cant find the yarn with colours i would like?

[joulesb]

im trying to find a nice yarn that will work well for knitted and/ or crochet blankets.

ive so far being using stylecraft dk which is an acrylic but the colour range isnt as wide as i would like.

i discovered biggan merino 8ply which looks yummy but could cost an awful lot for blankets.

then i found knitpicks palette yarn, lots of colours, even though its thinner than dk that i normally use i can just double it up to get thicker and thata llows for colour blending too. i was so happy until i realised they dont ship to the uk

then i found cascade200 but was put off by people saying it felted and colour ran. but then i found they did a superwash one but again there were lots of comments about colour running and it not washing well.

so far i havent actually bought any of these yarns to try them out. maybe im being too picky :( i even considered learning to spin my own yarn

is there any other yarns that anyone would recomend? or does anyone have any experience with the yarns i mentioned (cascade inparticular), im i worrying too much?

maybe i should learn how to dye yarn?

im not totally bothered my fibre content but have read cotton isnt so good for a blanket due to weight. also thickness of yarn doesnt bother me either, as i said with the palette yarn, 2 strands of 4ply roughly euqal dk and using 2 strands allows for colour blending etc.

thanks for listening to my ramblings. any thoughts would be appreciated.

[RuthieinMaryland]

Hi!

A few years ago I "re-learned" to knit, mostly from this site, and embarked on a project to make afghans for each member of my immediate family. Altogether I made 9 afghans, some for family and a couple for gifts. Two were crochet and the rest were knit in various patterns. All were well loved and are well-used by the recipients.

My two favorite yarns for afghans are Lion Brand Homespun which makes an incredibly warm and cozy blanket when done in a tight weave. I made one for a cousin and one for myself, just using single strand, and we both consider them "magic blankets". You cuddle under one of these and just get SO comfortable! I always doze off for awhile! The colors are kind of tweedy or heathery and it's a boucle-type yarn so the strand is twisty. But once you get accustomed to working with it it's super. (I also made one for my husband out of Lion Brand Chenille. It's very warm and the colors available were nice).

The other yarn I used a lot is Caron's "Simply Soft" for several of the afghans. It's lovely yarn. Thinner than you might think but with a lovely sheen, super soft and surprisingly warm.

Both yarns are synthetic and easily machine washable and dryable on low heat.

I got some lovely patterns out of the two Herrschner's Blue Ribbon Afghan books and would recommend them for inspiration. They're quite wonderful!

Hope this helps. The afghans I made were certainly a big hit and I wish you all the best in your blanket-making!

Happy knitting,

Ruthie

[Jan in CA]

I don't like knitting with Homespun myself. It's soft, but you can't see your stitches which is important to me if I'm going to go to all that work, plus it's kind of hard to knit with.

Anyhoo- I don't know what ships to the UK, but here's a few yarns I like that have a ton of colors -

Plymouth Encore - It comes in multiple weights and color ways. Here's the worsted weight -
http://www.plymouthyarn.com/index.ph...lection=000005

Berroco Vintage - I'm working on a sweater in Vintage worsted now and I love it! It also comes in chunky.
http://www.berroco.com/shade_cards/vintage_sh.html

Berroco Comfort - Multiple weights
http://www.berroco.com/shade_cards/comfort_sh.html

Any of the Simply Soft yarns by Caron are nice, too.
http://www.caron.com/color_cards/cc_simplysoft.html

Yarnmarket ships internationally and they do carry the Berroco and maybe others you'd like. Herrschners carries Caron Simple Soft and Berroco as well.
http://www.yarnmarket.com/knitting/K..._Yarn-318.html
http://www.herrschners.com/

[joulesb]

ooh thanks, that berroco comfort does look nice, will have to try that.

much appreciated

[Jan in CA]

ooh thanks, that berroco comfort does look nice, will have to try that.

much appreciated

It's a nice yarn. It's my go to yarn when I want to make chemo caps.