I get a lot of questions about yarn and the choice of yarn. I'm a real wool nerd so here you should read a little!
As I mainly knit garments for outdoor life and use outdoors in wind and weather, I mainly use untreated Norwegian and Icelandic wool. Nordic wool is very robust and durable.
When I write untreated wool, I mean wool that is not superwash-treated. I'm one of those people who does not use superwash yarn. For those of you who do not know what it is, it is wool treated with a plastic layer around the wool fibers so that it can be machine washed. When yarn is superwashed, it also loses the properties of the wool, such as being self-cleaning and breathable. It is the wool greasy lanolin that makes the wool self-cleaning and this disappears when a yarn is superwashed.
Sigrid Ekran in Arctic summer. Sigrid is a former world champion in long-distance dog sledding and posed as a model in my new book. (Pattern you will find my book Wilderness Sweaters 2 ). Photo: Marte Stensland Jørgensen.
Norwegian wool
Norwegian wool is fantastic! We have several different sheep breeds in Norway and they can be divided into two "main types": The sheep breeds with two types of wool (cover hair and underwool) and the sheep breeds with only underwool. If you are in doubt about what cover hair and undercoat are, you can take a look at a polar dog. The long stiff, robust hairs you see on the dog are cover hairs. These make sure that rain and dirt do not get into the dog's fur. The undercoat, on the other hand, keeps the dog warm and is very soft.
Norwegian yarn from sheep with only underbred (crossbred):
The sheep with only underwool are called crossbred. Their wool consists of long, very durable fibers that can withstand a LOT. The yarns Peer gynt and rauma wood thread come from cossbread sheep. Despite the fact that these two yarns contain largely the same type of fibers, they are different in thickness and the way they are spun. Peer gynt is a worsted yarn, and this means that the wool lies parallel. The yarn therefore feels softer because they are fewer fibers that protrude. Peer gynt also contains four threads. Rauma wood thread is a card yarn and this means that the fibers are more "hollow to bolts". There is more air in the yarn, which makes the garments lighter. The disadvantage of using wool without cover hair is that the garments do not become water-repellent in the same way as yarn as for example Alafosslopi. It is important to mention that all untreated wool contains residues of the sauce's wool fat which makes the garment to a certain extent water-repellent. You can also add lanolin to the garment with lanonine wash if you wish.
Norwegian yarn from sheep with undercoat and cover hair:
Yarn spun from, for example, Spælsau and Villsau are yarns with both cover hair and undercoat. The wool of these types of sheep is very durable. Rauma carries a four-thread spælsaugarn, while villsaugarn can be bought at Hillesvåg ullvarefabrikk.
Hopi knitted in Vidde lamull yarn and Varde fur wool yarn (Pattern can be found in my book Villmarksgensere 2. ) Photo: Marte Stensland Jørgensen.
Icelandic wool:
I use a lot of Icelandic wool (Alafosslopi, Lettlopi and Platulopi)! Icelandic wool contains both cover hair and underwool. The undercoat is soft and the cover hairs are stiff. The cover hairs and lanonine in the wool make the garment robust and water-repellent.
The Icelandic sheep are related to the old Norwegian sheep breeds and have great similarities with them. There are many reasons why I use a lot of Icelandic wool: The wool is warm, durable, water-repellent and very nice to look at. The cover hairs rise like a halo around the sweater when it rains. In addition to the good quality of the wool, it is produced in an incredible number of nice colors!
The yarns may itch a little, but Icelandic wool is strictly speaking not intended to be right next to the body. I use my fleece jackets as jackets and almost always have a thin wool top underneath.
Waqas (my husband) on a ski trip in Føyka! Knitted in Troll, Blåne and Alafosslopi. I often like to mix yarn qualities to get a special look on the sweater or to get exactly the colors I want. (Replacement on Føyka can be found in my book Wilderness Sweaters).
For you with sensitive skin:
I know there are some out there who think wool itches a lot. Wool always becomes softer after washing and after use and do not judge the wool until you have knitted up and rinsed up the garment. I have made an overview below with yarn alternatives Pinne 4.5 mm and 6 mm.
Remember that which Pinne one must use to have the stated knitting strength is individual. Therefore, always check the knitting tension before starting.
My sister, Ida, in a Qanik hoodie knitted in Alafosslopi and double thread lettlopi (The pattern can be found in my book Villmarksgensere 2 ).
Alafosslopi (100% Icelandic wool): Suitable for you who will use the garment a lot outside in all kinds of weather. This yarn contains cover hair and undercoat from the sheep which makes it water-repellent. Garments knitted in Alafosslopi can withstand a lot of hard use, but it feels a bit tangled with use, so it is better that you knit the sweater too big than too small. The yarn can itch so I recommend wearing wool underwear underneath.
(Double thread) Platulopi (100% Icelandic wool): This yarn is unspun so it can be a little difficult to knit with since it smokes easily. But you get an incredibly light, warm and soft sweater, but the same features as Alafosslopi. To correspond to Alafosslopi in thickness, you must knit with double thread.
Blue fur wool yarn (100% Norwegian wool): A yarn made from Norwegian fur sheep. All the wool is dyed on the sheep's natural color which is gray, so the wool gets a special shine. High quality yarn. Suitable for outdoor life.
Troll from Hillesvåg woolen goods factory (100% Norwegian wool): A soft and good wool yarn from underwool. This is a very good alternative to Alafosslopi so it will be too rough for you. Suitable for outdoor life.
A thread of Vams together with a thread of lamull yarn from Rauma (100% Norwegian wool) : Soft and good wool yarn of underwool. Suitable for outdoor life.
Pickles tweedy (100% wool): Beautiful tweed yarn in wool.
Drops Eskimo (100% wool): A soft wool yarn.
Viking hobby yarn (100% Australian wool): A soft wool yarn.
Bris from Viking yarn (60% baby alpaca, 11% merino wool and 29% nylon): Suitable for indoor use.
Brushed alpaca from Sandnes yarn (96% brushed alpaca and 4% nylon): Here you get a slightly "puffy" look on the garment. Suitable for indoor use.
Fat fairytale from DSA (100% brushed alpaca): Here you get a slightly "puffy" look on the garment. Suitable for indoor use.
Pus from DSA (70% baby alpaca, 17% acrylic, 13% polyamide): Here you get a slightly "puffy" look on the garment. Suitable for indoor use.
Peacock from Dale yarn (73% mohair and 22% wool and 5% polyamide): Here you get a slightly "puffy" look on the garment. Suitable for indoor use.
Drops melody (71% Alpaca, 25% Wool, 4% Polyamide): Here you get a slightly "puffy" look on the garment. Suitable for indoor use.
Hopi knitted in Lettlopi. (The pattern can be found in my book Wilderness Sweaters 2. )
Lettlopi (100% Icelandic wool): Suitable for you who will use the garment a lot outside in all kinds of weather. This yarn contains cover hair and undercoat from the sheep which makes it water-repellent. Garments that are knitted in light lopi can withstand a lot of hard use, but it feels a bit tangled with use, so it is better that you knit the sweater too big than too small. The yarn can itch so I recommend wearing wool underwear underneath.
Vidde lamull yarn (100% Norwegian wool): Vidde is a soft Norwegian quality yarn made from lamb wool which fits great if you are going to use the sweater both outside and inside. The yarn contains only undercoat, which means that it is not as water-repellent in the same way as light lopi, but in return you get much softer garments. Wool contains lanolin, which is the sheep's natural wool fat. This means that all yarns that are made of untreated wool (not superwash.) Are to a certain extent water-repellent. Lanolin also makes the garment self-cleaning. Suitable for both outdoor life and everyday clothes.
Varde fur wool yarn (100% Norwegian wool): A yarn of Norwegian fur sheep. All the wool is dyed on the sheep's natural color which is gray, so the wool gets a special shine. High quality yarn. Suitable for both outdoor life and everyday wear.
Platulopi (100% Icelandic wool): This yarn is unspun so it can be a little difficult to knit with since it smokes easily. But you get an incredibly light, warm and soft sweater, but the same features as Alafosslopi and Lettlopi.
Hip wool from Hipknitshop (100% peruvian wool): A super soft alternative for you who scratch. great for everyday wear.
Drops Alaska (100% wool): Suitable for both outdoor and indoor use.
Pure merino from mimilano (100% merino wool): A yarn for you with very sensitive skin. Fits everyday clothes.
Alpaca tweed from DSA: A tweed yarn of alpaca and wool. I react to alpaca so I can unfortunately not say much about this yarn other than that it looks beautiful. Garments in alpaca get wet very quickly outside so it is not suitable for outdoor life.
Drops Nepal (65% wool 35% alpaca): Fits everyday garments.
Alpaca wool from sandnes yarn (65% wool 35% alpaca): Suitable for everyday garments.
Big strong from DSA (40% finest alpaca, 40% merino wool and 20% nylon): Fits everyday garments.
Faerytale from DSA (100% brushed alpaca): Here you get a slightly "puffy" look on the garment. Suitable for indoor use.
Drops Air (65% Alpaca, 28% Polyamide, 7% Wool): Suitable for indoor use.
Drops brushed alpaca silk (77% brushed alpaca, 23% silk): Here you get a slightly "puffy" look on the garment. Suitable for indoor use.
We'll email you when we have something new! 😁
