Product description
Shelter is our versatile 2-ply worsted weight yarn. Soft and sturdy American Targhee-Columbia wool is spun woolen style – airy clouds of carded fiber become a yarn with remarkable lightness, warmth and a traditionally handcrafted appearance, ideal for sweaters, cozy accessories, and blankets. Wet block after knitting to reveal Shelter’s full beauty as each stitch relaxes and bonds with its neighbors to produce a plush fabric with a soft, fuzzy halo.
Q: Why are some Shelter colors sold out?
A: The closure of our long-time production partner G.J Littlewood & Son in late 2021 left us unable to stock dye unspun wool for our iconic heathered colorways of Shelter, Loft and Quarry. After months of hard work by our team and new dyehouse partner Tintoria Piana US, heathers are making a comeback!
Read our blog post The Road To Restock to learn more.
Shop patterns in Shelter.
View our retired colors.
Share on social #ShelterYarn
Share
Shelter Yarn
American Targhee-Columbia Wool
- 2-ply Woolen Spun
- Worsted Weight
-
Product description
Shelter is our versatile 2-ply worsted weight yarn. Soft and sturdy American Targhee-Columbia wool is spun woolen style – airy clouds of carded fiber become a yarn with remarkable lightness, warmth and a traditionally handcrafted appearance, ideal for sweaters, cozy accessories, and blankets. Wet block after knitting to reveal Shelter’s full beauty as each stitch relaxes and bonds with its neighbors to produce a plush fabric with a soft, fuzzy halo.
Q: Why are some Shelter colors sold out?
A: The closure of our long-time production partner G.J Littlewood & Son in late 2021 left us unable to stock dye unspun wool for our iconic heathered colorways of Shelter, Loft and Quarry. After months of hard work by our team and new dyehouse partner Tintoria Piana US, heathers are making a comeback!
Read our blog post The Road To Restock to learn more.
Shop patterns in Shelter.
View our retired colors.
Share on social #ShelterYarn
-
Specs
- 140 yards (128 meters) | 50 grams | Worsted weight
- 2-ply woolen-spun construction
- 23-24 micron Targhee-Columbia wool from Wyoming
- Wool scoured at Bollman Industries in Texas
- Fleece-dyed heathered colorways:
- Stock dyed at Tintoria Piana U.S. in Georgia
- Spun & finished at Harrisville Designs in New Hampshire
- Skein-dyed solid colors:
- Spun at Harrisville Designs in New Hampshire
- Skein dyed & finished at Ultimate Textile in North Carolina
100% developed, sourced, processed, dyed and spun in the USA.
Fiber Characteristics
We source Targhee-Columbia wool from Wyoming to make Shelter, Loft, and Quarry – this breed’s lofty, warmth-trapping fleeces deftly combine the softness and elasticity of finewool Targhee with the robust substance and warmth of mediumwool Columbia. This fiber’s versatile mingling of wearability and durability particularly shines in woolen-spun yarns and is wonderful for next-to-skin wear, outerwear, and heirloom pieces for the home.
Learn more about the woolen-spun process and get tips for working with woolen-spun yarns.
Dye Process
To create each heathered colorway of Shelter, we combine brightly dyed hues of unspun wool in precise proportions, as if mixing paint. When spun into yarn, these saturated solids meld into complex and beautiful blends that give vibrant depth to even the simplest knitted fabrics. The entire palette is created from a handful of base colors, ensuring harmonious coordination in colorwork projects or when pairing hand knitted garments and accessories.
Our solid colors of Shelter are spun from undyed white wool, then skein dyed into brilliant nature-inspired hues that pair beautifully with our heathered colorways.
-
Gauges
As a result of its lofty woolen-spun construction, Shelter works well at a wonderful range of gauges and can be used interchangeably with Tones and Imbue Worsted:
- 4¼ - 5 stitches to 1"
- Suggested Needle: 4.5 - 5.5 mm (US 7 - 9)
- Suggested Hook: 5.5 - 6.5 mm (US I-9 - K-10½)
-
Care
Shelter is a handcrafted product. For best results, we recommend alternating skeins when joining in a new skein for even color distribution.
When you need a little more tensile strength, whether for seaming or because you’re about to put a group of stitches under pressure with a big cabling maneuver, simply twirl your working yarn a few revolutions in the direction of the ply twist to strengthen it.
For extra durability, you may wish to seam your Shelter projects with a worsted-spun yarn like Arbor.
Wet-Blocking
- Fill a sink or basin with cold water.
- Submerge the fabric in water, gently squeezing out any air bubbles so that the piece can remain under water without being held there.
- Soak work for 15 minutes, allowing fabric to become completely saturated.
- Remove excess moisture by rolling your fabric between clean, dry towels with light pressure.
- Lay fabric flat and shape to air dry.
For more detailed instructions, visit our Blocking 101 tutorial.
-
Share
