Lately we’ve been having great fun combining lace weight mohair yarns with other yarns, resulting in beautiful painterly effects. Our new Love Note sweater and Posy shawl patterns both use this technique.
This tutorial covers:
- Combining mohair and yarn in the same colourway
- Combining darker mohair and lighter yarn
- Combining lighter mohair and darker yarn
- Colour values and contrast
- More mohair projects!
Years ago at Edinburgh Yarn festival I impulse-bought a couple single skeins of La Bien Aimée yarn in ‘Aimée’s sweater’ and ‘neon static’. I also found myself irresistibly drawn to this hot pink Skein Queen Floof. It was a set of impulses that would really come together! Last year, I had a wedding to go to, and the world’s love of pink was really ramping up, so I decided a pink sweater had to happen, right?!
I swatched various yarns that I had alongside the pink mohair, and could tell right away that the speckle would be a winner! On the far right you can see the pink mohair and next to it the yarns I swatched alongside. What a difference combining makes!
Alexa saw my photos and said ‘WE MUST PUBLISH THAT PATTERN’. So I got to work perfecting the details and developing colour combinations that would work with the soft and romantic palette I envisioned for our Paris trip.
Through extensive swatching, I have some strategies to share on how to select colour combinations when combining a lace weight mohair with a sock weight yarn!
Combining or ‘blending’ mohair with another yarn
There are a few different ways to blend mohair with another yarn; using a yarn that is the same colourway, a darker colourway or a lighter colourway. Are you curious about how, physically, to knit two yarns together? We’ve got a post here all about marling, and a post here that explains how to work with two strands held together.
mohair + yarn in the SAME colourway
When working a mohair lace with a sock yarn in the same colourway, the blended colour will essentially come out very much the same as if you were knitting in a single colour; while the mohair lace takes the dye slightly differently than the merino yarn, the overall effect is fairly similar. The above example is a blend of La Bien Aimée Merino Singles with La Bien Aimée Mohair Silk , both in the iconic ‘yellow brick road’ colourway.
Alexa is also making herself a holiday party sweater Love Note in La Bien Aimée Merino Singles and Mohair silk in ‘Shire’; a deliciously vivid green. You can see how the mohair and merino are slightly different colours, and the depth and shine this adds to the finished fabric.
Sticking to a single colourway is a beautiful way to combine yarns, but I’m personally more intrigued with mixing DIFFERENT colours, and finding out what kind of effects I can achieve!
darker mohair + lighter yarn
When you blend a darker or more saturated mohair with a lighter yarn, the paler colourway seems to glow underneath a deeper halo. I REALLY love this effect, it’s what we used when I made the Love Note sweaters, and for the heavy-weight version of the Posy shawl too.
The deep dark Love Note is a blend of La Bien Aimée Merino Singles in ‘rust’ with La Bien Aimée Mohair Silk in ‘undergrowth’.
The pale ephemeral Love Note is a blend Rainbow Heirloom Solo Light in ‘driftwood’ with Rainbow Heirloom Kidsilk Cloud in ‘sweet dreams’. To my eyes, this is technically a more saturated colour over a less saturated one, with the value of the two yarns being quite similar.
The original hot pink Love Note prototype I made is a blend of La Bien Aimée Merino Singles in ‘neon static’ striped with ‘Aimée’s sweater’ held with Skein Queen Floof in a vivacious hot pink (I lost the yarn tag, oops, but I think it was like ‘barbie’s handbag’).
The soft yellow Posy Shawl is a blend of La Bien Aimée Merino Singles in ‘romance’ with La Bien Aimée Mohair Silk in ‘yellow brick road’.
For this Love Note that JUST popped off the needles, Alexa used La Bien Aimée Mohair in ‘pb&j’ over Singles in ‘neon static’. I love the way the purple ‘softens’ the speckled neon static.
lighter mohair + darker yarn
When the mohair is paler than the other yarn, the blended colour comes out closer to the darker single, with the fuzzy halo of the fabric being lighter. I find this combination a little less compelling, but it can also bring a subtle beauty.
value matters
The difference in value (relative darkness or lightness) between the two colours you are combining matters. The swatch below illustrates this.
I find the dark teal mohair over the pale grey to appear more ‘speckley’, with an effect that seems more marled than blended. Where I’ve used the dark teal mohair over the mid teal, the difference in value is more moderate, and the yarns colours ‘blend’ more effectively.
So from my perspective, combinations with a moderate rather than extreme value difference between a darker mohair and a lighter yarn feel more ‘blended’ and effective.
A similar example is illustrated by the swatches below. On the left, Alexa swatched two options for her Love Note sweater; La Bien Aimée mohair in ‘shire’ over ‘life aquatic’ (top) and ‘shire’ (bottom). The mohair in ‘shire’ is quite a deep dark colourway, and we agreed that the effect was just a little too ‘speckley’ to feel right for her.
On the other hand, ‘shire’, in the merino was quite vibrant and bright, so despite the fact that they were the same colourway, the fabric has that glowy depth she was aiming for.
I took the LBA ‘life aquatic’ merino home from Paris with me, and decided to try combining it with a couple of mohair options. The top mohair is LBA ‘elise’ and the bottom is Walk Collection in ‘jungle’. I decided that ‘elise’ was the winner. To my eyes, it’s just a bit less harsh a contrast than the ‘shire’ mohair over ‘life aquatic’, and this difference means the blending works.
Get started swatching! Blending mohair with other yarns is a VERY fun way to essentially ‘build your own yarn’, and you can begin using materials from your own stash! Try it out, I think you’ll enjoy it.
my next mohair + projects
This yarn blend would work exceedingly well for other projects too… I considered hacking a Boardwalk or Lush cardigan, and you can see what I settled upon! I am working it on 6.0mm needles at the same gauge I did the Love Note sweater on, and thus I’m adjusting the pattern for a different gauge (we’ve got a tutorial on that here).
This mohair blending method would also work very well for a ‘fade’ type project. You could gather your sock-weight scraps and organize them within a similar value, or to create a fade. Then you could blend them all together with the addition of a single colour of mohair held alongside each through the project. I’m imagining a faded oversized flax sweater in my future…
mohair stripes, mohair solo
Yet more swatches! I’ve got about a million plans in my head, and one of them is a Playdate, or adjusted Boardwalk using stripes of mohair + sock yarn. I’m also intrigued by the possibility of a sweater made entirely in mohair lace… perhaps a Bonny lace top?
So, what will you blend? Do you prefer a lighter halo over a darker yarn or vice versa? We can’t wait to see what blended gems you come up with!
February 18, 2022 @ 6:20 am
Just what I needed. Thank you. I was given some mohair eons ago, and now I can’t wait to play with it!
January 22, 2022 @ 7:08 am
This is absolutely brilliant. I’ve always wondered about the colour effects of using mohair along with another wool. Thanks so much for this.
October 21, 2021 @ 7:54 pm
This was so helpful for me! I’m wanting to see effects of a variegated/hand dyed mohair looks like on a solid single base!
May 8, 2021 @ 12:48 pm
Thank you for this, it’s quite detailed and comprehensive. And the pieces are all so beautiful, the colors and the patterns. Unfortunately I don’t know how to knit — but would this be possible to do with crochet? All I can find is changing colors, but not blending them. I would like to create colors that resemble my beautiful tortoiseshell cat, Sascha. I just lost my sweet girl and I wish to make a plushie as a memorial piece for her.
May 9, 2021 @ 10:24 pm
Hi Kira – Yes! the yarn blending tips suggested here would be equally applicable if you’re crocheting vs. knitting. Best luck with your plushie.
April 11, 2021 @ 6:19 am
What a great article. I would have gone down the wrong path and then frogged had I not read this.
April 7, 2021 @ 1:01 pm
This article is so timely. I just inherited (adopted) four skeins of 3 different colors of mohair. I’m excited to experiment with the possibilities now!
March 31, 2021 @ 1:55 pm
Hi, thank you for so many good advises and ideas. I was wondering, did you notice some special and different washing and drying care steps, needed for mohair combined with other chunkiest yarns? Does sweater change the shape more or less, when it is in combination?
We just wrote a blog post about drying Mohair wool sweaters, but I did not have any experience with mixing yarns, so I would appreciate if you could share your experience. We would be glad to share your response with our audience on our blog as well.
https://www.woolnomads.com/post/how-to-dry-mohair-sweater
April 6, 2021 @ 10:33 am
When washing and drying we just use our usual steps, a soak in some cool water and wool wash, roll in a towel to get the excess water out, and then lay flat (or pin out) to dry.
March 17, 2021 @ 8:01 pm
Could you please tell the names of two yarn colors you used for your beautiful modified Lush cardigan project? It’s the 3rd photo from the end of the article. Thanks!
March 21, 2021 @ 11:50 pm
Hello – Yes! They are La Bien Aimee Merino Singles in Life Aquatic and La Bien Aimee mohair silk lace in Elise.
January 28, 2021 @ 8:47 am
Loved your article, it’s about time someone gave attention to this technique. Due to a wool allergy I cannot use wool, mohair, or lama. However I can handle Alpaca and angora rabbit with no issues. The ultra light weight feel is what I believe scares off less experienced knitters/crocheters, there are times I have to watch my hands so I know I’m knitting. Sometimes I have taken commercial blends and, using a drop spindle, have re-spun them to include a bamboo cotton, or hemp fiber to make a yarn with a little more hand feel and durability.
Though i would caution that folks shouldn’t combine most natural fibers with acrylics or other man-made ones due to the difference in shrink and tendency to felt when washed. However, it does produce some “interesting” textures when such a combination is done, which I turned into a decorative wall hanging for my bathroom.
So once again thank you, Happy Knitting!
November 30, 2020 @ 6:07 am
Yay! I am so excited about these color possibilities! Thank you for writing about this! My question is about the gauge- how does adding a mohair lace yarn to a worsted yarn or to a bulky yarn effect the gauge?
Specifically: I have been Dreaming of finding a blue-green yarn and realized that I can probably combine a teal with a green and get the effect I am looking for by mixing the two colors myself! I have a blue/ teal!
bulky yarn and would need to add a green mohair lace. Would that alter the gauge?
Thanks again!
Hana
November 30, 2020 @ 11:20 am
Hi Hana – It sort of depends on the project and the desired fabric. It does affect the gauge, but depending on the project you might like it to be a slightly denser gauge with the mohair, or, like we have in love note, a much looser gauge.
July 13, 2020 @ 11:54 am
I love this post! So helpful and fun to look at all of the different choices. I keep reading it over and over.
June 19, 2020 @ 5:07 am
That lovely top pattern is reminding me of happy Tin Can Knits.
June 18, 2020 @ 12:19 pm
I took a class with Stephen West at Knit City a few years ago. He described mohair as “the beauty blender of knitting” and it’s so true. I chuckle every time I think back on that.
May 12, 2020 @ 11:52 pm
This was exactly the information I was looking for. Thankyou so much for sharing your inspirations, works, lessons learnt and wisdom. Thankyou thankyou thankyou
February 27, 2020 @ 2:12 pm
Hi! Great Inspiration Thanks! Do we need to get larger needles while adding Mohair to our yarn?
February 28, 2020 @ 10:31 am
Hi Brigitte – It sort of depends on what fabric you are going for. In the Love Note we went for a really drapey fabric, but if you just want that mohair halo, you might just need to swatch and go up one needle size or so.
February 7, 2020 @ 9:41 pm
Love this article! I have 8 balls of Debbie Bliss “Angel” in a pale blue, I think the colour is called “sky”. I am looking for lots of possibilities for combining it with another yarn for a sweater. All ideas gratefully received!
January 10, 2020 @ 5:32 am
Thank you for the swatch images and ideas. I do like the darker mohair look. The rust and green Love Notes are beautiful!
August 9, 2019 @ 11:05 am
Could you please tell me if this mohair technique would work with DK weight rather than sock weight? Or would the DK yarn be too heavy and overpower the mohair color influence?
August 15, 2019 @ 9:46 am
Great question! The technique would definitely work with DK weight, however, as you suggest, the colour of the mohair would have less impact on the colour of the overall blend. I’d suggest you swatch it!
June 5, 2019 @ 7:45 pm
Thanks for this analysis. I like to combine sock yarn and mohair/silk for gloves.
June 10, 2019 @ 1:44 am
Sounds like a lovely use of the combination! If you’re working gloves, I would suggest knitting the combined yarn at a much tighter gauge than what we’ve shown on these swatches. Enjoy! Emily
June 3, 2019 @ 9:32 pm
What if you can’t wear mohair? What yarn do you suggest for your sweather?
June 4, 2019 @ 4:33 am
Hello! You could either mix a sock-weight yarn with a lace-weight of another type (wool, silk, or synthetic), OR you could just use a DK weight yarn of your choosing on its own.
August 23, 2019 @ 1:10 pm
Have you tried brushed Suri alpaca? It’s very similar.
August 25, 2019 @ 10:34 pm
I have and it is LOVELY to work with!
June 3, 2019 @ 7:45 am
This layering post is just amazing info – I love how you have illustrated it and have made it so very clear.
Thank you
June 3, 2019 @ 1:19 am
Such a great post thanks for the ideas
June 1, 2019 @ 8:57 pm
Can I just say that I love them all? :)
June 1, 2019 @ 4:02 pm
This is such an interesting article. I have a nice stash of mohair, will be fun to play! Thanks!
May 31, 2019 @ 8:29 am
Thank you for sharing all these swatches, a lot of inspiration. Last winter I knit an entire sweater with a cream fingering weight yarn layered with different lace mohair color, creating a large striped marled effect. Pairing color with speckles result in a more impressionist pattern.
May 31, 2019 @ 12:18 am
Cool.))) You have opened a new space for creativity for me! I’m gonna go mix my blue mohair with all the strings I can find.
May 30, 2019 @ 10:04 am
I love this post!! I’ve been super into mohair lately (feels like most of the zeitgeist is getting that way) and this is a brilliant post on how to use mohair with other yarns for loads of depth and colour play. Fantastic!
May 30, 2019 @ 6:27 am
I just completed a sweater for my granddaughter using a fine mohair/silk PurlsSolo Tussock in bright hot pink held with variegated and speckled pink/violet Koigu KPPPM + a solid pink KPM. Your posting felt like reading my own experience vastly expanded! I wish I could post a photo. I have also knit more than a dozen hats with Shibui Silk Cloud held with Koigu, one in a seed stitch that I kept is similar to the Rust/Undergrowth sweater above.
May 30, 2019 @ 6:30 am
I should have mentioned that the sweater is in two-row stripes and the Koigu is sock weight.
June 10, 2019 @ 10:03 pm
Aren’t you on Ravelry ? You could post there a picture…