One of the first yarns that you will encounter when you start crocheting will undoubtedly be acrylic. Acrylic is great because generally you can wash whatever you make just like you would any other garment you own. It's soft, easy to work with, more affordable and comes in a variety of weights and colours. If you need help understanding how to read a yarn label to find the weight of the yarn you can click here. Acrylic is a great yarn to start with and there are tons of options. I'm going to start a short series about acrylic yarn. I will be giving a quick overview of four popular choices today. Despite the fact that these are all acrylic yarns, they are not all the same.
*** Please remember these are my opinions and I'm not being endorsed nor am I a professional. The best
way to find a yarn you like to is to try different ones. ***
way to find a yarn you like to is to try different ones. ***
Red Heart
Red Heart has some amazing worsted weight yarns out there. Plus, Red Heart is one of the more affordable and most prominent yarns that you will come across. Today I'm going to focus on only 2 yarns otherwise this post would consist only of Red Heart.
Red Heart has some amazing worsted weight yarns out there. Plus, Red Heart is one of the more affordable and most prominent yarns that you will come across. Today I'm going to focus on only 2 yarns otherwise this post would consist only of Red Heart.
Super Saver
If you are part of a crochet group on Facebook or you follow people on Twitter then you will sometimes come across "RHSS" this is the type of yarn that the person is referring to. Red Heart Super Saver, get it? A huge, and I mean huge, number of people buy this yarn and absolutely love it. It has some great characteristics like it's one of the least expensive, you get a ton in a ball and when you wash it, it comes out super soft and snuggly.
I have used it before and I have to agree that you do get a ton and it is cheap but ultimately you get what you pay for. I find it a lot scratchier than other acrylic yarns but it has a nice weight. Sometimes I find that it's starchier than other yarns when the project is finished. Apparently, though I've never tried it, you can put the ball of yarn in a washing sack (think bra bag), wash it before use and it becomes nice and soft. This is a great yarn for big projects like afghans. My mother in law made a blanket about 30 years ago and it still looks great, feels soft and washes up like a rag. Keep in mind that it can pill as a result of washing.
If you are part of a crochet group on Facebook or you follow people on Twitter then you will sometimes come across "RHSS" this is the type of yarn that the person is referring to. Red Heart Super Saver, get it? A huge, and I mean huge, number of people buy this yarn and absolutely love it. It has some great characteristics like it's one of the least expensive, you get a ton in a ball and when you wash it, it comes out super soft and snuggly.
I have used it before and I have to agree that you do get a ton and it is cheap but ultimately you get what you pay for. I find it a lot scratchier than other acrylic yarns but it has a nice weight. Sometimes I find that it's starchier than other yarns when the project is finished. Apparently, though I've never tried it, you can put the ball of yarn in a washing sack (think bra bag), wash it before use and it becomes nice and soft. This is a great yarn for big projects like afghans. My mother in law made a blanket about 30 years ago and it still looks great, feels soft and washes up like a rag. Keep in mind that it can pill as a result of washing.
Soft
This is, in my humble opinion, Red Heart's answer to soft yarns out there. I love this yarn and I use it frequently. It's more expensive and you get less than Super Saver but it's a lot nicer to work with. Plus, if you're like me, you're constantly checking to see what yarn is on sale and that's when I get it.
I love this yarn for slippers, shawls, sweaters, scarves... basically anything you're going to be wearing. The weight on it is great. It may pill when washed so you have to keep that in mind. I myself have never washed this yarn before. I made a beautiful shawl out of it and I love how it draped and it really laid nicely.
This is, in my humble opinion, Red Heart's answer to soft yarns out there. I love this yarn and I use it frequently. It's more expensive and you get less than Super Saver but it's a lot nicer to work with. Plus, if you're like me, you're constantly checking to see what yarn is on sale and that's when I get it.
I love this yarn for slippers, shawls, sweaters, scarves... basically anything you're going to be wearing. The weight on it is great. It may pill when washed so you have to keep that in mind. I myself have never washed this yarn before. I made a beautiful shawl out of it and I love how it draped and it really laid nicely.
Hobby Lobby
I Love This Yarn!
I'm from Canada and currently there are no Hobby Lobby's in Canada. I first got interested when my American crochet friends started talking about it in a Facebook group. You can order over the phone if you want to have it shipped to you. In my case, I have a family member who is a transport driver and I asked if he'd be willing to pick me up a couple skeins to try it out. He brought me home 12 balls of yarn!!!! I basically did a huge happy dance.
As I was feeling it I noticed that it is really soft. For us Canadians, think Bernat Super Saver but softer and more of it. The ball has an enormous amount of yarn on it and it's really inexpensive. It was great to work with and had a beautiful drape to it. I made a cowl with it and it turned out really nicely. I can't say for certain whether or not it will pill but the weight was perfect. If you're in Canada and live near a border or know someone who goes to the US often I recommend giving this yarn a try.
I'm from Canada and currently there are no Hobby Lobby's in Canada. I first got interested when my American crochet friends started talking about it in a Facebook group. You can order over the phone if you want to have it shipped to you. In my case, I have a family member who is a transport driver and I asked if he'd be willing to pick me up a couple skeins to try it out. He brought me home 12 balls of yarn!!!! I basically did a huge happy dance.
As I was feeling it I noticed that it is really soft. For us Canadians, think Bernat Super Saver but softer and more of it. The ball has an enormous amount of yarn on it and it's really inexpensive. It was great to work with and had a beautiful drape to it. I made a cowl with it and it turned out really nicely. I can't say for certain whether or not it will pill but the weight was perfect. If you're in Canada and live near a border or know someone who goes to the US often I recommend giving this yarn a try.
Caron
Simply Soft
Caron does a great job on softness with this yarn. It's very soft, you get quite a bit but it is a bit more expensive than the other yarns. I also find that it is sheerer and as a result the weight is a bit lighter than the other yarns I've talked about today. I have substituted Caron for DK (double knit or '3' weight) yarn in some patterns and adjusted my hook size accordingly to complete a project. I find that I prefer my Bates hooks when using Caron Simply Soft because it grabs the yarn better when I hook it and it doesn't separate the strands.
I love this yarn for delicate projects like prayer shawls. It's a bit lighter than the other worsted weight yarns so it has a really nice drape to it. I did notice that it was a yarn that I had to get used to using. The first time I tried I got very frustrated with it. I also use a yarn guide with this yarn. This is a ring that I wear on the index finger of my yarn hand to avoid having a line across my finger that can get sore.
I will continue with this topic and look at three more yarns. Stay Tuned!
Your turn:
What's your favourite or least favourite yarn to work with?
Caron does a great job on softness with this yarn. It's very soft, you get quite a bit but it is a bit more expensive than the other yarns. I also find that it is sheerer and as a result the weight is a bit lighter than the other yarns I've talked about today. I have substituted Caron for DK (double knit or '3' weight) yarn in some patterns and adjusted my hook size accordingly to complete a project. I find that I prefer my Bates hooks when using Caron Simply Soft because it grabs the yarn better when I hook it and it doesn't separate the strands.
I love this yarn for delicate projects like prayer shawls. It's a bit lighter than the other worsted weight yarns so it has a really nice drape to it. I did notice that it was a yarn that I had to get used to using. The first time I tried I got very frustrated with it. I also use a yarn guide with this yarn. This is a ring that I wear on the index finger of my yarn hand to avoid having a line across my finger that can get sore.
I will continue with this topic and look at three more yarns. Stay Tuned!
Your turn:
What's your favourite or least favourite yarn to work with?