Windham Mini-Skein Sets
Little arias from the color opera that is Jill Draper’s imagination. A dozen skeins of the richest hand-dyed merino, in a weight we are calling light worsted. What you do with these bundles—available in two different colorways—is pretty much our definition of fun. Scroll down for pattern ideas. Tap here for full-size skeins of Windham.
Specs & Details
50m each; 600m total
4.5 - 5.5 mm
There are two things you may already know about us: we love mini skeins, and we adore Jill Draper’s custom-made, U.S.-grown yarns that she dyes by hand in her Hudson Valley studio.
So it’s pure joy when Jill Draper cooks up two different sets of 12 mini skeins in her soft, beautiful Windham merino yarn.
There are two colorways:
Sunny. This is Jill Draper at her most vibrant.
Shade. A deeper set of colors, a subtle rainbow.
Windham is a worsted weight merino with a light hand and color that shifts in that lovely way that hand-dyed yarns do. The 4-ply construction adds strength and durability to the fine merino fibers, so it’s great for picky wool wearers that you knit for. In case you’re wondering, Windham is a 21.5 micron yarn.
Windham is nonsuperwash, so be sure to hand wash your project in cool water and lay flat to dry.
What to Make?
Appleseed Coasters
Thea Colman’s quick and gifty coasters are here in Field Guide No. 8: Merry Making.
Strobus
Mary Lou Egan lets Jill’s palettes play with this easy-to-knit slip stitch cap and mittens set. Find it on Ravelry here.
Photo by Gale Zucker
Just One (More) Row
Jill Draper herself has a great pattern for Windham: Just One (More) Row.
photo by jill draper
Just One (More) Row is a stripey scarf with large-format chevrons and ingenious knit-as-you-go i-cord on the edges. (An i-cord tube is the perfect place to hide yarn ends. No weaving! Just thread them into the tube.)
The “just one row” is easily memorized. Because you work the chevron increases and decreases on both sides of the fabric, it’s got a three-dimensional, topographical quality as it comes off the needles.
Extremely Fun: Dionisio Point
Here’s a pattern that was specifically designed for Windham Mini Skeins: Dionisio Point by Elizabeth Elliott.
The pattern calls for one full skein of Windham (available from MDK here) plus 4 mini skein quantities. If you do the background color of the corrugated ribbing with one mini skein and the rest of the background with another mini skein, that’s 6 mini skeins and no full skein. Options, there are options.
Dionisio Point photos by Gale Zucker
