What is tweed yarn and what can I do with it

We’ve probably all seen tweed yarn – even though you wool mixed yarn may not have known it at the time. Tweed can often be confused with heathered yarn (read an article about heathered yarn but is, in fact, quite different. In this article we’ll be looking at what tweed yarn is, how it’s made, the pros and cons of using it, and we also have a whole list of crochet and knitting patterns that you can use for tweed yarn. Tweed yarn is created to give a similar appearance to tweed cloth. (Although with the right artistic flair it can even be made to look like a page of newsprint!)

It’s a blend of a couple of colours of fibers, colored before spinning, into which short lengths of different colored neps (flecks) are spun in.A yarn with multiple plies and flecks of accent colors added during the spinning process. There are “true” tweed yarns in which the maker dyes wool in separate color batches, then mixes in flecks of the accent colors during carding or spinning. Tweed-like yarns get their color effects from different fibers, which take up colors differently in the dyeing process. The yarn probably derived its name from tweed cloth.Tweed yarns are made in a similar way as heathered yarns, with the fiber being colored before spinning and with the different fibers then mixed before being spun.

The classic tweed yarn is woolen spun (with the fibers not all combed in the same direction). This traps a lot of air between the fibers, making it very warm. In traditional tweed yarn, the yarn can actually be heathered or not, as long as the neps are present, basically. This knitted shawl pattern by Patty Olsen Designs is the ideal rustic-yet-classic design that will look great in some tweed yarn. It’s a crescent shawl that’s worked top down in one or two colors. The free pattern is suitable for intermediate knitters as the lace parts do take some practice. Choose your favourite tweed colors! This knitted baby blanket by Knits on Main is suitable for beginners – and what a blanket! The ribbing is worked in such a way that it almost looks like cabling.

Work it in two colors as in the photo, or choose one blue (or whatever color you prefer) to work the whole blanket in. We think the water-inspired blanket will look stunning in the KnitPal Tweed Twinkles baby yarn that’s blue with white neps (flecks).This beautiful, lacy scarf by Christine L. is ideal for fall or those less-than-freezing winter days. The free pattern is suitable for intermediate knitters and will look splendid in a tweed yarn. Christine notes that it “coordinates with Cascade's pattern Lace and Cable. Another intermediate knit, this free cropped tank top pattern by Fiddle Knits Designs is knit in the round from bottom up and worked in rows from the armholes. The designer also notes that you can make the top longer instead of cropped by only changing the pattern slightly.