Chat Back for November 13

Responding to comments left since the last time I did Chat Back.

Judy S. asked . . .

So would you knit the last sweater in a softer/lighter wt. yarn? I've had my eye on that pattern (Vines and Leaves from the May issue of Creative Knitting) and am curious.

It's a lovely pattern and I take total responsibility for my failure with it. At the time I started it, I was distracted with life's challenges and didn't take proper care with planning and taking notes on my changes.

Looking at the picture, I see two gottchas for inexperienced or distracted knitters in a hurry to cast on.

The bottom edge of the sweater is going to end up in a wave. In order for it to fall naturally without puckering the cast on needs to be way looser than normal.

Giving the designer the benefit of the doubt, the neckline was intended to have the three clasps in order for it to lay nice. To wear the sweater without the clasps, it's probably going to be necessary to redesign the neck opening.

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Shirley asked . . .

Too bad your brother wants a different color. What will you do with the Midnight Blue socks?

Sorry my post was not clear about this.

I bought two skeins of After Midnight yarn thinking I'd make a pair for brother Dave and a pair for his SO Karen. The socks on the needles are for Karen. She always asks for dark socks and dark they are!

Dave wears mostly black and likes bright socks for leisure wear, so I wasn't surprised when he requested something more colorful. I have no immediate plans for the leftover After Midnight, but I'm not sorry to have it in my stash.

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Kathy C. asked . . .

Could you give me your opinions of Cotlin, Comfy, and Shine lines of yarn.

Comfy, Worsted weight. 75% Pima cotton, 25% acrylic.



June 2008 I finished a sweater knit with Comfy. Details here.

October 2008, after the sweater had been washed three times, I wrote a favorable yarn review:

I just washed this sweater for the third time in a regular warm machine load and threw it in the dryer with all its washer mates. It's looking great.

At the end of a dryer cycle, it is still damp while everything else is totally dry. I grab it up and spread it flat to finish drying, being careful not to let it sit and wrinkle in the dryer.

There is no pilling, no stretching, and no shrinking.

One word (or maybe more) of warning: Other knitters have reported Comfy pilling and/or stretching. I attribute my results to knitting at 5.5 stitches/inch in stockinette, a nice firm fabric for this worsted weight yarn.

Also, don't pick a pattern where elasticity is important. Comfy is 75% cotton and acts like a cotton yarn except it's lighter in weight, softer, and easier on the hands while knitting.

That was the last nice thing I said about this yarn.



Knitting tight may have postponed the pilling and fuzzing, but it didn't prevent it. I would never use this yarn again for anything, especially baby and children's wear that needs to be washed vigorously and often.

Cotlin, 70% Tanguis Cotton, 30% Linen. DK weight.



Cotlin is my favorite cotton blend yarn of all time.

I've been wearing and washing the Lighthouse Gansey (more pictures and info here) for a year now. It's comfortable to wear, washes great, no pilling, no shrinking, no growing.

Like all cotton blends, it's a bit hard on the hands to knit. I limited my knitting to not more than two inches an evening to avoid finger/wrist/shoulder fatigue.

The yarn is heavy and I've been disappointed with how it seams. A skilled seamer maybe could do better? The Lighthouse Gansey has no seams, just picked up stitches.

Shine, 60% pima cotton, 40% model



Almost five years ago I knit this sweater with Shine. (Details here.)

What I remember is that I knit a large swatch and the after washing row gauge was different from the before washing gauge. I thought I allowed for this difference in the sweater, but it still turned out a bit shorter than I like so I hardly ever wear it.

It's in good shape. No pilling or fuzzing. The fabric is a bit drapy like one might expect with 40% model. Great for something loose and lacy. I wouldn't use it for a stockinette or knit/purl project.