Fashion World Loves Jagger Spun Superfine Merino Wool

Author: Pat Munro

It seems the fashion world and celebrities alike are agog about this superfine wool. It has even been seen on catwalks this year in Paris. Jagger Spun superfine Merino wool is the top of the line wool yarn used for fine, top grade projects. Jagger Spun is unsurpassed in textural and color consistencies. It is 100% Australian Merino wool in a 2/18 lace weight. Spun says that it is spun from Merino that has a Bradford count in the sixties and is graded at 19.5 microns this is why is a superfine grade of wool. The Merino sheep is specially bred and raised in a sheltered habitat to protect its fiber from the elements. This results in fiber which is softer, yet stronger than cashmere. It is extremely rare. For example, every year enough fleece is shorn for only a few thousand shawls. This may seem like a lot, but with the world population as it is, it is a very small drop in the bucket.



It is a very soft wool, traditionally used in high quality garments, and is preferable with people with sensitive skin. For knitters, it is suggested to multistrand the yarn for larger gauges. Preferably, knitters use three strands for sport weight and five strands for worsted weight. Weavers love this yarn for making tartans, because it never itches. It can be mixed with Zephyr wool/silk brands and Genstone silk to add glisten to any project. It is dyed with the finest dyes in the world. Some excess dyes may be present in the yarn so it is best to skein it and rinse under cold water until the water is clear. Dark purples especially have colorfast problems when exposed to sun. It is best to avoid bright sunlight in this color. For washing it is best to hand wash in lukewarm water, no bleach. Once washed the loft of the yarn expands, creating a fuller, feel and look to any project. It can be dry cleaned, and a cool iron can be used under a pressing cloth, but never ironed wet. Lay flat to dry, never tumble dry. For storage, even thought this yarn is moth-proof, it is best to store in a clear, clean plastic container for long term storage.



The yarn is so soft and delicate, it feels like cashmere. It is a luxury yarn with excellent drape and luster. The yarn has a very low occurrence of knotting, offering knitters a great amount of versatility in adding more piles. The creative opportunities with this yarn are unsurpassed. It can be used for knitting, machine knitting, tambour embroidery, beaded knits, weaving, crocheting, lace work and natural dying. Due to its light and soft attributes, it adds warmth without the bulk. It is also a very clean wool, without chaff. It is sold and supplied in 1 pound cones which have approximately 5,040 yards per pound for a 2/18 count. For the yarn count, the first number is the ply or number of strands, and the second number is the fraction of the yarn thickness. The higher the second number, the thinner the strand.

Merino wool can be used for thermal underwear, wool suits, socks, blankets, quilts, and footwear. Because Jagger Spun Merino wool is recognized as the worlds leading natural fibers, it has been showing up on catwalks and A-list celebrities around the world.

About the Author:
The author writes for Jane Stafford Textiles Weaving Studio selling Yarn, Fiber and Weaving supplies. A renowned weaving instructor and textile artist Jane contributed in the development of the Jane Loom, by Louet Looms

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Fashion World Loves Jagger Spun Superfine Merino Wool

Creative Independence

Author: Simon Rand

I've always been stubborn. When I was a young child, my favorite phrase was "Me do it," and I've only become more determined with age.

I'm also a former scholar. So when I decided to seriously play with fiber, I set out to read everything I could find about it. I started out with teddy bears, moved on to quilts and then crazy quilts, then to embroidery and needlepoint, then to Kaffe Fassett, then to knitting, and then to crochet.

I fell madly in love with crochet for three years, until my wrist gave out. (But, fortunately, it's finally starting to recover.) By then I was spinning wild yarn on a drop spindle, and since spinning is usually discussed with weaving, I found myself playing on simple frame looms. Although I'm not promiscuous, I now love spinning and weaving as much as I love crochet.

I couldn't have done any of this without my beloved books and magazines. Except for a few needlepoint classes and a crochet conference, I've learned just about everything I know from print and three videotapes.

About being taught...Before falling in love with yarn, I was an impassioned schoolteacher. I've spent some of the best times of my life in a classroom, usually as a teacher and occasionally as a student.

But the trouble with schools and classrooms is that they are inherently conservative. They exist to pass on previous knowledge, and they are also used, sometimes quite viciously, to socialize students. Unless the teacher is truly remarkable, students learn either to think like the teacher or to rebel like the other rebels.

The same holds true for less formal fiber classes. The woman who taught those needlepoint classes taught to make us dependent. We each bought a different painted canvas, and then she would choose the fiber and tell us what stitch to put in what place. No stitch guides, no discussion of design, not even a mention of needlepoint's glorious history--just "Do this here."

The crochet conference was a lot more fun. What could be better than spending a three-day weekend with hundreds of other people who share your obsession? I also had the very great pleasure of spending all of my class time with the brilliant British crocheters, Sylvia Cosh and James Walters. They are two of the remarkable teachers I talked about earlier--although they teach the techniques they've developed, they also gently encourage individual experimentation. Just looking at their work up close was enough to send me home inspired!

But this was a conference sponsored by a guild, and the officers held tightly to their party line. They wanted to quickly move crochet into professional and artistic territory, but since I'm a populist at heart, I wanted to decrease the competition and increase the celebration of everyone's work. When I dared to say so publicly, I earned the president's undying enmity.

Don't get me wrong--I think professionalism is admirable and artistic growth is sublime. But I also think competition is brutal, and I'd hoped that a modern guild would want to encourage and celebrate all of its members.

I should have known better. Groups are also inherently conservative and exist to further the interests of the people who run them.

Creative independence is partly conservative, too, because we all draw on the past to learn skills. Many of us also delve into the histories of the crafts we love to discover the work of our foremothers.

But we become creatively independent when we absorb as much as we can and then move on to develop our own ways of working. In the Spring, l998, issue of Interweave Knits, Linda Ligon writes about Peruvian and Bolivian knitters. In her wonderfully witty way, she says she's mystified by how the women knit so creatively, using virtually every known knitting technique to make strikingly beautiful and original pieces.

There's really no mystery, of course. These women are so thoroughly at home with knitting, so thoroughly skilled and confident, that it's second nature for them to knit the way they do.

Think about the great cooks you know. At one time they followed recipes, like the rest of us, and for many of them, reading cookbooks is a way of life. But they're so experienced that they're able to take a little of this and a little of that and come up with a delicious meal with very little effort.

Or so it seems...Because what we don't see is all the thinking that goes on. And this is the key--first we become so skilled that our technique is almost automatic, so we can then put most of our effort into thinking.

When I say "thinking," I'm actually talking about the creative process. It can be as quick as stir-frying a meal from leftovers or as complex as designing and sewing a quilt. What matters is not that we become Martha Stewart or Nancy Crow, but that we find an authentic way to express ourselves.

This is the joy of creative independence.

This is also a joy of being alive.

About the Author:

Cindy is a writer, teacher, coach and expert yarn and fabric enthusiasts. Her website is http://yarn-and-fabric.mustsee.info.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Creative Independence