Nexus 2: Pretty in Polwarth

“Nexus (neks’ əs) n. 1 a connection, tie, or link between individuals of a group, members of a series, etc. 2 the group or series connected.”

~~Webster’s New World College Dictionary

Three days of connection between spinning and knitting. That’s what I’ve got planned for my pre-conference workshop in Hancock.

One of my favorite ways to connect spinning and knitting is to combine two hand-painted tops in multiple ways.

Here’s one example: I bought some yummy hand-painted Polwarth wool top from Briar Rose Fibers in a sizzling combo of oranges.


And I got some equally yummy hand-painted Polwarth wool top from River’s Edge Fiber Arts in a succulent combo of fruit colors.


There are so many ways to spin these two fibers. My first decision was to spin the singles from both wools with the same thickness and twist.


Then I created a 2-ply yarn from just the orange fiber.


And a 2-ply yarn from just the fruit fiber.


Now, you may think that these two colorways wouldn’t go together, but I had to see for myself. I created two 2-ply yarns with one ply from the orange fiber and one ply from the fruit fiber. And, instead of plying a balanced yarn, I created a couple of textured yarns.

Here’s a “knot” yarn. I call this type of knot yarn “pill bug yarn” because the knots look like pill bugs.


And here’s a “snarl” yarn from the same two plies.


I think these yarns could be combined in a single knitted project to great effect. I was thinking of some kind of cowl/wrap, using the smooth yarns in a cabled pattern and the textured yarns as edge interest. What do you think?