Saturday, May 26, 2007

What kind of yarn is everyone using?

Just wondering what kind of yarn everyone is using, and what they think of it. I'm sure there's posts on this, but not in all one spot. For my first ripple I used wool-ease thick and quick, and I love the softness, how fast it works up and it drapes really well. Discuss!!

10 comments:

mama k said...

I'm using Red Heart Soft 'cause it's cheap and washable, but much much softer than Super Saver. I also really like the deep, rich colors it comes in. Guacamole green is my favorite one. : )

Freda said...

I just bought a lot of Red Heart Soft. I was going to use Caron Simply Soft Brites, but I didn't like the feel and it seemed too shiny.

But when I began winding the Red Heart Soft into balls, the first skein had so many long runs where one of the plies was tangled and bunched up that the skein is unusuable. There also were several knots. I wound three more skeins without these problems, then another with a knot and a run of bunched up ply.

Is this typical of Red Heart Soft? Or did I just get unlucky.

mama k said...

hmm... I haven't had any problems with unusable yarn and I've used this yarn for other projects before. I don't rewind the skeins though. That doesn't seem right to me. Bummer that that happened to you!

Dorothy said...

I mostly use Red Heart yarns. I go with whatever color scheme suits my fancy at the moment, whats on sale, and I make sure it's washable and dryer safe. I'm alergic to wool anyway, so I stick to acrylic. I haven't worked with cotton yarn yet, someday I will. Right now I'm using sport weight, or soft baby yarn for a baby blanket. I like the Caron Siply Soft but its not twisted tightly and I have to watch what I'm doing.

charlotte narunsky said...

You have such great yarns in America - and they seem to be such good value. In the UK anything cheap is alas also pretty nasty. I feel a buying trip coming on...

Kindra | Love & Adventure said...

I am using Knitpicks Swish Superwash. It is crocheting up soft and fluffy!

-Pam L- said...

Freda,
Did you try to use the RH Soft from inside the skein ? If so..that's part of the trouble. I find that one needs to be used from the outside of the skein. ~sigh~

Dorthy,
I hear many say their SS splits.. I believe the problem can be averted by using a Clover soft touch hook...if you look at the 'pointy end' of the hooks.. you will see the difference..the Clover is rounded.
I taught myself to crochet this last year.. using SS and the Clover hook.. no problems for me.. attempted the same with other hooks and had trouble. So.. that's my guess.

As far as acrylic yarns... I'm allergy girl and which ever afghan I'm using during the week must take a trip though the washer and dryer on Sunday.. so acrylic it is. Darn it.. you folks that can use wool have so many more colors to pick from. :(

I go through a LOT of yarn.. and expect one or two joins in each skein.. knots have been eliminated by learning how to pull the yarn from the skein 'just so' ...each brand is slightly different.
Once in awhile I get a frustrating skein, but not often...so I don't stress about it.. I got what I paid for ya know. ;)

Good luck Mama K.. I bet you have already found it's getting easier..as you have learned a bit more about RH soft skeins due to experience. You will enjoy the final product , wash-ability and price.

~Molly~ said...

I'm using Fantasy by Dark Horse Yarns, a 50/50 nylon/acrylic blend for my first ripple, in several colors. Baby Bee and a Red Heart sport weight for my second one, in a pale purple, green, yellow and pink ombre(the BB) with the RH being a lemony yellow. I don't have pics of the second one yet.

I had never heard of RH Soft before I bought a ball at a neighbor's garage sale, it is SO NICE! I don't get out to the Michaels craft store often, most of my yarn has come from Hobby Lobby or a specialty yarn shop out of state(where my parents live).

sabrina said...

I'm using Caron Simply Soft -- the first time I've used it, actually -- and although I was initially pretty skeptical, I actually like it a lot! More than Red Heart Super Saver. It seems to be a bit splitty, but not so much as the SS, and it's far softer and nicer to work with right out of the skein. So that's my vote. :)

Opal said...

I'm using Caron Simply Soft and I like the shine and it's soft texture. I'm using a Clover Soft Touch hook and the yarn hasn't been splitty at all.

For my next blanket I'm going to be using Patons Canadiana. It's a little pricier, but I like it better then Red Heart. It doesn't squeak as much and it just feels softer.