Yarn Review: North Bay Fiber Elemental Sport

Plus, an update on the two sweaters in progress

Jun 26, 2025

We’re in the midst of a heat wave that has covered the eastern US in perspiration. Temperatures have been in the 90s all week, with humidity that pushes the heat index over 100°. I am grateful for ceiling fans and central air conditioning.

Despite the heat, I’m still knitting with wool. It’s a conjuring of autumn, looking forward to cooler temperatures, an act of faith that the seasons will continue to turn.

I recently wrote a profile of North Bay Fiber for Farm & Fiber Knits. I was impressed with Jill Zelinski’s devotion to breed specific American wool. When I found out one of her yarn lines was 100% Cormo wool, I was eager to get my needles into it. North Bay Fiber Elemental Sport is everything I had hoped.

First impressions count. This yarn came beautifully packaged. It was accompanied by a gift tag with “handmade by” and “especially for” on the front. The back of the tag has a collection of laundry care symbols so you can circle the appropriate instructions. There was also a postcard with a handwritten note thanking me for my order. I appreciate these little gestures. They tell me this is a business that is thoughtful about their product and its presentation.

FYI: I purchased this yarn via North Bay Fiber’s website. The links are not affiliate links. I receive no compensation for this review (other than from those of you who are paid subscribers 🩷.)

First, the Specifications

Elemental Sport is suitable for use in patterns calling for sport-weight yarn. You could probably even use it for patterns calling for DK weight-yarn; be sure to swatch first and make sure you like the fabric at that slightly looser gauge.

Let’s Take a Closer Look

Elemental Sport is a round and bouncy 3-ply yarn. It is worsted-spun, meaning the wool is combed to align the fibers before spinning, making a smooth, elegant yarn. The yarn has a relatively high twist, which should act to reduce pilling in this fine wool. The yarn is strong; it takes considerable effort to break this yarn with my hands.

The two skeins I sampled were evenly and consistently spun, with no slubs or thin spots. There were no knots in either of the skeins. The combing process used for worsted spun yarn tends to eliminate any vegetable matter remaining after the wool is washed. As expected, I encountered no vegetable matter in this yarn.

Let’s Look at a Swatch

My stockinette stitch swatch was knit on size US 4 (3.5 mm) needles. My gauge is 23.5 sts and 36 rows = 4” (10 cm). While there is no recommended gauge on the yarn label, this is right in line with what I would expect from a yarn labeled sport weight.

Elemental Sport is a pleasure to knit. Even at this finer gauge, I could easily knit with my eyes closed. The yarn did not split. It has a springy bounce and felt good in my hands.

The stitch definition is crisp and clear. This swatch has a good balance between body and drape. A sweater knit with Elemental Sport is not likely to droop or stretch out of shape. The fabric is comfortable to wear next to the skin.

This yarn is incredibly versatile. It would make a beautiful dressy pullover or cardigan. It would be just as appropriate for a pair of winter mittens, or a colorwork hat.

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This little faux-cable eyelet pattern is built on a foundation of K3, P1 rib. The elasticity of that ribbed foundation combined with the bounciness of this yarn makes a fabric that will happily follow the contours of the body—perfect for a pair of socks or fingerless mitts.

The clear stitch definition of Elemental Sport makes these columns of stitches look carved into the surface of the fabric.

Here are the instructions for the Faux-Cable Eyelet pattern, in case you’d like to give it a try:

Multiple of 8 sts + 7
Set-up Row 1 (RS): K3, *p1, k3; rep from * to end.
Set-up Row 2 (WS): P3, *k1, p3; rep from * to end.
Row 1: K3, *p1, sl 1, k2, pass slipped st over 2 knit sts, p1, k3; rep from * to last 4 sts, p1, k3.
Row 2: P3, k1, *p3, k1, p1, yo, p1, k1; rep from * to last 3 sts, p3.
Row 3: K3, *p1, k3, p1, sl 1, k2, pass slipped st over 2 knit sts; rep from * to last 4 sts, p1, k3.
Row 4: P3, k1, *p1, yo, p1, k1, p3, k1; rep from * to last 3 sts, p3.
Rep Rows 1–4 for pattern.

The Colors

North Bay Fiber hand-dyes all their yarn in their studio/showroom in Pinconning, MI. Their focus is on rich nearly solid colors rather than speckled or multi-colored yarns. There is just enough variation in tone to make the fabric lively and interesting, but they still read as solids. Personally, I prefer working with solid colors lately. I feel like most multi-colored yarns demand too much attention. I end up designing around the yarn, instead of having the yarn serve the design. I also find solid colors easier to integrate into my wardrobe.

Elemental Sport is offered in a beautiful palette of 50 colors, ranging from rich jewel tones to soft pastels to earthy neutrals. If the color you choose is not in stock, it will be dyed to order, resulting in a delay of just a couple of weeks in shipping your order.

Hand dyed yarn in highly saturated colors can sometimes bleed in the wash. I was wary of this with the vibrant blue of the color called Superior. But when I washed the swatch, there was no hint of blue in the water. This speaks to the care taken to fully exhaust the dye bath and thoroughly rinse the yarn after dying to remove any loose dye particles.

I’m going to make a colorwork hat with this yarn, but my needles have been occupied for the past couple of weeks (as you’ll see below). I’ll be sure to show you the hat when I get around to knitting it.

What You Can’t See

The yarn is made from the wool of Cormo sheep raised in Campbell County, Wyoming. The Cormo was developed in Australia through crossing superfine Saxon Merino ewes with Corridale rams.1 The result is a beautiful fleece which is consistently fine, fluffy, and bright white. Cormo has a lovely fine crimp, giving the wool a particularly bouncy character. It is one of my favorite wools to hand spin, because it has the springiness of well-risen bread dough—pure delight in the hands. This bounce creates a resilient yarn that makes garments which hold their shape.

The Bottom Line

I love this yarn! Attention has been paid to every aspect of fiber selection, spinning, and dying. My notebook is now full of things I want to knit with this yarn. If you are looking for a well-made, versatile, sport-weight yarn, North Bay Fiber Elemental Sport is an excellent choice. If sport-weight isn’t your sweet spot, note that this same fiber is offered in fingering, worsted, and bulky weight yarn.

Knitting in Progress Update

My Waffle Pullover is at the stage where I feel like I’m knitting and knitting, but it isn’t getting any bigger. Each round is now 436 stitches, and it takes me more than an hour to knit 3 rounds. That’s about ¼ inch. Ugh.

I just need to keep the faith and keep knitting. I think this is a gorgeous fabric, and I’m going to love wearing this sweater when fall comes around.

My simple stockinette knitting-while-reading pullover is moving along at a more encouraging clip. I made it to the fun part, which is the stripes at the yoke. The yarn I’m using, MDK Atlas, is a delight. This will be another welcome addition to my cold weather wardrobe.

Things that caught my eye

Ella Fitzgerald sings the theme song for the week:
When the weather is as hot as it is right now, I want ice cream. But I cannot be trusted with a carton of ice cream in the freezer. Portion control goes right out the window. For me, these mini cones are the perfect solution.

Iris Murdoch may not have been thinking of ice cream, but I think this applies: “One of the secrets of a happy life is continuous small treats, and if some of these can be inexpensive and quickly procured so much the better.”
This article in the New York Times explores why many men don’t read fiction. I wonder how different the world would be if men spent more time with novels instead of video games and “manosphere” YouTube shows.
“There is a lot of music that cries. I associate Brahms’s music, though, with holding back tears…” This lovely short piece by Zachary Woolfe of the New York Times sent me searching for Brahms as an antidote to the news (and if you don’t need an antidote to the news, you aren’t paying attention.) That search took me here:

As always, I’m grateful for your time and attention. I love writing this newsletter each week, and it is only possible because of your support.

Continue the conversation: Is there a yarn you are curious about that you’d like me to review? A yarn maker you love who you’d like me to highlight? Tell me about it in the comments!