ITO Gima 8.5 (Cotton Tape Yarn)

Grab this one while you can! The Japanese mill that makes ITO Gima 8.5 is closing, which means the colours you see here are the only colours we're able to get. Once they're gone, they're gone.

And we're particularly pleased to have found Gima because it's a fantastic alternative to the now almost-impossible-to-find Isager Japansk Bomuld.

Like Japansk Bomuld, Gima is a 100% cotton yarn with a wonderfully unusual flat, tape-like construction. Rather than producing a fluffy or traditionally spun cotton fabric, it creates something beautifully clean, crisp and contemporary, with fantastic stitch definition and a light, papery feel.

We love this yarn for summer tops, lightweight sweaters, tees, vests, scarves, bags and warm-weather accessories. The cotton will keep you cool, while that distinctive construction gives even very simple knitting loads of texture and character, which softens considerably after washing.

(Gima is finer than Japansk Bomuld –-you get a whopping 212m from just 25g – so it isn't a completely identical substitution. JB is 315m per 50g. So approximately 35% less metreage for the same weight. Do make a swatch if you're substituting it into a pattern written specifically for Japansk Bomuld.)

It's also extremely versatile. ITO designed Gima to be used either singly or with multiple strands held together, so you can completely change the weight and character of the resulting fabric depending on what you're making.

And since this is ITO, the fun really starts when you combine it with another yarn. Try it with Kinu for a textural silk/cotton fabric, or add Sensai for a gorgeous soft, almost 3D fabric.

ITO's gauge tables also pair Gima with Kinu at several different tensions, so there's loads of scope for playing with fabric and gauge and needle sizes.

Have a nose through what other knitters and crocheters have made with it here on Ravelry.

Important: because the mill producing Gima is closing, we cannot order the usual full ITO colour range. The shades currently listed on this page are all that are available to us, and are selling out fast.