New Yarn - Garthenor Beacons

We absolutely love Garthenor yarn and their ethos towards fibre production is harmonious with Knit With Attitude's belief to encourage sustainable knitting. Garthenor make only 100% certified organic yarn that is 'totally traceable, completely climate positive and outstandingly organic'. So we are pleased to expand our range and bring you Beacons.

Garthenor Beacons is a DK weight blend of organic Polwarth, Romney and Hebridean wools that create subtle, complex bases. The colour of this yarn is stunning. It is rich, saturated and bright owing to the fine qualities of the fibre that soak up dye like a sponge. Romney and Hebridean wool adds some grey depth and texture for more moodier tones. There is even some fun marled ones in the selection.

It is woolly but softer than ever, making it great for colourwork projects like hats, jumpers and mittens. The softness comes from the 19 micron Polwarth that makes up 75% of Beacons. Polwarth wool has a long staple length making is strong, smooth and silky. It gives good definition to the yarn but more importantly it is soft enough to be worn next to the skin. A 3-fold worsted spun yarn that is a friend of textured stitches and cables.

The certified organic fibres are sourced from all over the UK. The Polwarth comes from Dunbar Island in the Falklands. The Romney comes from from Wiltshire, England and the Hebridean from The Black Isle, Scotland and Gwent, Wales. The fibres are then scoured(washed), spun and dyed in West Yorkshire before finally heading to be plied and skeined at Garthenor Farm, West Wales.

If you are looking for some inspiration read on:

Forth Hat (link to ravelry) by Ysolda Teague. A simple hat pattern is good edition to a knitters repertoire and this one is written for any gauge of yarn. Worked from the top down it looks particular nice here in Garthenor Beacons - Bevan.

Northwoods V Neck (link to designers website) by Jessie Maed Designs. I saw the stripey version of this jumper and thought wouldn't all the colours of Beacons look great here. Especially because they come in 50g skeins, you could go wild with the number of colours. Worked from the top down with a deep v-neck that has a pleasingly wide rib.

Double Date Sweater (link to ravelry) by Winter's Weather Knits. I love the textual coloured bands that stripe along this jumper and I think Beacons would really make them pop. Worked in the round from the bottom up in a classic boxy shape, a great go to jumper.

Ampersand Wrap (link to designers website) by Tif Neilan. Texture and colour is at the forefront of this shawl design. Modified garter stitch on one side and herringbone stitch on the other. I would love to see that herringbone stitch knit in Beacons. You would get a shawl that is soft but warm and cosy.