Saturday, April 28, 2018

Sock Yarn Review, v 12

1. KnitPicks Hawthorne - I used the "tonal handpaint" colourway. I was hoping that this yarn would be a "budget" version of Woolen Rabbit Pearl, and it some ways, it is that. At half the price, it certainly is "budget".... The yarn base is nice - not merino, so not as soft as Stroll - with a nice tight ply and lots of boing, so I find it pleasant to knit with. The dye job is not as nice as Woolen Rabbit - the colourways are not as subtle and it stripes in short sections. I think that it's probably not suitable for complex texture designs (like cables) because the colours are overpowering. I've seen other reviewers complain about excessive colour bleeding, but I have not had any issues. I will have to see how this yarn holds up in the long run.

2. Drops Fabel - this is a very popular European sock yarn that I have now finally found a local-ish source for. The colour selection is huge. It's superwash wool (not merino) at 410m/100g, and feels pretty close to Regia, although a little harsher and a bit splittier to knit with. It has an excellent price point! Again, will have to see how this holds up through the laundry.

3. H&W Comfort-Wolle sock wool (uni colours) - got this online from a retailer in Ontario; it's not a common yarn. But, very very nice, right up there with Regia. I'm pumped to see how this will handle repeated laundering; if it's good it will be a close contender to Regia!

4. Not sure if this qualifies as a sock yarn, but I've been knitting a project with KnitPicks Stroll Gradient. Yeah....no. Not something I'd knit socks with - the gradient isn't really a gradient - the colour changes are too abrupt. Also, some of the colours stripe/pool during parts of the "gradient". And then there's the fact that it's Stroll - a yarn I am starting to like less and less...

I have recently found an amazing online source for sock yarn: Wool Warehouse. This outfit is based in the UK but shipping to my front door is a flat-rate $CD7, which is f*&*ing cheap, folks! Not to mention that the yarn price is amazingly low! I looooove their selection of Y-chromosome friendly Euro sock yarns.

So, a few days ago, this showed up on my doorstep:

[a crapton of sock yarn, in a lovely organza bag!]

Love the yarn. Love the bag! Can't wait to get started!



2 comments:

  1. I like to order yarn at WoolWarehouse too. The choice, prices and services are wonderful !

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  2. I am new to sock knitting and after trying four types of needles have settled into magic loop and happy! But there are so many “sock” yarns and I dont need to waste money on bad ones. I want a yarn that won’t split easily, is soft yet cushy, offers different yarn weights within the type and possibly a manufacturer type which offers an added strength fibre for enhanced wear in heel area. Id even be up to switching the yarn type to the enhanced yarn in the herls and toe area when knitting. Could anyone recommend the best yarn makes so I can research them?

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