Linen Yarn

10 tips for knitting with linen yarn

The characteristics of linen yarn

Linen yarn is a plant fiber spun out of the long, straight fibers from the stem of the flax plant.

The yarn has some really nice qualities that make it suitable for warm weather garments like summer tops and wraps.

Linen yarn is: 

• Strong and durable
• Inelastic
• Lustrous
• Yield cool
• Absorbent
• Easily wrinkled
• Machine washable and can be tumble-dried, as well as hand washed or dry cleaned
• Easy to dye
• Resistant to pilling and doesn’t get static
• Antibacterial
• An eco-friendly choice it’s a renewable source, almost chemical free and biodegradable
• Great stitch definition. The inelasticity keeps stitches crisp and nice.

Given all these different characteristics, which are quite the opposite from those of wool which most knitters are familiar with, knitting with linen can be a little different. Maybe even a little struggle if you try to do it exactly as you would have treated a woolen yarn.

So, let’s get to the tips!

Best tips for knitting with linen yarn

Make that swatch!

Change your needles

You will notice that the inelastic linen yarn won’t adjust to your needles like a wool yarn does, leading to larger stitches.

Don’t try to tension your yarn harder, it may not slip through your fingers at all as a more elastic yarn would. Make it easy on your hands and go down a needle size or two instead.

If you’re knitting with metal tips (as I do always and forever on my favorite knitting needles) you may want to change them for bamboo or wood as the texture of those materials will help even out your stitches.

Choose a technique for joining yarn wisely

Skip all types of knots and joining methods that rely on the sticky felt able characteristics of wool. 

To join a new ball of linen yarn your best choices are to knit ten stitches with both yarns and then weave in the ends or something like the braided join. 

Pull the yarn from outside the ball

Linen yarn has a tendency to stick to itself and center pull balls tend to fall apart, therefore it’s less messy to pull the yarn from the outside rather than inside a ball or cake of yarn.

To skip the mess, wind your yarn around something, a toilet paper roll will do just fine!

Don’t be afraid to rip and redo

Linen yarn is durable and won’t be damaged if you rip it back. Actually, it will become softer and easier to work with. 

Use a long needle/cable

The stitches will take up more space than when knitting with for example wool. So to be on the safe side use a long needle/cable when knitting linen yarn flat to stop it from sliding off your needle when putting it down.

Skip the selvage stitches

Other yarns may need selvage stitches to make a tidy edge and their elasticity make them able to average to the rest of the knitting.

Linen yarn is so inelastic that a selvage stitch will make the edge shorter than the rest of the finished piece.

Edgings

Feel free to use them or skip them, linen yarn makes a beautiful raw edge and you don’t need to add an edging if you don’t want to.

Be hard on your linen

Linen is perfect for garments that crave a lot of draping, like flowy summer tops, tunics, wraps, and shawls! Count on the linen fabric you crate to get softness and more drape with time and washing. 

Garments knitted in linen are very durable and will only be softer, more draping and shinier the more you use and wash it. So don’t be afraid to use it!

Accept some wrinkles and other oddities

Linen has a life of its own, your stitches will look untidy when coming off the needles and the finished fabric is going to wrinkle. 

But, this is what makes linen unique and along with the amazing drape and softness, it’s elegance. 

Wash and block linen

Linen is machine washable and you can absolutely let it go in the dryer too, but, it will come out with messy lace and uneven stitches. 

Instead, skip the dryer and lay it out flat to dry. This way you can reshape it and open up lace sections as you wish and let it air dry.

The newly washed linen will feel stiff but if you put it on it will soften up pretty quickly, like a pair of jeans.

You could also let it go through the dryer on a cold setting to soften it.

What can you knit in linen?

This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience (which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission but it won’t cost you a penny more)! 

Pattern suggestions for Natura Linen

I have picked out some patterns that are designed for yarns in the same yarn weight as Natura Linen. Please remember that I haven’t knitted these patterns this yarn, and that these patterns are designed for different yarn fibers which can affect the end result.

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Katia Lino 100%

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