Tag Archives: madeline tosh

Yarn Spotlight: Mad Tosh Farm Twist

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I just got my hands on 8 big ol’ skeins of one of the newest yarns from Madeline Tosh, one of my favorite dyers.

And, I gotta say, I think it’s just delightful.

Farm Twist is a 2-ply, worsted-weight, merino wool that’s thick, squishy and super cozy.  (Right now I’m knitting it up into this cool garter-stitch chevron pattern on big US8s.  It’s unbelievably squishy, and I can already tell that it will have a great drape once my piece gets long enough.) 

IMG_1343Essentially, Farm Twist is a 2 ply version of Tosh Merino Light, which is one of my other favorite yarns.  Tosh Merino Light is, of course, fantastic, but it can have some problems with pilling, and while it creates a lovely, drapey fabric, it has very little spring (which makes it great for shawls, but not great for garments.  By plying two strands of TML to make this yarn, MadTosh can fix both of those “problems.”  Plying makes a stronger, springier yarn, not to mention bumping it up to a nice worsted weight, making Farm Twist perfect for cozy sweaters and warm blankets.

And, of course, it comes in all the luscious hand-dyed MadTosh colors you could want.  I love this colorway- Thunderstorm.  It’s a slightly variegated/tonal black/gray with undertones of navy blue.  It’s moody and masculine and changes color with the light.  It’s a subtle neutral, but more interesting than a solid black or gray would be.IMG_1332

I’m really pleased with this yarn (sure I’m only halfway through my first skein, but when you know, you know)!

Have you tried any new yarns lately?  What has been exciting you?

Sockhead

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I’m sure you were all waiting with baited breath to find out what I decided to do with my skein of Tosh Merino.

Well, I sat down on Monday night to start knitting, and I thought I was going to make the Annis shawl.  But, then my husband put on an episode of the new MST3K, and I couldn’t focus on casting on all that lace.  So instead I started on a Sockhead Slouch Hat.  I love it so far- It’s a super simple pattern, so it’ll really show off the pretty color of the yarn.  I love how soft the fabric is turning out.  And, I think I’m going to get a lot of use out of it.  It’s not crazy thick and wintery- I’ve got plenty of thick winter hats.  I needed something a little lighter, for breezy spring days.I won’t lie, though, at this small gauge, it’s going to take me a hot minute to finish this hat.  But it’s so simple, it’ll be good TV-watching/coffee-shop-sitting/waiting-for-class-to-start knitting.  In fact, I knit about an inch yesterday morning waiting for my dog to get done with his haircut.

(Do you want to see pictures of him?  Of course you do.)

Before:  Shaggy old wizard dog

After: Teddy bear puppy

Anyway, dog aside, I’m enjoying this hat pattern.  Especially with some of the more *ahem* elaborate patterns I’ve been working on lately, it’s nice to make a super-simple project like this.

Have you been working on anything exciting lately?

What to do? What to do?

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My lovely husband is very good at Christmas.  This year, he made me a personalized advent calendar, full of beautiful yarn and tiny bottles of booze (peppermint schnapps for my hot cocoa?  Don’t mind if I do!)

For four days, I received Madeline Tosh Unicorn Tails in blue, copper, green and purple (otherwise known as Costeau, Glazed Pecan, Jade and Flashdance).  img_4510Have you ever knit with Madeline Tosh?  Their yarn bases are all lovely, but the colors are what make their yarns sing.  I mean look at these totally gorgeous, saturated semi-solid colorways- they practically glow!  I’ve got a full-sized skein of Tosh Merino Light in an intense cobalt blue that I haven’t been able to bring myself to use- it’s too beautiful.img_4518But, here’s the issue:  Unicorn tails are itty bitty.  Each skein is only about 50 yards long, which makes them a great “tester” size, but if you want to make a project with them, it’ll take a little planning.  I’ve got 4 skeins, so I’ve got 200 yards of fingering weight wool in 4 different colors.  What  can I make with this yarn?  Or, do I need to go buy more (oh darn)?

Obviously it’ll be something striped, or at least something with blocks of color.  Maybe some mittens?  A headband? Maybe a hat, if I’m careful?

What would you do with these little guys?