[guitarmatt]

That there is a ball of 100% Shetland yarn I picked up today. I love the stuff for its coarseness, springiness, and of course, sheepiness. I don't know if I'm ready to choose it as my favourite yet, since I just finished a pair of kilt hose inspired knee highs for my wife in bluefaced leicester which was also a joy to work with.

So what are your fav yarns and why?

[Farlander]

1). Anything my wife spins. Why? Because it was made with love.
2). Wool Superwash. Why? Because I am lazy and I do not want to have to be extra careful hand-washing a garment all the time.

[Pleater]

I have tons of yarn - that is probably literally true - once the stash exceeds a certain limit it seems to attract more - a black hole effect.

It happens with knitting machines - once you get past 20 it seems they draw in others, no matter what you do.

As for favourite - impossible to decide, blue silk, pure white acrylic, Shetland spun in oil, sock yarn with Nylon, Merino, Cashmere, Angora, mohair, cotton - each one ideal for something.

Anne the Pleater

[idyllicchick]

My favorite yarn this week is Classic Elite's Fresco. Wool, baby alpaca, and just enough angora to give it a sweet little halo. I'm working on some fair isle mittens with this right now, and they are oh so cozy!

[M. A. C. Newsome]

I think that would entirely depend on what the project is.

For making kilt hose, my wife really likes Louet Gems worsted.

[Arlen]

My wife has a lot of yarn and I couldn't say what is may favourite. I LOVE the stuff she spins and dyes herself because it is always pretty darn gorgeous.
I also really like the cotton yarn from Knit Picks that she is using to make CaptMac's Kilt hose because it is so very soft and durable.

[guitarmatt]

I'm impressed by all the hand spinners. I'd love to try that at some point, but I think I'll wait until I've got a bit more knitting experience under my belt. Actually, you can get shetland ewes for about 50 quid a head, and I think you'd get about 5 or 6 pairs of hose a shearing out of one of them.

In all seriousness, I'm trying to find a good British wool to use as by go-to wool for socks. Like a lot of people right now, I'd like to figure out how to spend my money locally, and something about using wool from a single breed appeals to me for some reason.

[ThinBlueLine]

Hey all,

My wife is allergic to wool and, in general, does not like it. She has found a fantastic cotton yarn company whose factory is only around an hour away from our house.

[guitarmatt]

So cotton sock yarn has come up a few times now, maybe I should try it out. I've heard that it doesn't have the stretch of wool and doesn't block as well, so funny stitches stay funny even after washing and drying. Opinions, those of you with experience?

Originally Posted by ThinBlueLine

Hey all,

My wife is allergic to wool and, in general, does not like it. She has found a fantastic cotton yarn company whose factory is only around an hour away from our house.

I've spent a lot of time in western North Carolina, my grandmother actually just sold her house in Pisgah Forest to move into town. So if I were to order from them perhaps I could still count it as buying local.

[piperdbh]

The aforementioned cotton yarn company is about 20 minutes from my house. If anyone would like me to be a "yarn tester", I'd be glad to go there and get some of their yarns for you.