MISTAKES TO AVOID WHEN MACHINE KNITTING RECYCLED CASHMERE
I'll tell you one thing straight: recycled cashmere doesn't forgive improvisation.
It's an extraordinary material, but it has different memory, different resistance, different behavior. And those who treat it like virgin cashmere — or worse, like any other yarn — end up with breakages, defects, unstable garments. Not because the yarn is "poor quality," but because it was worked incorrectly.
This article isn't theoretical. It's what really happens, machine in hand.
ERROR 1: Pulling the yarn too much
Recycled cashmere comes from shorter fibers than virgin cashmere. This means one thing: less tensile strength.
If you set the machine with standard tension, as you would with a worsted or new cashmere, the result is inevitable:
the yarn breaks.
Not immediately, perhaps. But it breaks.
And often it breaks at the worst points: during processing, or afterwards, when the garment is already finished.
👉 Real solution:
reduce the tension. Always.
And then do a test. And then reduce it slightly more.
ERROR 2: Machine speed too high
This is a production error, from those who are in a hurry.
The faster you go, the more you stress the yarn. And recycled cashmere doesn't like stress.
Short fibers can't "hold" when the machine works too fast: the yarn weakens, heats up, loses cohesion.
👉 Real solution:
slow down the machine.
It's better to lose a few more minutes than to throw away an entire garment.
ERROR 3: Not considering knots
Knots exist in recycled cashmere. Period.
It's not a defect. It's a technical consequence of the regeneration process.
Anyone who thinks they can eliminate them completely doesn't understand the material.
The problem isn't the knot.
The problem is ignoring it.
If the knot passes unchecked:
- it can break needles
- it can create visual defects
- it can weaken the stitch
👉 Real solution:
use a knot catcher (if you work industrially).
Or stop manually and manage the passage.
The knot must be guided, not rushed.
ERROR 4: Not making samples before production
This is the most costly error.
"I've worked with this count before, I know how it behaves."
No. You don't.
Because in recycled cashmere:
- each lot can react differently
- each color can behave differently
- each twist changes the final result
👉 Real solution:
always make a sample.
Wash it.
Mill it.
Dry it.
Only then decide how to produce.
ERROR 5: Ignoring washing and milling
The recycled cashmere garment isn't finished when it comes off the machine.
That's where it truly begins.
Many errors arise because the "raw" garment is judged without considering what will happen afterwards.
Recycled cashmere changes:
- it compacts
- it opens
- it transforms
👉 Real solution:
design the garment already thinking about washing.
If you don't know where you want to go, you'll never get there.
ERROR 6: Using the same settings as other yarns
This is the most insidious error.
"I've always worked this way."
Perfect. But you're not working with the same material.
Recycled cashmere requires:
- less tension
- more attention
- more sensitivity
It's not about the machine.
It's about the touch.
👉 Real solution:
adapt everything: tension, speed, stitch density, stitch.
Start from scratch every time you change yarn.
ERROR 7: Thinking it's an "inferior" yarn
This is the most serious error.
Those who work recycled cashmere poorly often blame the yarn.
But the truth is simple:
recycled cashmere isn't inferior, it's different.
And like all different things, it needs to be understood.
When you understand it, something interesting happens:
- you get soft garments
- natural
- with a lively handfeel
- and with a story behind them
And above all, truly sustainable.
Working recycled cashmere on a machine is not more difficult.
It's more technical.
It requires respect for the material, attention to detail, and the ability to slow down when necessary.
Those who treat it like any other yarn fail.
Those who listen to it, on the other hand, achieve something others cannot.
And today, that's a huge difference.
