You'll Love Fingering Weight for Fall Knits!
If you're used to knitting with medium and heavy-weight yarns, fingering weight yarn can seem intimidating - it's so fine, won't it take forever to knit something?
And then there are knitters who are happiest with delicate yarns in their hands... Here's why fingering-weight yarns are worth the effort of working on small needles:
🧶 you can wear lightweight knits, especially shawls, in every season
🧶 hand-dyed yarns show variegated color beautifully at a fine gauge
🧶 since fingering weight yarns usually have generous yardage, many patterns need only 1 or 2 skeins, which also makes them easy to carry with you anywhere!
I've picked three gorgeous shawl+yarn pairings that will keep you happily in stitches through the fall - as always, we love to help you choose colors and fibers.
Why Shawls?
Although I mostly knit sweaters, I almost always have a shawl on the needles for times when I want to simply knit and not worry about gauge, fit or seaming. Stitch patterns take some attention, but that keeps the knitting interesting and I can quickly find a rhythm. Because shawls are meant to drape, they tend to be worked on a slightly larger needle - a size US 4 or 5 for fingering weight, instead of a US 1 or 2 typically used for socks.
Stormy Sky Shawl by Ksenia Naidyon
This lovely shawl by local designer Ksenia Naidyon features alternating bands of simple stitch textures - perfect for showing off a hand-dyed yarn (our sample is in La Bien Aimée Cashmerino) or a self-striping or ombré yarn like Schoppel Crazy Zauberball and Rowan Sock. Even the small version is generously sized, and you'll need only one 100g skein or ball. Best of all: Ksenia created a crochet version as well!
Simple Bliss by Nadia Crétin-Léchenne
Sometimes I think planning a project is just as much fun as the knitting! Simple Bliss was designed specifically for La Bien Aimée Cashmerino, and you could spend an afternoon just playing with color combinations. Solid + speckle? Neon + neutral? The options are truly endless, and the lace stitch pattern is simple enough not to be overpowered by variegated color. You'll need one skein each of two colors for this cozy and light shawl.
Heart Warmer Shawl by Justyna Lorkowska
If you've ever said to someone "just one more row," it was probably working a project like this - sections of stitch patterns that hold your interest just long enough before changing to a new pattern. Heart Warmer Shawl is fun to knit and fabulous to wear, with a banana shape you can wrap around your neck and shoulders with panache. Texture is the star of this style, so keep the yarn simple and soft: Isager Alpaca Merino (Alpaca 2) is utterly delicious in plain stockinette, lace, bobbles... you name it. At 1000 yards, this is the largest shawl of the three - you'll need 4 skeins of Alpaca 2 (272 yds/50g.) Or, you can knit her cowl version with just two skeins!
Whether you're trying fingering weight yarn for the first time, or have a long-time love affair with fine yarns, I hope you'll give one of these beautiful shawls a try. Let us know how it turns out!