Intriguing Wooldreamers Yarn

My Sister Knits has an exciting new yarn that we found when Julie, Diana, and I went to Chicago in June. It’s the whole purpose of going to a show like that, to find yarn we didn’t know about!

We have three Wooldreamers yarns; Mota, Saona, and Manchelopis. Each of these is special in its own way but first I want to tell you about Mota. 

Wooldreamers Mota

Wooldreamers is from Spain! Mota is created using Merino fleeces from small wool producers who are within 90 miles of their mill. This is a DK weight but can be knit as a light worsted weight as it is lofty.

A little history here; the Merino sheep originated in Spain close to the end of the Middle Ages. Exporting this prized breed was punishable by death until the eighteenth century. However, two ewes and a ram were smuggled out of Spain and came to the US in 1790. Soon others came from France and the American flocks of Merino began growing. I think it’s so cool that we now have Merino from where the breed began! 

Wooldreamers Saona

Now to Saona. This fingering weight yarn is a cotton/wool blend. The cotton is from the Andalusia region in southern Spain. The wool is extra-fine Merino and Manchega. You might be thinking to yourself, “Manchega wool, from Manchega sheep? Hmmmm, I like Manchego cheese, is there a connection?” Yes, yes there is! Which leads us to the last of our new Wooldreamers yarns……

Wooldreamers Manchelopis

Manchelopis!!!! Manchego cheese does indeed come from Manchega sheep who live in the region of La Mancha where Wooldreamers is located. Manchelopis yarn comes from, you guessed it, Manchega sheep! This yarn comes in wheels, sometimes also referred to as plates. We like wheels because of the cheese reference! 

Mr. Fox, designed by Steinunn Birna Gudjonsdottir, knitted with Manchelopis

This is unspun yarn that you have to be careful with or it will break. It’s not a problem though, because if it comes apart, you just lick your hand and roll the two ends together and, voila, it’s fixed! It is so much fun to knit with and quite strong once it’s knitted. There are two strands together on the wheels. You can knit with both held together, which creates a DK to Aran weight yarn, or with one at a time, which creates a fingering weight yarn. When you work with Manchelopis you can’t be in a hurry and you must be gentle. It becomes a meditative experience. You can also hand wind the wheel into a ball. Reports are that the result is a stronger yarn that doesn’t break as easily. 

Milkweed Shawl in progress, designed for Manchelopis by Kalurah Hudson

Bea, from Wooldreamers, is going to be at My Sister Knits on August 22nd to answer all of our questions about this intriguing yarn and the company that created it. 

Happy knitting,