Urth Yarns Etesia Hand-Dyed Cotton Linen DK Yarn

Etesia is a hand-dyed cotton and linen DK yarn for summer knits, spun as a 3-ply in 77% cotton and 23% linen and dyed in twenty marine colorways. Each 100-gram hank is dyed by hand in a studio in Turkey, so every skein arrives with the small tonal variations that hand work makes and machine work can't.

The yarn knits up crisp and stitch-defined. Linen carries the structure. Cotton softens it. After the first wash, the fabric blooms open, drapes, and gentles down without losing its shape. The fabric you bind off is not the fabric you wear at the end of the summer, and that change is the point.

The Sun-Washed Marine Palette

Twenty colorways named for what the coast looks and feels like. The greens are Kelp and Algae, the deep blues Cove and Tidepool, the pale aquas Sea Glass and Spindrift. Foam, Pearl, and Oyster carry the sandy neutrals. Sand Castle and Mussel hold the warm earth tones. Coral Reef and Shrimp bring the salmon brights. Pier and Whale sit in the deeper grey-blues. Urchin is muted purple. Jellyfish, Squid, Starfish, and Atoll fill in the brighter accent notes.

The dyeing is tonal and semi-solid by design. Cellulose fibers like cotton and linen take dye more quietly than animal fibers do, so the palette reads as sun-bleached and softened rather than saturated. That is the look the line is built around, not a side effect to apologize for.

Hand-Dyed Cotton Linen Yarn from Turkey

Urth Yarns was founded in 2017 by three brothers, with their mother working among the dyers. Every yarn in the Urth catalog, Etesia included, is hand-dyed by women artisans in two studios in Mersin and Istanbul. The dyeing is done in small lots, by hand, by the same people each season.

Every skein of Etesia sold plants a tree in Africa through Urth's partnership with Trees for the Future. More than 400,000 trees have been planted to date through the program, which uses the Forest Garden Approach to restore degraded farmland with sustainable agriculture and requires its farmer cooperatives to be at least thirty percent women.

A High-Cotton Plant-Fiber DK Yarn

Most cotton-linen blends sit closer to 50/50 or 60/40. Etesia is 77% cotton and 23% linen, a deliberately higher cotton ratio that softens the hand of the yarn while keeping enough linen to carry the drape and the bloom after blocking. Cotton on its own can feel dense and heavy. Linen on its own can feel rough until it has been worn in for a long time. This blend, in this ratio, gives a yarn that is comfortable in the hand at cast-on and lived-in after the first wash.

The 275-yard, 100-gram hank is generous put-up for a hand-dyed DK. A short-sleeve summer tee runs four to six hanks across most adult sizes. Hand-dyed cotton-linen DK is uncommon in the broader yarn market, and Etesia is the only linen blend in Urth's plant-fiber catalog, which spans mercerized cotton and self-striping cotton in adjacent lines.

Specifications

• Fiber: 77% cotton, 23% linen
• Weight class: DK
• Construction: 3-ply
• Put-up: 100 gram twisted hank
• Length: 275 yards / 250 meters
• Gauge: 20 to 24 stitches per 4 In on US 4 to 7 needles (3.5 to 4.5 mm)
• Crochet hook: E-4 to G-6 (3.5 to 4.5 mm)
• Dye method: Hand-dyed, tonal semi-solid
• Origin: Hand-dyed in Turkey
• Care: Machine wash cold on a gentle cycle or hand wash, lay flat to dry, never tumble dry

What to Make With It

Etesia is built for warm-weather wear and projects where stitch definition matters. Short-sleeve summer tees, lightweight cardigans and kimonos, lace-yoke pullovers, tank tops, dressy summer cowls, mesh and string market bags, lace shawls in stitch patterns that benefit from blocked-open lace, dish towels and washcloth sets, and baby and kids' garments where machine-washable plant fiber matters.

A short-sleeve adult tee runs four to six hanks. A lightweight cardigan runs five to seven. A medium lace shawl runs two to three. A baby blanket runs five to seven. A single hank covers three to four washcloths or one small shawlette. For multi-skein projects, alternate skeins every two rows so the small hank-to-hank tonal variation evens out across the fabric.

Cotton and linen have no memory, so socks, fitted ribbed hats, dense cables, and stranded colorwork are not the right uses for this yarn.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Etesia bleed when wet?

Saturated colorways can release a little excess dye on the first wash. This is normal for hand-dyed cellulose yarn and clears with rinsing. To test before knitting, dampen a paper towel, set the hank on it for a few minutes, and check for color transfer. If a colorway runs, re-skein it loosely, soak it for thirty minutes in cool water with a touch of wool wash, rinse until the water runs clear, and dry before winding.

Should I machine wash or hand wash Etesia?

Urth labels Etesia machine wash cold on a gentle cycle, and the cotton-linen blend can handle it. For finished garments with significant time and yardage invested, hand washing in cool water with a small amount of wool wash will keep colors saturated longer and avoid the wear that comes from agitation. Either way, lay flat to dry and never tumble dry. Cotton and linen actually get stronger when wet, so blocking can be aggressive, which is the step where lace opens up and the fabric blooms.

Will Etesia feel soft against skin?

Etesia knits up crisp at first and softens noticeably with washing and wear. The 77% cotton ratio means it starts softer than a linen-dominant yarn, and the linen content is what gives the long-term softening behavior as fibers loosen and bloom. Most knitters find Etesia comfortable for tees and tank tops worn directly against skin after the first wash. If a colorway feels stiff coming out of the hank, swatch and wash the swatch before committing to the project; the post-wash hand is what you wear.