Stitchboard Admin message #2
Re: If you could only...
September 15, 2013 at 3:49:29 AM  (in response to kamiekirk message #1)
 
Oooh, that's a nice yarn!    Love the colors!

I would pick Lopi.  I fell in love with Lopi when my oldest, dearest friend went on a student exchange to Germany when we were in high school.  She had a stopover at the Keflavik airport (in Iceland).  She brought home a catalog with GORGEOUS pictures of sweaters, and I signed up for more catalogs, which I received until I moved.  All of those sweaters were made with Lopi.

When I started learning about knitting, I found Lopi was available in yarn shops!  It was like having Iceland right there. 

Lopi is a lovely thick, warm yarn, which works up quickly, and is usually available in many different colors.  When I first started working with it, I could only find browns, grays, beiges, etc.  Then they started becoming available in colors.  The heathery colors are my favorites!

It does have an oily texture, but that's nice for cold, wet weather, as it easily repels water. 

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BetwixtTheStitch message #3
Re: If you could only...
September 15, 2013 at 9:38:17 AM  (in response to kamiekirk message #1)
 
That's a really hard one! I love the Simply Soft for some projects, like the baby things I'm working on.
On the other hand the toys I enjoy making really need something a bit "stiffer" like Red Heart.
Also, finding a good selection of colors locally is a major issue. Seems Red Heart wins in that arena.
I use Super Saver to teach with because it's inexpensive for my students.
Being able to see and touch the yarn before I buy it is extremely important to me, so based on all the criteria it would have to be Red Heart .

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Stitchboard Admin message #4
Re: If you could only...
September 15, 2013 at 4:52:03 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #3)
 
Sherry,

I definitely agree about using Simply Soft for baby blankets and such.  Though I did once try to make a bunting with it...ugh, had to scrap the entire project, because the Simply Soft wouldn't hold the shape.    It was a very decorative knit stitch and it looked gorgeus, but it was an old, old pattern, meant for a Red Heart type of acrylic.  Back when I got the pattern, I had actually made a baby bunting out of Red Heart acrylic.  There was no Simply Soft back then, so there was no alternative.

Pet beds and soft toys need something stronger like Red Heart, so I agree with you there, too.  A soft toy won't be likely to hold its shape with Simply Soft, and neither will a pet bed.    It's a shame, because I love the feel of it!

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BetwixtTheStitch message #5
Re: If you could only...
September 16, 2013 at 9:23:02 AM  (in response to Stitchboard Admin message #4)
 
Yes Melanie, I have been playing with the cables in the Simply Soft. I want to make a cabled baby sweater, the cables themselves are coming out nice and neat, they just don't have the definition I'd like. It could be my technique, but I think it's probably that the yarn just doesn't have the "body" for it.

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Stitchboard Admin message #6
Re: If you could only...
September 16, 2013 at 5:26:11 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #5)
 
Sherry,

I'm 100% positive it's not your technique.  That yarn is wonderful, particularly for baby items, but it does not hold a cable pattern or anything else that needs substance.  It broke my heart to have to go away from the baby bunting pattern I loved so much, but it simply wouldn't cooperate...it was too flimsy for the pattern. 

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BetwixtTheStitch message #7
Re: If you could only...
September 17, 2013 at 9:27:27 AM  (in response to Stitchboard Admin message #6)
 
Well you are right, Melanie. Before the book came, I tried my same technique with Red Heart and got the exact results I was looking for.
The cables look ok for a baby sweater, so I'm going ahead with the project.
I had planned to make a matching hat, however now I wonder if the hat should be just TKS.
What do you think?

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Stitchboard Admin message #8
Re: If you could only...
September 17, 2013 at 11:12:25 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #7)
 
Sherry,

I'm not surprised the Red Heart yarn gave better results.  It doesn't have as nice of a feel to it, unfortunately, so you have to decide between softness vs the yarn holding a pattern.    Now, if they could invent a yarn that does both, it would be perfect!

I'm glad the cables look okay for the sweater! 

I think a TKS hat would go nicely with a cabled sweater.  IMO, you don't always have to use the "same" stitch throughout for a set.  Though if you want to tie it together, is there a way you can include a cable or two on the hat "with" the TKS?  I'm guessing (just a guess!) the TKS may help shore up the hat enough that any cables will be a bit more prominent. 

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BetwixtTheStitch message #9
Re: If you could only...
September 18, 2013 at 8:33:52 AM  (in response to Stitchboard Admin message #8)
 
Hi Melanie, after some more playing around I found that 6 stitch cables did well in the Simply Soft mint color, if not in the turquoise.
An issue I've noticed with all brands of yarn, they can be the same weight and line, but some colors act differently.
So the set will be done in the mint.

The plan is to make a stocking hat with cables and try fpsc for the ribbing, we'll see how that turns out .

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Stitchboard Admin message #10
Re: If you could only...
September 18, 2013 at 3:31:13 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #9)
 
Sherry,

That's interesting, because I've also found variations of sturdiness in different colors of Simply Soft!  I simply assumed it was my imagination. 

You're so right about colors acting differently, and in my experience, it's been the most noticeable in the Simply Soft.  Love that mint color, BTW.  I use that often for baby things.  When I first started making baby items years ago, I used the standard yellow...but I got tired of it.  I'm not a huge fan of green...we don't generally get along, LOL...but mint green and I have an understanding.  It doesn't step too far out of line and turn into some icky, sickly shade, and I'll use it for making different things (not just baby items). 

The stocking hat sounds really cute!  I hope you'll post some pics when you're done! 

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BetwixtTheStitch message #11
Re: If you could only...
September 19, 2013 at 9:45:57 AM  (in response to Stitchboard Admin message #10)
 
Melanie,
It's not your imagination, I have found the same issue with most brands of acrylic yarn and have come to the conclusion that it might be the way the fibers take in the different dye pigments.

I generally prefer to use brighter colors than the standard baby pastels, however my granddaughter loves the mint and turquoise.
When I was asking her about colors she kept saying "it's totally up to you, yellow would drive me crazy though" or "daddy says no purple, but it's up to you" .

I'm working the patterns out as I go, so I'll want feedback anyway, even if it turns out to be a wash .

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Stitchboard Admin message #12
Re: If you could only...
September 19, 2013 at 7:20:34 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #11)
 
Sherry,

I'm sure you're right about the fibers taking the pigments differently...one of the Simply Soft colors that I noticed didn't seem to be all that soft at all was a variegated one...likely one of the "paints."  It was gorgeous...but pretty rough.  Which would make sense if there was perhaps a different process to make a variegated "take" the color.  Or perhaps the darker colors (what this rougher yarn was) and pastels somehow work differently.

I also love the brighter colors...I'm especially love jewel tones.  Of course, when it comes to baby stuff, sigh, some people get this idea that there are only "certain" colors of which they'll approve.

Someone I know made a baby blanket out of a gorgeous variegated yarn...I don't remember which yarn or the exact colors, but it had a combination of something like greens and yellows and a small bit of a salmony pink.  I felt it was perfect for a baby item where the sex of the baby was unknown.  Luckily, the person for whom she was making it was okay with the colors, but the women giving the baby shower expressed displeasure because there was that tiny bit of pink in it.  Like, who cares?  It's not as if the baby, if it turns out to be a boy, is going to know what the pink means, and it's not like it was the predominant color, either!  Some people really need to chill out about inconsesquential things.

I would definitely stick with what your daughter said.  Unlike the above, that's kind of her call, not the choice of other people dictating terms!  It seems yellow these days can annoy people terribly, and not everyone goes for purple. 

I love what you've done so far...I don't think it's a wash at all!  I think the hat is going to be absolutely perfect with the sweater! 

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