The fact that I knit year-round and live in sunny Meanjin/Brisbane often prompts people to look at me sideways.
When we think of knitting, we tend to first think of the cosy jumpers, chic balaclavas and on-trend mittens that we reach for in the depths of winter. UNIFORM FABRIC With Teflon
But there is absolutely no need to stop indulging in your favourite pastime just because wool feels too hot and sticky to work with. There's a whole world of fibres out there perfect for making summer garments.
I caught up with the inimitable Sydneysider behind the creations at Loupy Studio, Evvia Gonzales, to chat about the best fibres for knitters and crocheters alike to experiment with in summer. Let's get to know them together!
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Evvia adores using linen yarn for projects designed to sit next to the skin.
"I think it's the cure-all for summer pieces," she says.
"It creates more of a drape [than cotton] over time, while staying lightweight and it doesn't look like it's stretching."
In my experience, hand-knit or crocheted linen becomes softer with use, just like store-bought linen garments.
But it does come with negatives. As a rougher and more slippery fibre, linen is a bit harder on the hands to manipulate. This doesn't necessarily have to put you off knitting bigger projects like T-shirts — or even skirts or trousers — with linen.
I've found the trick to dealing with it is to take breaks when my hands tell me to. (Groundbreaking, I know).
It can also be hard to get garments right that are knit or crocheted with linen and are fitted (or have negative ease). This is why many patterns that call on linen have a lot of positive ease to them. But that doesn't mean the fitted look isn't possible. (Swatching is your friend.)
And handmade linen garments are pretty easy to care for.
"Linen doesn't retain odour as much as other fibres, so I usually find I can just rinse it out every few wears," Evvia explains.
"Crocheting with cotton in summer can be great … knitting with cotton? Very devious," Evvia says.
"Lots of people think cotton will be the way forward [to knit with] because it's a nice, cheap fibre and it's the classic summer fabric. But the way cotton yarn holds moisture and the way it wears by sinking down over time because it's a very heavy fibre makes it a bit of an iffy one for me."
Evvia says the heaviness of cotton yarn can be great for making a long and summery, but figure-clinging dress. But if you're making a camisole with straps you can't adjust, you'll probably find the garment sinks over time.
"It can be such a nightmare, so you really have to think about how much the drape [how loosely your fabric hangs] will matter in your final piece," she adds.
I wish I'd known this before I'd sunk hours into knitting a whole-ass dress on 3mm needles in cotton.
I also wish I'd known that cotton yarn can pill in a weird way after use — and isn't the easiest to de-pill compared to other fibres.
You can avoid making the same mistakes Evvia and I have by knitting with cotton only when you know the piece you're making won't be affected by downwards stretching. Think: stretchy camisoles with adjustable straps or skirts. For less overall stretch and also pilling, consider mercerised cotton.
But Evvia has found cotton comes into its own with crochet pieces, when it's possible to use the "properties of the fibre to their fullest" because "it doesn't have the opportunity to stretch out like it does with knit stitches".
Evvia is a self-professed "huge fan of silk" and thinks it's hugely underrated. So do I.
"Some of my favourite pieces have been with handspun silk and merino where it's 60 per cent mulberry silk and 40 per cent merino. The silk gives it so much strength, it has the most beautiful drape and you put it on and immediately feel all of the sweat leave your body," Evvia laughs.
"I do find that it's at its best when it's really finely plied, in a worsted weight, because then it's really strong."
But — and this is a big but — it's also something Evvia wouldn't necessarily recommend using all the time.
"It's quite expensive, and it's hard to find ethical silk," she says. "So if you stumble upon it, enjoy it."
While knitting an entire top in silk might be out of the question financially, silk yarn can be great for smaller projects like scarves or lightweight, knit/crocheted bodiless jumpers — perfect for adding another dimension to summer fits.
But from what I've noticed at the local yarn stores I frequent, more 100 per cent silk yarn options are becoming available as demand grows, so doing more with silk might be more feasible in the near future.
"To me, [getting summer makes right] is often about finding perfect little blends," Evvia says.
"A linen and cotton blend or a cotton and wool blend are great options, or a linen or cotton/viscose blend.
"I do think wool [blends for summer] are underrated. Especially cotton-wool blends, because it gives that extra bounce and lightness to the yarn that cotton by itself usually doesn't have and it's also really great for wicking sweat."
And then there's 100 per cent wool for summer.
I have a camisole made entirely of fingering-weight merino yarn that I reach for on hot days even though it's made of wool, thanks to its moisture-wicking abilities.
I've found the trick with knitting woollen summer garments is to either go for a loose, airy fabric with larger needles/hook size, or to use very small needles/hook size and lightweight yarn.
Mohair and suri alpaca are always tempting to make with, but mohair can feel itchy against naked skin and both fibres shed pretty easily, so it's worth considering whether you'll be comfortable with wool rubbing off onto your bare skin on hot days. (It's a no from me).
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