Yesterday Scheepjes announced their new yarn, Whirl Fine-Art, which is taking Whirl to a whole new level! It still has the long, beautiful colour changes we all love, but now in a Superfine Merino blend in DK weight. It is the same blend as in the Merino Soft line, which means they are a perfect match for using together in whatever gradient project you have in mind. You can use the solid Merino yarn to extend your projects, using the gradient as an accent, or combine them for interesting colourwork projects. The only thing you require is your own imagination – or an interesting pattern!
Let’s have a look!
There are 12 gorgeous colourways, which are all named after influential art movements in history, and if you’ve ever worked with Merino Soft, you will already know just how amazing this yarn is to the touch. I am generally quite sensitive to any prickly wool, as it tends to bring my rather dormant eczema raging to the surface, but thankfully, I haven’t had this issue with Merino Soft / Fine-Art at all. I think it’s due to the fact that it’s Superfine Merino wool and is also a blend, so you get the warmth of the wool without that irritating itch that you get with some other yarns.
In coordination with the release of the Fine-Art yarn, Scheepjes have also released 7 new coordinating colours to their Merino Soft line!
I know the first question in your mind right now is “How exactly do these colours match up?!” and I don’t blame you because I was curious too! Don’t worry, Simy Somer has you covered! Over on her blog she talks even more in depth about Fine-Art and has even put together a handy graphic to show which colours of Merino Soft you need to go with your Fine-art colourway!
Now that we’ve gone through all facts, I thought it would also be nice to give you a closer look at the Fine-Art yarn that I have here at home! When we are at our Scheepjes Blogger weekend a few weeks ago, we were each given a random sample of this yarn in our goodie bag, and I was given Classicism!
I think the first important thing is to get a sense of scale. Often when we are looking at yarn online, especially when dealing with yarn cakes, it can be very difficult to get an idea of just how big they are. I know when people were first getting the original Whirl, many thought they’d be much bigger than they are! In the photo above you can see the Whirl Fine-Art next to a regular whirl cake (shown in the Minty Black Velvet colourway).
You can see that there is a significant difference, with regular Whirl being a cotton blend in fingering weight, with 1000m per cake, compared to the Fine-Art which is a Merino blend in DK weight with 460m per cake. Here is a better look at the two yarn strands side by side…
If you know me, or have ever spoken to me, you’ll know that I love Whirl! This is why most of what I’ve designed uses it. However, I love the idea of having a version that would knit up quicker, more of a quick satisfaction ‘one ball project’ type of yarn, if you will. Ok, so it’s more yarn than in your average ball, but you know what I mean, 1000m is a lot!
As soon as I saw this yarn, I had so many ideas for it! I only had the time to really sit down and swatch it the other day, but it was instant love for me. I got out my notepad and started making sketches right away for a project that I think could really work well with this yarn.
Obviously, I’m not going to give any details out on that just yet, because I want to see if / how it works out before I start going on about it too much. I need to do a little math and decide on a few elements, then I can start putting yarn to needles and see what I can come up with. What I can tell you, though, is that I’m hoping I can work it out with just a single cake… but it’s comforting to know that if it doesn’t quite go according to plan, that I can work it out using the matching Merino Soft to make up the difference!
For now, I’m going to get back to my sketch pad and harass my husband into helping me with some math! I will be sure to come back with some more info when I am a little further along with it.
UK and International buyers will find Whirl Fine-Art at Woolwarehouse.
Customers in the Netherlands can find all you need at Caro’s Atelier.
You can also ask your preferred Scheepjes retailer or find a shop near you!
This post contains affiliate links. This is a way for you to support Canadutch and me as a designer. It is no extra cost to you, but if you shop via one of these links, I get a small percentage of the sale!
love your blog! I am a fan of merino