Good Cotton and Bad Cotton????

[gingergal4l8r]

I wanted to make a tank top for the summer.
Now this is my dilemma...

I am not sure what kind of cotton yarn to use. I am really not even familiar with it only to make dishcloths which is 100%. I started a project for a child summer dress, and figured she was not even going to be able to stand after I knit it as it was so heavy.

What yarn inexpensive and expensive are out there for your likings.
I am hoping there is something good out there.

[princessbonniejane]

lilly and cream, I really like sugar and cream they have sugar and cream twist and sugar and cream naturals. Hope this helps

[gingergal4l8r]

Where do you find that yarn?
the closest yarn store is 1 1/2 hours away. We have the walmart and zellers thing happening ,but I never find anything in there that I like.

[paiva]

...we where I live we have an "A.C. Moore" crafts and you can also get it at "Michaels" crafts. But you're in Canada...how about their website?
http://www.sugarncream.com/
The Lily Sugar and Cream I think is the BEST!
I made an ENTIRE sweater out of it once (granted I had to buy like 15 skeins) but recently I noticed they put out a huge skein that's about $11.....I use this yarn for everything from sweaters to dishcloths to reusable shopping bags...you just toss it in the washer and dryer and no worries!

[annomalley]

One thing to keep in mind with 100% cotton for garments is that pure cotton is not elastic (i.e. the fiber doesn't "spring" back when stretched. Wool is elastic and springs back when you stretch it.), and your garment may stretch out of shape after awhile. Some people have had no problems using 100% cotton to make garments, but others have had problems with the FO stretching after awhile. You could probably solve this by using a cotton blend or adjusting gauge if you had to.

Have you looked at Knitpicks.com? They sell cotton and cotton blend yarns. I'm knitting a sweater out of Shine Worsted. It's a cotton blend, and I really like it so far. I think you can also get either Sugar and Cream or Lily and Cream at Herrschnerr's.com (They sell one of these brands, but I don't remember which one off the top of my head).

[Cynamar]

Knitpicks also has a gorgeous new cotton/linen blend.

[Lisa R.]

I haven't really advanced to garments much, but apparently you need to have a cotton blend, as 100% is too heavy and has no "give." A cotton blend is recommended for garments.

[mwhite]

I made a tank top from 100% (Lionbrand) figuring that it would be nice and cool...NOT! Made another from 51% cotton 49% acrylic (TLC Cotton Plus) thinking it would be cooler...NOT! So, my suggestion is to use a blend of cotton with silk or some other fiber than acrylic. Or if you go with a laceweight or fingering weight 100% cotton, it might be lightweight and cool, using small needles.

[Debkcs]

This thing with cotton yarn has been a continual problem for me. I like to make dishcloths to gift people with, but in my own home they become rather smelly, even after being washed in hot water; friends I've asked have said the same thing. Any suggestions?

On to garments, it's just a 'me' thing, but I really don't like acrylics, and the cottons are just too heavy. Thanks for mentioning 'Twist', I may give that a try, but if any of you can tell me a good dishcloth yarn, or what to do to keep mine from smelling bad, I'd be grateful!

[Jan in CA]

This thing with cotton yarn has been a continual problem for me. I like to make dishcloths to gift people with, but in my own home they become rather smelly, even after being washed in hot water; friends I've asked have said the same thing. Any suggestions?

The only thing I can think that would make them smelly is if they have a problem drying. I found that when I make them too dense they don't dry well and would do that. I make them with a larger needle (8 I think) and they dry much better. I also change them at least every few days.