Over the past few weeks, we’ve been experiencing a cold spell up here in the Northern Hemisphere. Particularly in the UK, the frosty days have arrived in their droves with little let up from the chill. Many parts of the country experienced sub-zero temperatures and it’s set to remain, if not very cold, at least chilly throughout February and March.
This is the kind of climate our big chunky knits were made for. They’re primed for this time of year. In recent years, we’ve seen a general move in the knitwear market from thick, warm garments, towards thinner, more porous pieces that aren’t going to keep you as warm. The reason behind this is that many manufacturers have increasingly turned to lower quality materials, quicker production techniques, and the use of less yarn.
At Colhay’s we often talk about how we want to revert to more traditional principles when it comes to garment making. We’re keen to reverse this trend and return to knitted garments that are thick and robust, yet sumptuous and comfortable too. The kind of knitwear your grandparents would have likely enjoyed wrapping themselves up on a frosty morning, but is now a rarity in a modern day wardrobe.
In this article, we’ll explain how we produce luxury knitwear that’s warm and functional too, covering the techniques and reasons behind it all.
There are three key reasons why our knitwear keeps you so warm: using large amounts of yarn, high tension knitting, and specialist knitting techniques and patterns.
A Lot More Yarn
To start with an analogy: knitwear is much like a chocolate mousse. The more chocolate you pack into the mousse, the better (or simply tastier) it’s going to be and it’s the same for knitwear. Use more yarn and the better quality your garment will be. It’ll be much more luxurious to feel on the skin and wear.
We’ve seen a clear rise in the use of increasingly less yarn for knitwear production. Usually this is in an effort to save costs, but results in knitwear that’s thin and porous, and thus not warm at all. Scottish knitwear, however, is famed for using a much larger than usual quantity of yarn. This larger quantity of yarn plays significant role in the finished warm and robust knitwear.
High Tension Knitting
This is where things begin to get slightly technical, but bear with us. If you were to hold up a piece of knitwear and look closely, you’ll see that there are some very small holes between the knit loops. This occurs no matter how tightly knitted the piece is and is completely normal; it’s the nature of knitwear.
If the knitwear is knitted at a low tension, and without using a lot of yarn, these holes are larger. Of course, larger holes mean more air flow being let in and on a cold day, that will mean cold air hitting your skin.
High tension knitting, which is a heritage technique championed by expert Scottish knitters, simply means knitting very densely. This dense knitting reduces the size of the holes we’ve mentioned and, in a finished piece, means less cold air reaching your body.
It perhaps goes without saying that high tension knitting uses a lot more yarn and makes it a more expensive way to produce knitwear. This is the reason we’ve seen it fall out of favour in recent years, with many manufacturers abandoning high tension knitting in favour of the lower tension knitting that, though very cost-effective, results in knitwear that doesn’t keep you warm.
Special Knitting Techniques and Patterns
Lastly, there are some knitting techniques and patterns that can increase the warmth of knitwear too. Some of our garments feature these particular techniques and they are especially good at keeping the wearer warm in cold temperatures.
A rib stitch is one such example. This is where the surface of the knitwear is not smooth, rather it rises and falls at regular intervals.
It adds a little stretch so often you’ll spot rib stitching around the cuffs or hems of garments which make the knitwear easier to put on and take off, but the warmth aspect comes in when the entire piece features a rib stitch.
When it comes to keeping you cosy, the rib structure traps air that’s warmed by your body against the skin, thus keeping in more heat. Ribbing lies flat, but adds some texture and interest to your knitwear too.
You’ll notice rib stitching on our Superfine Lambswool Shawl Collar Cardigans and our Cashmere Ribbed Submariner Roll Neck Jumpers. Both of these pieces are heavy-weight, thick, cosy and perfect for wrapping up on a cold day. In keeping with our ethos at Colhay’s they’re also elegant in design, meaning you don’t need to compromise on style to keep warm.
Secondly, a cable knit structure. With a cable knit, patterns are created within the knitwear. This is usually some kind of braided pattern and can range from a more simple one or two cable braid to something incredibly elaborate with multiple patterns.
Today, the cable knit is mostly an aesthetic choice. It adds something different to a sweater, but it originated back in the early 1900s when fishermen needed something to keep them warm in the harsh conditions at sea. High quality cable knits still have that same warming effect today, helping to trap warm air close to the skin, as with the rib stitch.
Inspired by the attire of yesteryear’s fishermen, our Superfine Lambswool Cable Roll Neck Jumper is another great choice for the cold weather. For this garment we chose a honeycomb pattern that gives the jumper a rugged feel, but isn’t too over the top or eye-catching and can be easily styled with other pieces from your wardrobe.
If you have any questions about our knitwear, or perhaps need some help choosing which of our pieces are best for the climate you live in, please don’t hesitate to get in touch by contacting us here.