The Ultimate Guide to Knitting with Airy, Our New Brushed Alpaca Yarn

We are so excited to share our latest yarn launch, Airy! Airy is a lace weight yarn comprised of 89% superfine alpaca and an 11% recycled polyester core. We want to share some insider tips on working with Airy, especially if you haven't worked with brushed yarns yet. 

What Makes Brushed Alpaca Special?

While Airy may look delicate at first glance, this yarn is actually quite durable! The core provides essential structure, while the brushed alpaca gives a beautiful aura to your project. Whether held alongside another yarn or knit all on it's own. Airy proves to be a versatile choice for knitters and crocheters alike.

Inspiration: Two Ways to Use Airy in Your Projects

The Ideal Project: A Lightweight Crochet Cardigan.

Our new, free pattern, the Eternal Cardigan, shows how Airy can be crocheted all on its own and still create a substantial fabric, suitable for everyday wear. This cardigan works up quickly on a size J-10 (6.00 mm) crochet hook. With 290 yards to the ball, you can create one with as little as 4 balls (and no more than 8 balls for the largest size). The fabric is soft to the touch, has impeccable texture and looks stunning in a mix of any of our 12 available colors.

The Quick Project: A Striped Garter Stitch Shawl.

Are you a knitter looking for a small, portable project for those on-the-go days? This striped, garter stitch shawl may just be the design you're looking for. Requiring only two balls of Airy, the Whisper Shawl weighs less than 3.5oz! Pick your two favorite colors (how about Bright Red & Fairytale Pink?) or keep it classic with a neutral version like Pearl River & Taupe (shown here).

If you're not ready to delve headfirst into lace knitting, Airy is the perfect yarn to hold alongside another fiber. Coupled with our superwash wool Wooly, you get the quickness of a worsted weight fabric combined with the luxurious halo of Airy to level up your knitwear game.

Are You a Beginner? An Expert Tip Before You Start

Working with Airy is a fun way to change up the look and feel of your wardrobe. One important note from our team: the properties of this yarn tend to make frogging your work a bit challenging. The brushed nature of the yarn can bind to stitches, creating a velcro-like effect, especially when knit alone. Because of this, we don’t recommend Airy for new crafters who need to rip back their work as they learn. Here’s a tip though: holding it alongside another yarn makes undoing your work a bit more manageable.

Where to Find Airy

Find Airy on our website now, or contact one of our stockists in the US or Canada to see if they carry Airy to see it in person. Happy crafting!