FAQ

We receive a multitude of questions about our yarn, and the services we provide. Below are a few of the most frequently asked questions we receive:

I’m looking for a nice dress/suit yarn. Which one would you recommend?

Aurora is our number one “Wool Way” yarn – it contains no rayon, so it’s safe to steam at very high temperatures (avoid directly touching with an iron, as it also contains some acrylic). The acrylic count in Aurora is just enough to help keep the shape of the garment you’re making, as well as provide backup strength for the wool (which is already very strong; the acrylic keeps the wool from stretching or "seating" in your favorite skirt and pant patterns). A couple of other fantastic dress yarns are the Fine Crepe, Janeiro, and Grigna – take a look at all of the colors available, as well as their content and suggested tension sizes on the website.

I’m a hand knitter… Do you sells skeins of yarn? What’s with the cones?

We don’t currently carry skeins of yarn. But, about 90% of Yeoman’s “Hand Knit” line is on cones, and is found in our website. And here’s why cones are so great: When you hand knit a sweater, you’ll need anywhere from 7 – 14 skeins of yarn. That adds up when you’re paying between $4 - $20 per skein (and up). Not to mention all the ends you’ll have to weave in later when you finish! On average, one 1 pound cone of yarn will make an adult-sized sweater. It’s mind boggling, really, that more yarns aren’t sold on cones for knitters and crocheters.

Isn’t machine knitting considered cheating?

Hardly. If you’ve never had a chance to play with one, then you should. Or at least watch. You’ll quickly realize that it’s as much a hand craft as hand knitting. And it may seem “faster” at first, and knitting stockinette with them IS faster than hand knitting, but the preparation, pattern design, and education that goes into a knitted garment or afghan, as well as hand-formed stitches, like transferring or hand-tooled lace, that is done by hand on any given machine, takes time. Of course, it cannot replace the greatness of toting a project with you on the road, to work on while waiting in lines, on trains, airplanes or simply in your lap while you’re on the sofa watching TV. Machine knitting isn’t here to replace hand knitting by any means. But when someone special to you unexpectedly has their baby early, or you forgot a friend’s birthday by mistake, being able to knit something special, just a little quicker than you would using sticks, that’s a priceless gift, in this author’s humble opinion.

Do you sell patterns for crocheting, or hand or machine knitting?

Currently, we’re not selling patterns and books on the website; a great place to check for those would be the many Yahoo groups’ Knitting Machine “for sale” lists, and of course, Ebay.

How long does it take to ship my order?

Right now, orders are placed to the UK on the 1st and 16th of each month, as stock is accrued in the US. If the yarn you ordered is not in stock, or any part of your order is not in stock, it could possibly take up to 4 weeks for you to receive it. I will hold partially in-stock orders until the entire order is ready to ship, unless otherwise noted. Check the Shipping Information page for more specific shipping dates, etc.

I’ve been a hand knitter for years, but machine knitting sound very interesting. How can I get started?

Personally, I think the first step to getting started in machine knitting is to evaluate the kind of knitting you’d like to be doing with your machine. Will you be knitting mostly stockinette? Would you like to use bulky, “hand knitting” yarns? Do you like to do lace, or special stitches? Would you like lots of colors in your knitting? Is portability a concern?
Angelika’s website has a very useful page about yarns, and the machines you can use them on: Different Yarns for Different Knitting Machines

But of note, are the Brother LK150, and the Bond USM (which in my opinion are nearly the same except for the tension mast and the built-in portability of the LK150) – I believe that learning how to machine knit on a Bond is a superb way to enter into machine knitting, simply because it is readily available in most craft stores (JoAnn’s, Michaels, etc). If this is the route you decide to follow, please visit the Yahoo Groups pages for this machine, and join them.

What kinds of yarns would you recommend I use with my machine?

Again, Angelika’s site is fantastic for learning more about the sizes of yarn that you should use on your machine: Different Yarns for Different Knitting Machines. If you have specific questions outside of that site, please let me know, and I’ll do my best to answer them!

I’d love to see [my suggestion] in a podcast about machine knitting – any chance you could show that?

I love suggestions for podcasts! And I’ll do my very best to fit any ideas in as good a time/place as possible in the timeline. Keep your suggestions coming: info@lovelisa.us.