Last month we’ve had the pleasure to welcome Rauwerk Sport into the shop. Having known Christine – creator of the brand – for a few years and seen the inception of Rauwerk, it feels great to now be able to share it with the rest of the Brighton knitting community.
Rauwerk is all about sustainability and transparency. This single flock yarn is made from 100% Bavarian merino and is spun organically in Germany. The neutrals are created by blending the dark and cream fleece of the merino sheep. The Naturally Dyed colourways all comes from natural pigments. This result in a yarn that is both soft and very little processed.
Although living in Brighton, Christine regularly travels to Munich to visit the farmers and the flock she works with. Every year she even takes part in the shearing of the flock and the skirting of the fleece. Christine’s commitment to sustainable and ethical farming practices really is inspiring. Especially for someone with no previous background in farming or in the production of yarn – but more of that in our next post.
Rauwerk is a non superwash woollen spun. It is lofty and therefore very warm and insulating. It is also sticky and holds texture well. Like all woollen spun it blooms when blocked creating a solid and cohesive piece of fabric. This makes it very suitable for projects with colourwork and textures. Despite its initial rustic feel, it softens quite a bit after blocking.
I am currently knitting Poet by Sari Norlund in the shade Immenblat and I am amazed how well it highlights the lace motif. In the past I have only knitted lace using superwash and worsted yarns which tend to be smoother than woollen spuns. I am really enjoying the extra control given by Rauwerk’s sticky handle. It makes the stitches grip to each other better so they are less likely to drop. This is always a plus when knitting lace. Colours in the range works really nicely together and there’s definitely a potential to make some amazing stranded garments or accessories with them.
I will be giving a thorough review of Rauwerk as soon as I manage to get Poet off my needles. In the meantime stay tuned as we’ll soon be posting an interview with Christine in which she will dive deep into the story behind Rauwerk.
Until Next Time… Happy Knitting!
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I intend to make an ‘Isle Of Purbeck’ shawl in Rauwerk (in the beautiful palest grey shade) and will be very interested to read your review. It’s a DK pattern but as it’s a shawl I’m not too concerned about gauge.
The yarn smells lovely and the colour is so delicate and perfect… I’ve heard it softens and blooms after blocking so I decided to try it even though it is slightly outside my comfort zone for a next-to-my-neck knit as I’d usually look for something very ‘soft’ but the story and the fact it’s wooden spun and non-superwash swung me.
So delighted to see you have coloured version too now!