A Yen For Cashmere or More Joys Of Fingerless Gloves

At night my fingers seems to just naturally drift to a small, easily gratifying bit of knitting. Fingerless gloves have become a passion because I use the almost year 'round since my digits seem to be always chilled. I hunt for patterns that I like - both free &, happily, paid for.

Lately I have become enamored with Rowan's new yarn called 'Lima' - a fine bit of cashmere blend with a really different construction that facilitates great texture, stitch definition and is made with 84% Baby Alpaca/8% Merino Wool/8% Nylon. Can you spell soft?! I found a wonderful little pattern called "CoffeeHouse Gloves" by Lorna Meiser Owner of Lorna's Laces in Knit'n Style's issue for December 2009 #164. It knits up beautifully in 'Lima' and I've made a pair in almost every color that 'Lima' offers. I did change the pattern a bit to make it longer and also to add some length in the thumb - which I find to be much cozier.

You can see some of the texture of this yarn in these small pics.

The gloves in the photo below are made from the 'Coffee House' pattern in green 'Lima Yarn' . They look small but there is a lot of stretch built in and the gloves look wonderful on! The gloves on the left are also made in 'Lima' and are called 'Fetching' from Knitty.com as a free pattern!

I do have a request - if any of you knows of a great fingerless glove pattern please let me know! I am happy to pay for a great pattern . Simple or fancy, long or short! Thanks for helping me feed my glove addiction and keeping my needles going!

Yarn Play

As you may have gathered from past posts, I have a thing for fingerless mitts/gloves. My hands are always cold - sometimes even on summer nights. I like to try out different patterns for them and the best part of using the patterns is becoming acquainted with new, luscious yarns.

I purchased the pattern for Schaefer yarns Razor Shell fingerless gloves (they can be made long or short of course) and I decided that I wanted to make them in the yarn that was used in the pattern. Schaefer yarn Heather yarns are named for famous women. The one I chose is called Indira Ghandi - it's beautiful & I can't wait to get started on these lovely gloves

My current favorite fingerless glove pattern is by Cheryl Niamuth and is called "Fetching". Cheryl also has another pattern that I really like and it is called "Dashing" - they are both quick to knit, very satisfying to make, patterns! The red yarn above is from Knit Picks from their 'Wool Of The Andes' collection in 'Firecracker'. It knit up into a really nice glove that I think will wear very well - as well as being very warm!

Rowan Classic Cashsoft is, simply, a treat to work with - soooo soft. Being able to use these will make Fall easier to take when it arrives again.....well, maybe that's a stretch but it will be nice!

Debbie Bliss Cashmerino is another soft touch yarn that I have fallen in love with. I am not sure that it is quite as soft as Cashsoft but it knits up truly wonderfully - it affords beautiful stitch definition. My next adventure, I think, will be to buy some pure cashmere yarn - enough to make a pair of my favorite fingerless mitts.

Softest Yarn?

I love soft. Soft makes me happy; soft makes me feel cuddled & warm. I wear velvets & soft cottons & I love to use soft yarns when I knit . I have been making numerous pairs of my current favorite fingerless mitt pattern to have on hand for holiday gifts this year. I found the pattern on Knitty. It's called "Fetching"& was designed by Cheryl Naimath. Debbie Bliss Cashmerino yarn is what the pattern calls for but I have been using similar weight yarns from my stash. I decided that I wanted to use Cashmerino & I went to my LYS to purchase some. They didn't have any so I bought Rowan's Cashsoft instead. I also ordered some Cashmerino from an on-line vendor - knowing that I could have a pair made from the Cashsoft before the Cashmerino arrived.

When the Cashmerino arrived I loved the colors & the weight was just about the same as the Rowan yarn. I was surprised to discover, however, that the Rowan Cashsoft is much softer than the Debbie Bliss. I'm in love with Cashsoft now & can't wait to buy more of it. It's glorious to work with & the mitts are soothing & luxurious to wear. Sometimes it pays to try lots of options!

Don't get me wrong - the Debbie Bliss yarn is very soft - and I will enjoy using it - and may well buy some more of it. One of my all time favorite yarns is Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk - talk about soft - this is one of the dreamiest yarns ever - and yes, I have made fingerless mitts from it. They felt down beautifully and make a very warm, very soft version of a simple mitt pattern I use a lot. I was happy though that I tried a couple of options for "Fetching" because now I have found not one but two more ultra soft yarns to use!