Angora, Mohair,and Cashmere review

Angora is an extremely soft, fluffy, and warm fiber that comes from the Angora rabbit. The highest quality angora is combed from the rabbit, not shorn. Each rabbit can only provide a small amount of fibre, so expensive angora is often combined with other fibers. This process also helps to alleviate some of the shedding that occurs with angora due to the shortness of its fibers. 

While somewhat weaker than wool, cashmere is luxurious--extraordinarily soft, resilient, and receptive to dyes. This rare and expensive fibre is combed once a year from the bellies of the cashmere goat.

Mohair, spun from the fleece of the angora goat, shares wool's insulating properties and is extremely lightweight. The softest and finest mohair is spun from the fleece of kid angora goats, creating a luxury yarn beyond compare. Mohair is a great yarn for those winter projects.Scarves and mittens of mohair are beautiful, soft, and warm.  

I knitted fingerless gloves with angora (the multicolored) and cashmere (the red). What a pleasant experience!  The yarns were silky soft.  The gloves are light weight, have a small bit of stretch, and are incredibly warm.  However, there are a few drawbacks.  These types of yarn are very hard to frog.  The yarn knots easily and you can spend a good 10 or more minutes working the frog out, or you may even have to cut the knot out.  I found that knitting on steel needles  was better than the bamboo. The bamboo hooks are pretty slick and a few times my stitches just slid off the needle. The steel  hooks develop just a teeny bit of static cling that helps keep the yarn on the needle. These yarns can be pretty expensive, but the finished project is a pleasure to wear.All three of these yarns take to dyes very well.  The colors were bold and deep. I was concerned that the red cashmere would bleed when I washed it.There was some bleeding but not really enough for me to worry about in the first wash.  I waited until they had dried and rewashed them with no bleeding. I would suggest that if you the project is going to be a present, either wash it before you wrap it or tuck a note with it explaining that the first wash would be best with like colors in cold water.

Wool, spun from the fleece of sheep, is versatile, durable and elastic. A single wool fiber can be twisted and turned 20,000 times without breaking and can be stretched 30 to 50 percent beyond its original length and rebound without damage, which is why a garment made of wool retains its original shape and naturally resists wrinkles. Air spaces between the elastic crimps in wool fibers create an insulating barrier which shields the body from cold or hot air, regulating the body's natural temperature. Its ability to absorb up to one-third its weight before it feels wet to the touch allows wool to absorb perspiration and release it gradually, preventing chills under a variety of weather conditions, and making it comfortable to wear year-round -- the desert-dwelling Bedouins weave their traditional robes from wool! By applying a combination of heat, moisture and friction to the thin, scaly overlapping cells that form the surface of a wool fiber, super warm felt can also be formed, making wool the fiber of choice for nomadic tribes in Northern Asia as well.

 And contrary to what some people believe, wool is also easy to wash. It can be simply soaked in a wool-wash, spun, and laid flat to dry, or if it has been treated with a micro-fine resin that coats the cells of the fiber's surface (the 'super-wash' process), it can even be gently machine washed and, in some cases, even dried! The finest grade of wool is from the Merino breed of sheep.  I knitted up a few stars to be turned into a mobile after some felting. I find pure yarn to be a little rough to the touch (especially after holding cashmere for 2 hours!), it seems to pull the moisture from my hands.  Of course, a little skin so soft lotion or hand cream will fix that right up.I generally veer away from wool for clothing.  It just feels too rough for me.  I find that it does make a great blanket for winter bed, it is heavy enough and warm enough to be the only blanket on the bed.  I have friends who swear that wool is the only sock they will wear.  Wool generally knits or crochets very will with any needle or hook.Do not wash wool in hot water unless you are trying to make felt!

 Specialty yarns are produced from the hair of other animals, and also from milk protein, spun either alone or in combination with other fibers. Qiviut, a very warm and delicate wool, is produced from the hair of Alaskan musk oxen. The vicuna, cousin to the alpaca, is a nearly extinct animal, and vicuna wool is scarce. Yak, mink, chinchilla, reindeer, beaver, fox, and even pet dog and cat hair have been spun into yarns

.Next we will discuss the treasures I found in one of the totes--yarns made from milk, bamboo, cotton, nylon, soy and sea shell just to name a few! Stay tuned for more messages from the Craft Cottage!  Same craft time!  same craft channel!