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French Morocco by Life's an Expedition.
Exclusively on Etsy in the lifesanexpedition store.
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Life's an Expedition multistrand yarn is composed of multiple strands that have not been plied. If your jaw is on the floor right now, pick it back up while I wait...Okay? Ready? It's not hard to use. I knit with it in a dimly lit room while watching TV using double-pointed needles and trust me, I am not the greatest knitter who ever lived. Granted, if you just learned to knit last week, you won't be able to use it without practice, but if you are an advanced beginner, you should be able to get the hang of it pretty quickly. I've been winding it and selling it online since 2003 and only know of two people who simply threw up their hands and gave up.
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| Proof that it can be done. Ta da! |
Your biggest challenge will be to knit each stitch in its entirety, without dropping a couple of strands. But if you get most of the strands into the stitch and drop the rest--I know, I know, the very thought creeps you out and I feel uncomfortable writing this--but even if it happens, your project will NOT unravel and with all those colors going on, your mistakes will be less noticeable.
In some ways, it's actually easier than single strand knitting, in which every stitch counts and every mistake shows and every dropped stitch means chaos and frogging. And I'm the sort of person who hates to rip out rows and redo it. (Admit it. You hate it, too.)
Visit Life's an Expedition on Etsy.
https://www.etsy.com/shop/LifesAnExpedition?
A second problem you may encounter when you're using multiple strands is that one
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| One of my customers made this with Medieval Violets. |
What if you don't have a seam? What if you're making something like a blanket, without a right side or wrong side? You can loop the "longer" strand around the needle a second time as often as needed to make it catch up with the strands. I have created yarns in which I never had to do this at all throughout the entire project. But sooner or later, most multi-strand knitters face the problem of uneven strands.
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| Zenith Star. Only in my Etsy shop: LifesAnExpedition |
Or sometimes I see it happen when some of the strands are much thinner and/or a different fiber than the others. It has not put me off of multi-strand knitting, but someone who is using multiple strands for the first time might freak. Just remember, most knitters DO get the hang of it and if you are clever about fudging the yarn a bit here and there, you will relax.
Knitters and crocheters who are really into elaborate stitches sometimes resist the notion of multiple strands, because they have so much going on just following the pattern. I can understand that. Multistrand knitting is easier when you are doing a straight garter or stockinette with minimal increases, decreases or shaping. But I've done seed stitch and ribbing with multiple strands and loved the results. And I've had customers go on an entrelac binge with Life's an Expedition yarn. And I wove countless scarves with it, despite the special challenges that a weaving loom presents. I'm not good at crocheting with it, but frankly, I'm not good at traditional crochet.
Lastly, someone who is super-picky about their craft might never enjoy it. Also, anyone who is devoted to knitting socks or anything on very small needles might not have the patience for multi strands. Good luck to you. I re-post this same article every year or two so that people can find it more easily. If I haven't convinced you yet that you will likely get the hang of multistrand yarn and actually like it, I will point out that I have a number of customers who have purchased over $1,000 worth of it from me over the years.
