Under The Son Farm: Fair Isle Vest

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Fair Isle Vest

One of my projects that I've been working on this summer was this Fair Isle vest. It is made with our millspun Shetland or Shetland blend sport weight yarn (total 98% UTS Shetland wool). It is from the Folk Vest book, slightly modified. Size 1 & 3 needles. Took me 2 months to do and it is for Jeff (fits perfect). I have found working fair isle to be much easier than lace as you can immediately spot errors. Yes, the colors are close in shading, but the recipient does not like bold patterning! I might be a bit more adventurous with my next pattern. This was actually kind of fun to do and the soft wool was such a pleasure to knit with. Took a blue at the WSWF Shetland Handmade show.

3 comments:

Kelly BartelsSep 15, 2011 06:17 PM
I loved it.
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ChristineSep 16, 2011 07:54 AM
WOW! I love that! This is exactly why I wanted Shetlands. I hope to be able to do something similar someday.
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MichelleSep 16, 2011 08:14 AM
Gorgeous! A natural-colored Fair Isle cardigan is on my bucket list....
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Welcome to Under The Son blog!

There are about 100 Shetland sheep on our farm during the winter months and over 200 with the lambs in the spring time. All colors along with katmoget and gulmoget as well as a few spotted sheep are here on the farm. I specialize in breeding classic fine fleeced Shetlands that are the hallmark of the Shetland wool industry and have been for hundreds of years.

Blogs posted will be relevant to our Shetland sheep farm goals such as working towards a classic type fleece - a fine to very fine, dense, silky, lustrous, 3-6" Shetland fleece, raising conformational correct pure Shetlands and growthy Shetland cross market lambs, as well as all manner of Shetland fleece production through to the finished products.

I am a spinner, weaver, knitter, felter, crocheter, dyer, soaper and have done all manner of other crafty things such as basketry, beaded jewelry, sewing, quilting, cross-stitch, etc.

Wool for sale includes raw fleece, washed fleece, rovings, spinning batts, quilt or comfortor batts, felt yardage, handspun yarns, millspun yarns, and finished knitted, woven, or felted goods such as fingerless gloves, purses, scarves, shawls, ponchos, ruanas, vests, jackets, and blankets.

Vist my Ravelry group for even more information. http://www.ravelry.com/groups/fine-shetland-wool

About Shetland Sheep

Shetland sheep are a heritage breed dating back a thousand years or more and are related to Soay sheep. They have primitive characteristics such as a naturally short fluke shaped tail, wool that 'roos' or sheds in the springtime, small size, and fine bone. They are famous first and foremost for their fine, soft, naturally colored wool that is very lightweight and warm. This wool was one of the two pillars of the Shetland Island economy for centuries.

Shetlands, the 'kindly' (soft) wooled native breed of sheep, were preserved because the Shetland wool industry was facing extinction with the the infiltration of coarse long wooled big sheep on the island. Steps were taken, such as the writing of the breed standard and paid ram incentives, to ensure the existence of this rare native breed and the continued existence of the woolen industry that employed so many of the women of Shetland.

Garments made from breed standard 'kindly' Shetland wool can be next-to-the-skin soft scarves to warm, soft outerwear sweaters. It is a fine wool with crimp (called 'wave' by the writers of the standard) and is normally used for knitted garments with good memory such as stockings/socks, hats, gloves, mittens, scarves, shawls, under clothing, and the famous Shetland sweaters. It is a 'longish' wool, around 3-6", depending on crimp. It is sometimes good for felting and some fleeces are very silky. As it is a heritage breed, there is quite a bit of diverseness found within the breed, especially in the colors and patterns that run the gamut of browns, blacks, greys, and white as well as spots and patterns. All in all, it is one of the premier handspinning fleeces to be found.

From the Shetland Sheep Society

"Shetland sheep have for generations been noted for their very soft and well crimped fleece. The wool is the finest of all native breeds and shows an amazing variety of colours and patterns. There are 11 main whole colours and 30 recognised markings.

By selecting from coloured fleeces a range of naturally coloured yarn can be produced. This eliminates the need for dyeing and therefore retains the soft feel of the natural fibre and is favoured by those who prefer a totally natural approach.

Shetland wool fibres are of a simple construction witha central cortex covered by a thin scaly cuticle, and have an average diameter of about 23 microns. However there is a range from 10-20 microns for neck and shoulder wool to 25to 35 microns for britch wool. the average staple length is 3.5 inches. The amount of crimp varies, and is most important in providing the 'bounce' required for knitwear. There is a positive correlation between fineness and crimp, with wool of the finest quality being crimped at between 8 and 12 to the inch. Wool from shetland sheep is used to produce gossamer lace, the famous 'Fair Isle' knitwear, and fine tweeds. Pure bred Shetland sheep tend to shed their fleece in sprin. The growth of new fleece can cause a rise or weak point and where this is present the fleece can sometimes be plucked or 'rooed' by hand. The timing of this can be different in each sheep, however, it is worth taking the care to get it right as rooed fleece can be amongst the softest because the fibres have no harsh cut ends as occurs with a sheared fleece.

Shetland fleece can be handspun straight from the fleece or made into rolags and then woollen spun. It can also be sorsted spun by hand, used on a peg loom or handwoven. It also felts well using either dry or wet methods. When processed commercially the wool can be made into the finest lightweight worsted cloth or heavier weight, harder wearing fabrics and tweeds."

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Thursday, September 15, 2011

Fair Isle Vest

3 comments:

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