Sample Skeins for October

When I subscribed to Elann Sample Skeins, one of my goals was to knit up each sample skein, including yarn I would never dream of buying. Because who knows? I might fall in love with a yarn that I otherwise never would have tried. Or, in short, I wanted to experiment a little and expand my yarn exposure.

The following are my impressions of the October sample skeins. These are NOT comprehensive yarn reviews. They are my opinions reflecting my personal preferences and prejudices.

These swatches have not been washed.

Rowan Classic Yarns Soft Lux.
64% Extra Fine Merino Wool, 24% Nylon, 10% Angora, 2% Metallic Fibre. Worsted weight. Swatch knit on #7 needle. My gauge: 4.2 stitches/inch, 6 rows/inch.

This is not a blurry picture. The yarn is super soft and has the appearance of handspun.

The metallic thread is subtle. It looks like little twinkles in the swatch.

Nice yarn but I find the available colors to be blah. If it was available in red (thinking Christmas sweater) I'd be tempted.


Needful Yarns Filtes King Extra Stampato
100% Australian Merino. Aran weight. Swatch knit on #7 needle. My gauge: 5 stitches/inch, 7 rows/inch.

Nice yarn with short color repeats. It's soft, smooth to knit, and all the colorways are appealing.

I'd love to buy some, but can't rationalize it. Any sweater knit with this multicolored yarn would look best in stockinette, and I prefer knitting stitch patterns. It would be fun to have some for charity knitting, but I have several years worth of charity knitting stash to use up and don't want to get distracted from that goal.

It doesn't go on sale until October 14. Maybe I'll think of a reason to buy some before then.


Needful Yarns Filtes King Extra.
100% Australian Merino. Swatch knit on #7 needle. My gauge: 5 stitches/inch, 7 rows/inch.

Same yarn in gorgeous colors, some of them very bright.

Same thoughts. I wouldn't mind having some of this yarn.


Araucania Copihue.
100% Super Fine Alpaca. Bulky Weight. Swatch knit on #10 needle. My gauge: 4 stitches/inch. Not enough yarn to measure row gauge.

If someone handed me this swatch and told me to guess the fiber content, I would guess wool. And, when they told me the swatch is 100% super fine alpaca, I would argue with them.

Maybe it will get softer when washed, but it's not soft now. I want my alpaca soft and cuddly while knitting as well as after knitting. Not even tempted to buy this yarn.