Yarn fibers I've tried (Ones I love... and ones I love even more!)
A breakdown of different yarn fibers
All opinions, observations and statements are my own and all yarn was purchased by me.
Baby Alpaca:
Yes, yes and all the yes! I will raise all the alpacas, give them snacks, treat them so well, give them 100,000 prizes… let’s start an alpaca farm! This yarn is so amazing, it’s incredibly soft. I can’t get over what a dream cloud this yarn is- exact words I said out loud "dream cloud.“ This stuff is IN-CRED-I-BLE. I am currently knitting a scarf with this yarn and I love the fabric it creates and way it’s turning out. However, I have heard that alpaca is very draped and stretches when worn so I’ve been cautioned against making a garment with it because overtime it will likely become very oversized and stray from its original measurements.
Wool and the Gang Baby Alpaca
Baby alpaca yarns I’ve worked with:
Wool and the Gang Sugar Baby Alpaca
“Baby alpaca fibres are taken from the neck and nape of the animal, most often from the first shearing of an alpaca/ This gives the softest, most beautiful fibre the animal is likely to produce. Ours comes from populations bred in the Andean Highlands, making their wool extremely strong, elastic, soft and fine. It's hypoallergenic and its thermal properties make it the best yarn for babies.”
LionBrand LB Collection Baby Alpaca
This skein of yarn is about 20 yards more and generally more affordable than the Wool and the Gang option. Softness wise, I’m holding one in each hand right now and I would say they’re about the same. However, I’ve tried and tried to research where the alpacas (and other animals) LionBrand sources from are raised and I can’t find anything on how they’re treated or where they’re from …so this deters me from purchasing this yarn again.
Peruvian wool
Peruvian wool, like other natural wools I’ve worked with, looks very luxurious knitted up. I can definitely see the difference, even in pictures, between an accessory knitted with this wool and synthetic fibers. Plus, I like that it isn’t superwash so I can felt the ends together together easily and not have so many ends to weave in. On the other hand, though, that means you have to be even more careful when washing it because it cannot be put in the washing machine.
Peruvian wool yarns I’ve worked with:
We Are Knitters, The Petite Wool
100% natural wool from the Andean Highlands
Super wash merino wool
The great thing about super wash merino wool is that it is machine washable. Personally, I like the idea that super wash wool can be put in the washing machine, but I’m still too worried about my precious knits that I haven’t tested it out yet.
Superwash merino yarns I’ve worked with:
Wool and the Gang’s Super Trouper Wool
I liked working with this yarn and it was just as soft as other wool I’ve tried so far!
“This low maintenance yarn is easy to care for, soft to the touch, and 100% merino. Merino’ll keep you cool when it’s hot, and cosy when it’s nippy. It’s biodegradable and renewable too.” - Wool and the Gang website
Indie-dyed superwash merino wool
I truly enjoy working with super wash merino and the fact that it’s washable gives me a feeling of safety just in case I mess anything up, it’s definitely more durable than non super wash wool! Indie-dyed yarn means that this wool is sourced by an independent yarn dyer then dyed in their studio with their own dye recipe in small batches to create unique yarn colors and variations.
Cotton
Very lightweight and I can definitely see myself using cotton for summer knits and potentially some kitchen goods since it soaks up water so easily and/or bags since there’s no stretch to it!
Wool and the Gang Billie Jean Yarn
Echoview Fiber Mill Lanyard Cotton
Cotton Yarns i’ve worked with:
Wool and the Gang Billie Jean yarn
I LOVE this yarn because it’s 100% upcycled! The particular yarn color I chose is created from 80% upcycled cotton and 20% upcycled denim. Because it is a blend of cotton and denim, there are no chemicals or dyes and uses each fiber’s natural colors, which thus saves water since there is no dying process. This particular yarn is a little splitty to work with, but I'd definitely still use it again, likely for personal garments.
Echoview Fiber Mill Lanyard and Lanyard Lite
As a knitter, I appreciate that this yarn is available in both bulky and light worsted weights. I’ve found it tricky to find heavier cotton yarn so this is perfect for me! Plus it comes on a one pound cone (which makes it pretty economical).
In line with my mission to source ethical and eco-friendly fibers, this initiative drives Echoview Fiber Mill as well and I’ve learned a good deal from the resources on their website. I feel confident supporting a fellow business that puts ethical sourcing, fair pay and eco-friendly resources first!
“Made with domestically sourced organic cotton, this yarn is made on an old fashioned shoelace machine.” - Echoview Fiber Mill website
Wool and the Gang Jersey Be Good yarn
This yarn is made from t-shirt offcuts in a Turkish t-shirt factory and instead of scraps ending up in the landfill, they’re upcycled into this unique yarn!
This t-shirt yarn is very sturdy and I’ve found it very reliable to design and make sturdy objects like baskets and hot pads with it. The 98% cotton within the yarn means its machine washable, which makes it a great feature for these kitchen and living knit accessories.
One note is that I have noticed that the outer sections of the skeins are thicker, whereas once you get to the inside of the skein, the yarn weight is a good deal thinner. I have chosen to work with this for the most part as this is what makes t-shirt yarn so unique, but when it becomes too thin, I move to another part of the ball or set that yarn aside for a separate project.
“This upcycled yarn is made from fabric officuts swept up in Turkish t-shirt factories. Why send them off to a landfill when we can work with the locals to turn them into our Jersey Be Good yarn?” - Wool and the Gang website
Baskets created from Wool and the Gang Jersey Be Good yarn (upcycled t-shirt yarn)
Custom beanie made from Wool and the Gang New Wave Yarn (50% cotton, 50% recycled plastic water bottles)
Are you sensing a trend yet that I’m a big fan of one particular yarn company’s fibers? I have loved working with Wool and the Gang thus far because they seem truly genuine in their fight for creating sustainable and eco-friendly yarns. And their customer service is excellent!
New Wave Yarn is 50% cotton and 50% recycled water bottles found from pollution in the oceans and on beaches. In fact, there’s 3 plastic water bottles in EACH skein! I love this ideas, upcycling something that was once litter and repurposing it into this wonderful yarn! I created a beanie for my sister in this year and I loved working with it. It definitely creates a lighter fabric than I would usually use for a beanie, but she wanted one that was lightweight, so this was perfect!
I would probably call this a worsted or aran weight yarn, which is little too thin for me to use for EB Knits, but I definitely will use it for my own personal garments, especially summer ones!
Lyocell
Lycocell is a rather new fabric to me, one I’ve discovered as I’ve researched more eco-friendly fibers. It’s actually a manmade material from wood cellulose or pulp, which is easily harvested from managed tree farms. Lyocell is naturally biodegradable and the production of lyocell doesn’t produce any harmful byproducts. (This is why it holds an advantage over other plant-based fibers like rayon or viscose from bamboo, for example- because in those cases, the process of transforming it from bamboo into the material, is actually harmful. Thus I have chosen to avoid rayon and viscose materials.) There is actually a website all about lyocell (sometimes called TENCEL), which you can check out here if you’re interested in learning more. The website also does a great job of breaking down exactly why lyocell is great of the environment. In brief, lyocell and the process to transform it into fiber is non toxic, pesticide-free, recyclable, and takes less water and energy than other fibers.
Lyocell yarns i’ve worked with:
Wool and the Gang Tina Tape Yarn
“It’s made from eucalyptus tree fibre using renewable energy – double win. And wait for it, this softer-than silk, cooler-than-linen flat tape yarn’s vegan and uses no nasty chemicals either.” - Wool and the Gang website
I knit up a swatch to see for myself how this fiber feels when it’s knit up and, wow, it is wonderful. After blocking (washing), I’m head over heels with this fiber and will post a photo once I’ve knit an entire project in it!
Acrylic
I have decided to completely eliminate acrylic fibers from all EB Knits products. Every listing includes the materials for each knit accessory, so if you see any with acrylic fibers, these are the very last products in this yarn I will be offering.
I wish I would have known about other options when I first started knitting, but I genuinely had no idea and just walked into Michael’s and purchased the cheapest yarn I could find. I’ll give it its props in that it’s definitely machine washable (tried and tested by me more than a few times), but honestly I just love the look of other fibers knitted up more and their environmental effects are so worth it to me to spend the extra money on. If you’re learning to knit, grab a couple skeins for yourself from your local Michael’s or Joann’s if you like, but I went totally overboard initially buying skeins and skeins of this stuff, and in hindsight I wish I would have taken more time to try more fibers and brands!
