I am currently working some samples for a forthcoming workshop, and at the same time trying out some of the unusual yarns I got from Uppingham Yarns a few months ago.
Bamboo yarn is, as Clay says, very soft. Uppinghams had it in three sizes; 2/13.5 which measured 12 w/cm, 2/36 - 23 w/cm and 3/68 -22 w/cm, so although not exceptionally fine it is within the mainstream lace thread thickness. I mixed it with a linen and it worked up nicely, although much softer than the all linen sample - but its tensile strength is nothing like the linen of similar thickness, I did break two threads. Bart & Francis make a 60/2 bamboo which I've measured at 27 w/cm, but as yet haven't worked a sample. Again it feels very soft. They also make a 70% silk-30% bamboo 70/2cc 120/2Nm which is 33 w/cm. That works up very nicely, though again it is very soft - as you'd expect with silk, but very smooth. As for milk fibre; I got a cone of 65% cotton- 35% milk fibre from Uppinghams. It has worked up nicely but it is *very* soft and actually feels more like an acrylic weaving yarn. 21 w/cm. Brenda > > There, front and center in the shop, was a display of new yarn. "Feel it!", > the friendly shop lady said. I did, and it was so soft and so silky that I > really thought it *was* some sort of silk blend. I say "blend", because it > was quite fuzzy, and silk doesn't usually do that... So I read the label... > Merino wool and milk. !!! Milk!?! "Milk?" I asked. The friendly shop > lady said that the protein in milk is extracted and used in much the same way > that the protein in bamboo and other organic materials! We already have soy > fibers to work with, bamboo, and now milk. What's next? I have to say that > the bamboo yarn that I used to knit a lacy tank top for DD for Christmas > turned out beautifully... evidently the pattern had been designed both for > the fiber, *and* for my DD! It was stunning. But it really had the most > relaxed "hand" of any fiber I've ever used... very limp, in fact. It worked > for this pattern, but I think it would be improved with the addition of a more "robust" fiber. I can't think of any application in bobbin lace where bamboo would be the fiber of choice, even if you could get it in fine sizes. And since it seems to be a fiber *derived from* bamboo, I'm assuming they could make it as fine as they wanted. In fact, the knitting yarn was really more like a cord of many long fibers. Still, it was *very* soft. > > I'm sure that our men on the cutting edge of fibers at Bart and Francis will > be letting us know when the next new thing comes along! Brenda in Allhallows [email protected] http://paternoster.orpheusweb.co.uk/ - To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [email protected]. For help, write to [email protected]
