Every time I’ve got a new yarn to knit with, I like to put it though it’s paces.

What needle size and type feel good with it?

What kind of stitch patterns really allow it to shine?

Every yarn is a little different. You come into the swatching stage of your yarn relationship with preconceived ideas. But before too long, the yarn sets you right. You can’t force a yarn, it needs to be itself! If you work with yarn, I often think we become yarn whisperers. We listen to the yarn. Get a feel for it in our hands. A mantra forms:

Swatch. Block. Repeat.

Deas and Stitch Patterns

My first impressions of knitting with Deas is it feels light on the needles and the slight halo from the mohair leaves you with a lovely, rich experience. This yarn worked beautifully on both 4.5 mm (US7) and 5 mm (US8) needles and bamboo needles ended up being my favourite pairing with it.

In terms of stitch patterns, this yarn feels great in stocking stitch. It’s surprisingly light thanks to its woollen spun nature, even though it’s an aran weight yarn. Before Christmas I knit a pair of plain ribbed mitts for myself in Deas. I’ve worn them nearly every day and they’re holding up very well!

When I went to move beyond the stockinette stitch and venture into cables, I discovered something interesting.

This yarn wanted to make BIG cables.

Delicate 1 by 1 cables got lost, drowned out by the vibrance of the yarn, but big, wide, chunky cables look and feel great in this yarn. So I just went with what it wanted to be. The first installment has delicious big fat chunky cables and installments yet to come will use bigger rather than smaller cables.

I will not give too much away, though!

Deas Yarn Substitution Options

If you’re part of the Celtic Knits Club digital club and are wondering what yarn to substitute for Deas, the Soft Donegal yarn would be a good substitute. The first installment will need 2 skeins for the patterns in the club and if you want to see what they are, just pop on over here.

Have you gotten to work with Deas yet?