Yarn Review: Purl Soho Nigh Fine
Because you deserve a splurge…
My friends at Purl Soho have just launched a new yarn worth saving up for. If you love knitting with fingering-weight yarn, and you love cashmere, you’re going to love Nigh Fine.
I was delighted to get my hands on a couple of skeins prior to the official launch.
FYI: This yarn was gifted to me by Purl Soho with no obligation to use or review the yarn. The links are not affiliate links. I receive no compensation for this review (other than from your paid ❤️ subscriptions), nor will I receive a commission if you make a purchase. I have an ongoing business relationship with Purl Soho tech editing many of their patterns, and I have done some designing for them in the past.
First, the Specifications
This yarn is suitable for use with patterns calling for light fingering-weight yarn.
Let’s Take a Closer Look
Nigh Fine is a 2-ply yarn. The individual plies have a moderately firm twist, but the plying was done with a relatively light twist – only about 15 degrees. There is only a slight visible halo right off the hank. The firm twist in the plies gives this yarn strength, while the low ply twist keeps it lofty and light.
This is a delicate yarn. While it does not drift apart, it will easily snap if you give it a firm tug. You’ll want to be careful while winding this yarn into a ball. If your swift does not rotate smoothly, you might break the yarn.
Nigh fine is consistently spun, with no knots in the two skeins I sampled.
Let’s Look at a Swatch
I started my exploration of Nigh Fine by knitting Stockinette stitch on size US 2.5 (3 mm) needles. My gauge is 30 sts and 48 rows = 4” (10 cm). This is on the loose end of the gauge range recommended on the label. The fabric is amazingly soft and lightweight. My swatch measures 6¾” wide, 5” tall, and weighs only 5 grams.
This yarn is a pleasure to knit. The plies did not split. I could knit without watching my hands, which was surprising with a yarn this fine.
I blocked all my swatches by soaking in cool water with a couple of drops of no-rinse wool wash, rolling them in a towel, then laying them flat to dry without pinning. The yarn bloomed just a bit, but the swatches did not become fuzzy. I suspect this means the yarn will be slow to pill (though it is cashmere, so some pilling is to be expected with wear). If I were going to knit a sweater with this yarn, I would use a smaller needle to produce a tighter fabric than shown in this swatch. At 32–34 sts = 4” (10 cm), Nigh Fine would make an heirloom-worthy sweater.
I would not choose this yarn for socks. No matter how small a gauge you manage to knit, cashmere is a delicate fiber. It simply will not hold up to the kind of wear inflicted on socks.
How About Some Lace?
2-ply yarns are often recommended for lace. The structure of a 2-ply yarn tends to hold yarn overs open, highlighting the lace pattern. I leaned even farther into the openness of lace by using a slightly larger needle (US 3 / 3.25 mm).
While this lace is beautiful in the Crimson Red, imagine a wedding shawl knit in Heirloom White. It would be jaw-dropping.
The Swatch That Will Become a Project
I want to make a scarf with Nigh Fine so I can wear it right up next to my face. My wool winter coat is dark gray. This garter stitch stripe with slip-stitch dots would make a perfect winter scarf.
Could I make this scarf with just two skeins of yarn? My swatch measures 6½” long, 3¾” tall, and weighs 4 grams. That tells me I can get about 6 square inches of fabric out of each gram of yarn, using this stitch pattern. A scarf 8” wide and 72” long would be 576 square inches. I would need about 96 grams of yarn for that scarf. Two skeins (one of each color) would give me 110 grams of yarn—plenty to knit this scarf with enough left over to avoid the stress of playing yarn chicken. The answer is a resounding YES!
What You Can’t See
Cashmere is the fine, downy undercoat grown as insulation by several varieties of goat raised mostly in cold, arid climates. Mongolia, the source of the fiber in Nigh Fine, produces about a third of the global cashmere supply, second only to China.
To produce the best fiber, the longer, coarser outercoat must be painstakingly separated from the shorter cashmere undercoat. In fact, the presence of coarse, wiry fibers is a dead giveaway of poor-quality cashmere. I found no sign of outercoat fibers in Nigh Fine.
Like most of the world’s cashmere, Nigh Fine is processed and spun in China. While I try to avoid yarns manufactured in China when I can, that’s nearly impossible with cashmere. I have worked with Purl Soho long enough to be confident they have chosen mills with responsible environmental protections and worker safety practices.
Intrigued by this yarn, but hesitant to work at such a small gauge? Purl Soho offers the same fiber in Nigh DK! The same soft-as-a-kitten luxury, but with a recommended needle size of US 4–6 (3.5–4 mm). Bonus: As I write this, Nigh DK is on sale for $49.30 per skein, a 15% discount! I don’t know how long the sale will last, but good luck!
The Colors
Purl Soho always has a great eye for color and the 18 colors offered in Nigh Fine are lovely. Silver Poplar, the gray I sampled, is a beautifully heathered mid-tone—neither charcoal dark nor ash light.
The real surprise is the Crimson Red. Purl Soho often skips true red in their color selections; there are always lovely pinks and berries, but rarely a true red. As a lover of red, I was delighted to see this color. It’s a good, deep, rich red that doesn’t lean toward either purple or orange.
The Bottom Line
There is no denying that Nigh Fine is a splurge. At $58 per skein, the yarn for my planned scarf would cost $116 plus shipping. Not everyone can afford to spend so much money on yarn. I completely understand. I was fortunate to receive this yarn as a gift. I would need to think twice (or thrice) before clicking “add to cart”.
But, if you have the disposable income, I think this yarn is worth it. 448 yards of high-quality cashmere will give you many hours of knitting pleasure. And for those occasions when you want to give a very special gift, a scarf or cowl or pair of gloves hand knit in pure cashmere just can’t be beat. Especially if you’re making a gift to give to yourself.
Keep your eye open for the pop-up on Purl Soho’s website offering 20% off in exchange for adding yourself to their mailing list. A project’s worth of Nigh Fine would be a good use for that discount.
Yarn-Hoarding Dragon Update
I wrote a couple of weeks ago about my too-large yarn stash and my plan to sort through all of it and reduce the volume. I’m pleased to report that I spent last Sunday afternoon engaged in the big stash dive.
All the baskets, bags, and bins were emptied, the yarn was sorted, and the keepers were neatly put away. In the end, I have three boxes of yarn, totaling just over 25 pounds, destined for donation.
When I was at the library returning books on Saturday, I stopped by the desk to ask if they were currently accepting donations of yarn for the Maker Space. The librarian said they would love to have it, since they were almost out of yarn. I grinned and told her, “We can fix that!” I’ll drop off the donation this coming weekend.
And don’t worry—I still have more than enough yarn for anything I want or need to knit. But now I know that every skein in the stash is yarn I’m eager to work with. It’s a grand feeling.
As always, thank you for inviting me into your world this week. Please feel free to share this post if you have friends who might find it interesting.
Continue the conversation: What splurge-worthy yarns have you knit with? Can you recommend a yarn that feels like a splurge but is modestly priced? Share what you know in the comments!
That red is breathtaking. Great review as always!
A little beyond my yarn budget but I do like that red. Are you able to share where I can see the pattern you're using?