks good in all types of stitches. Tussah silk is not as refined as some silk filaments, so you get little bits of variation in the fiber.

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The yardage for Luster is 405 yards or 370 meters to 114g or 4 ounces.  I used a US size 3(3.25mm) needle.  The exploration swatch used 40g, I have approximately 36g remaining unknit, and so my other swatches used about 38g.  I know what I’m going to do with the unknit Luster—because I have an other skein which I’m going to knit up — it will become accents.

So let’s get to the details so you can start having Luster-ous dreams:  

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Do note that there isn’t a lot of change in gauge from unblocked to blocked, but that the stitch pattern gauges vary quite a bit.  I used the same needles throughout my swatches.  Every stitch looks great in this yarn.  Knit it tight enough to counteract the in-elasticity of the silk, and to insure even stitches.  I love it in the twisted stitches, but I need a different skein for that because the other one I picked up is multi-colored.  This is a yarn worth waiting for!

8 rows of stitch pattern 162 from the Japanese Knitting Bible.

I love looking at the projects and stashes on Ravelry.  Prices online vary from $33 per skein to close to $37 per skein.  A shawl or project taking two skeins will cost about $70-75 and to my thinking, that is a nice price for the hours of knitting pleasure you will get.  Then, of course you get to wear it!

I do a cost analysis for my yarn based on knitting time.  I recently worked up a project in 1 skein of Sport with similar yardage and spent about 12 hours knitting.  Double that if you use 2 skeins.  That means it costs $3.125 an hour.  About the same as the cost of my Saturday double espresso.  That does not take into account the future wearing.  

Seeing photos of a yarn worked up is always a good way to take its measure.  Here are some Luster projects I selected from the 158 listed on Ravelry.  I added the number of skeins used — so you can do the cost math.  There are 203 stash entries on Ravelry, and of the six listed for sale or trade, two are just the remainder from projects knitted. 

https://www.ravelry.com/projects/panfila/ever-again 1 skein plus a second yarn
https://www.ravelry.com/projects/MelKnitsInOly/zucchero 6 skeins (5 colors)
https://www.ravelry.com/projects/sixfoursgirl/kiss-me-romper 2 colors
https://www.ravelry.com/projects/mysisterknits/purless 1 skein
https://www.ravelry.com/projects/rindab/hitofude-cardigan 3 skeins, size small
https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Summ/santa-rosa-plum 4 skeins
https://www.ravelry.com/projects/hellogirl100687/im-winging-it-sweater-xxxvii-discreet-faux-isle unknown, but sweater appears to be an XS.

Looks like there is plenty of user satisfaction!  Take a look, then purchase a skein or two and set sail on your next beautiful knitted thing!

You’ll find more great pattern ideas for Luster on our Pinterest page!

Keep up on all things Jill Wolcott:
Contact: jill@jillwolcottknits.com
Blog:  http://www.jillwolcottknits.com/category/blog/
Twitter: @jillwolcottknit
Instagram: @jillwolcottknits
Pinterest: Jill Wolcott Knits
www.JillWolcottKnits.com 

New Colorways and... Yarns!

Yesterday at TNNA we divulged what we've been waiting for ages to share - five new colors! Please allow us, without further adieu, to introduce them to you now... 

From left: Rust, Saffron, Peacock, Hippo, and Orchid.

All of the colors above are shown on Silken, a brand new yarn that is composed of 50% Superwash Merino and 50% Tussah Silk. It's a fingering/sock weight yarn, a skein of which measures +/- 375 yards or 343 meters. 

But Silken isn't the only new yarn line we are releasing at TNNA this weekend! Three other lines are also being released, all composed of the same 50/50 blend as Silken. Luster is also a fingering/sock weight yarn that measures +/- 385 yards or 352 meters. Croquet is a DK weight yarn that measures +/- 250 yards or 228 meters. And It Could Be Worsted is a worsted weight yarn that measures +/- 200 yards or 182 meters. 

I know what you're thinking... let's see the pictures!

Rust

Saffron

Peacock

Hippo

Orchid

These new yarns and colorways should be arriving at your LYS soon! If you don't see them, be sure to ask for them - any of our yarns or fibers can be special ordered by your LYS for one skein or one hundred.