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Laebrack Colourways
The Laebrack pattern, designed by Margaret Stuart is a classic Shetland Lace jumper, featuring bands of colour which due to the stitch pattern - Old Shell, creates a lovely wave effect. Its knit in the round to the armholes then the front and back are worked separately, the sleeves are knit in the round too. Laebrack is shetland dialect for the breaking of the waves on the Seashore and you can really see why! We recently reprinted this pattern and have added a chart for the motif but its also in written form in the pattern too, its a very simple but effective pattern, its made in our 2ply Lace Weight: L-R: L95, L101, L203, L27, L54 The original colourway in the pattern is above, its a lovely mix of greys and pops of pink, but we thought we would share some other possible colourways: Naturals L-R: L1A, L202, L3, L4, L5 Green & Grey L-R: L69, L40, L27, L54, L77 More pinks L-R: L43, L95, L203, L27, L54 Yellows and Naturals L-R: L96, L28, L202, L3, L4 Orange & Browns L-R: L38, L53, L78, L4, L5 You might also remember a few years ago an image from the Netflix drama 'Rebecca' went semi-viral as people looked for the pattern, it is extremely similar to the Laebrack and may even have been made at one time from that pattern, we put together a colourway based on it too!: Rebecca - L-R: L152, L150, L14, L40, L69 for Laebrack we would put them in this order but would always advise swatching: A - L40, B - L150, C - L69, D - L152, E - L14 2ply Lace is a great yarn for lighter weight and more summery garments, its available in 30 shades, many of them vintage inspired and there a great selection of dyed natural shades in the range too. You can find the Laebrack pattern here in a paper copy or here and here digitally, its also in a book which is out of print but you can find it used very cheaply - The Traditional Sweater Book by Madeline Weston (ive linked to amazon but you should be able to find it from many used book sellers) the book contains lots of great traditional patterns from around the UK so its a great purchase anyway! We hope you are having a nice Summer however the weather is beside you, we are in a spell of dull, windy, rainy weather here so we are hoping for an improvement soon, happy knitting!
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Choosing A Lace Yarn - Woollen or Worsted
Hello everyone, today we are going a bit more in-depth about something we get asked about all the time - what is the difference between the Supreme Lace and 'non' Supreme Ranges aka 1ply Cobweb and 2ply Lace, and why would you choose one over the other? left: 1ply Cobweb right: 1ply Supreme Lace There are some differences but the main one is the Supreme Lace 1 and 2ply are Worsted Spun whereas 1ply Cobweb and 2ply Lace are Woollen Spun. Worsted Spun - all the fibre is combed before spinning, this results in a softer and stronger yarn because the fibres are all aligned and not poking out (this is what can make wool scratchy) Woollen Spun - before spinning the fibre is carded which disrupts the fibres trapping air and making a lofty and warm yarn. The Shetland Supreme Lace yarns were developed alongside research through Shetland Amenity Trust in 2010 as part of the Fine Lace Project to add and increase value to the coloured clip and to replicate yarns used in handspun and vintage Shetland Lace. Shetland Supreme 1ply 1ply/single 25g ball 400m/436yds100% Real Shetland WoolSuggested Needle Size: 3mm This yarn is available in Optic White (which is bright white) and Natural White, Fawn, Moorit, Light Grey, Dark Grey and Shetland Black Shetland Supreme 2ply 2ply 25g ball 200m/219yds100% Real Shetland WoolSuggested Needle Size: 3mm This Yarn is available in Natural White, Fawn, Light Grey, Dark Grey, Moorit and Shetland Black. Sletts Shawl knit in 2ply Supreme Lace The Woollen Spun lace yarns have been produced by us since the 60's, Cobweb was the traditional weight most 1ply Shawls were made in and 2ply Lace was the classic choice for Lace Cardigans, 'thicker' shawls and lightweight garments. left: Sheelagh Shawl in cobweb right: Grace Jumper in 2ply Lace 1ply Cobweb 1ply/single 25g Ball 350m/379 yds 50% lambswool 50% Real Shetland Wool Suggested needle size: 3mm This yarn is available in White and Dyed Black. 2ply Lace 2ply 25g ball 169m/185yds 50% lambswool 50% Real Shetland Wool Suggested needle size: 3/3.25mm This yarn is available in over 30 dyed Shades. 1ply Supreme Lace on the left and 1ply Cobweb on the Right Why would you choose one over the other? finish: items made in Worsted Spun yarn have more drape and a silky smoothness due to the spinning process, they have a 'halo'. Our Woollen Spun lace yarns are crisper and have more stitch definition. Left: 2ply Lace right: 2ply Supreme Lace ease of knitting: due to the finish mentioned above the Cobweb and 2ply lace are easier to knit with because the yarn doesn't 'melt' together in the same way the Supreme Lace does - the Supreme is much harder to take back if you make a mistake. However, the Cobweb and 2ply are our only mixed yarns in that they both contain 50% Lambswool which is a weaker fibre than Shetland so the Woollen Spun ranges are not as strong as the Supreme. left: 2ply Supreme right: 2ply Lace recipient: it's worth considering if your item will be used as an 'heirloom' piece like a Christening Shawl you may want to use the Supreme as it has a very high-quality finish and is lovely and soft, similarly if its for a scarf to be worn around the neck the supreme would feel nicer and has a good drape. The Cobweb and 2ply Lace will result in excellent stitch definition so if the pattern and motif is the most important element to your design it might be a preferable choice. Elizabeth Williamson Turvie Stole knit in 1ply Supreme colour: In the 2ply Woollen Spun range there are 30 shades including a mix of dyed and dyed naturals, so there is obviously a lot of choice and options for more colourful lace. In Supreme only the 1ply Optic White is bleached all the other colours are 100% Natural and as they come off the sheep here in Shetland. thickness: the 1 and 2ply Supreme are finer than the Woollen Spun counterparts, you can see in the 1ply the Cobweb is 350m per 25 ball and the Supreme 1ply is 400m per 25g ball - this means the yarn itself is the thinnest we produce. So if you are looking for some of the finest Lace yarn commercially available the Supreme 1ply could be it. detail of a Rosemary Shawl knit in 1ply Supreme In conclusion, we know it can be confusing that we have different ranges in the same thicknesses but we hope this makes it clearer and you can see they are both not only needed but necessary! Let us know if you have any questions, happy knitting!
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2ply Lace Sale
Hello everyone, for the next week (Tuesday 13th July 2021 - Tuesday 20th July) we are offering 20% off individual balls of our Woollen Spun 2ply Lace on the Website. This is a great chance to stock up if you are a fan or to try it out! This range is currently available in 31 shades ranging from brights and pastels to dyed naturals. Its traditionally used to knit Shetland Lace - scarfs, stoles, shawls etc but its a lovely yarn that also works well for light weight garments or for holding together with other yarns for marls or to create a thicker yarn. This range is one up from our finest 1plys, 2ply Lace weight can also be used in any pattern calling for 3ply Yarn, making it a perfect yarn for Vintage patterns. Like the cobweb it is blended with Lambswool to give it some added softness. Having the yarn slightly thicker than the 1ply means it gives a bit of substance to lace patterns but also means it will keep you warm in a scarf or stole. There are a couple of shades already reduced (L3, L15 and L93) and L1A is missing from the above shade cards as we have taken it back for 1 batch, but apart from that you can see the rest of the shades above. You can find the 2ply Lace on the website here, happy knitting!
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