| Berroco Lustra |
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| Written by Barbara Rottman | |||
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Yarn Name: Lustra
The Look Lustra, a single strand of 50% Peruvian Wool and 50% Tencel, is luminous and silky. The yarn is packed in hanks with a generous 197 yards per 100 grams. Tencel is a cellulose fiber made from wood pulp. Like other plant fibers such as cotton, linen, and rayon, it is soft, strong, drapes well, and can be dyed in brilliant colors. The Tencel gives Lustra a silken sheen, and a soft haze comes from the Peruvian wool. This un-plied yarn winds into a supple ball, richly colored and gleaming.
The Feel Lustra is silky and soft. It rates an “8” on the softness scale. Lustra develops a luxurious drape and fine hand when knit, pooling into a fusion of color and texture. The soft unspun fibers create a loosely relaxed single strand. Lustra has more drape than plied yarns, which are firmer because o f the twist in the plies.
The Patterns For a nearly unlimited range of pattern choices, substitute Lustra for any medium weight worsted yarn. Use Lustra to best effect in patterns that feature textured stitches, cables, lace inserts, ruffles and ribs. You will be pleased with the soft, relaxed and slightly hazy results.
Color Range Lustra is available in 16 deeply saturated and glistening dyes with color names as evocative as the shades themselves. You will find 6 naturals, a pert coral (Capucine), romantic violet (Provence) and bright royal (Montmarte), among others.
Working It
What I’d Like to Make with It Berroco developed a series of fashionable feminine cardigans and pullovers featuring ribbing, ruffles and raised stitches for surface texture that reflects the natural shine of Lustra. These simple but sophisticated garments are rated for beginner to intermediate skill levels, and can be completed before the first autumn leaf turns color. The soft and feminine finish on this yarn complements classically plain garments or richly embellished fashion statements.
Knitting Outside the Box Use Lustra where softness counts as for mittens, accessories, baby items, or chemo caps. Combine it with other flashy fibers, ribbon yarns, mohair or fur for a novel look.
Blocking It Lay flat to dry. Because Lustra is so soft, I would not use heat to set it; steam or heat could stretch the fibers and damage the texture of your knitting.
Washing It Hand wash in cool water.
Wearability Pilling is caused when abraded bits of wool are held fast to the knitting, and is usually a problem with strong fibers. The soft wool used in Lustra may cause some pilling with heavy use, but test samples did not pill or snag with knitting, washing or blocking.
Overall Recommendation Lustra rates an “8” – the silk-like finish on this soft wool in glowing colors will enchant you into trying this lovely yarn. Where to buy Berroco Lustra yarn: Yarnmarket.com
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Lustra is silky, smooth, light weight and easy to handle. The single strand poses no problems with splitting or twisting, and you can knit fairly quickly with this yarn. Because of the silky texture, Lustra has a softer and more relaxed texture than comparable worsted wool. Nonetheless, it knits to an excellent hand that is drapable, crushable, and has good resiliency.
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