Your favorite yarn and color

Hi everyone,

I miss browsing, looking, marveling, touching, and feeling the yarn in my yarn shop. Picking out yarn on a computer isn’t half as much fun as doing it in person. So… when my favorite yarn shop reopens, I’m going to take a trip there and wander around for hours—only to walk out with my new favorite yarn, the one I fell in love with on the spot. I’m saving up for it now, since there isn’t much else to spend money on.

So, let’s dream a little… what colors and/or yarn types would your favorite yarn have—the one you’d want to take home?

I know exactly what mine would be right now, but I’ll save that for later. Just close your eyes and dream your way through the store. What would end up in your shopping basket???

Warm regards from Ina

Unfortunately, my favorite yarn isn’t available anymore… Production has been discontinued… This has happened to me many times—I’d been looking forward to a certain yarn… I’d already made several projects with it, and we’d become really good friends… Then suddenly the company stops production… I just can’t believe it… a company’s best yarn is suddenly discontinued!!… Of course, you have to be understanding and find a new yarn. My current favorite is Linie 8 from Online

My favorite yarn—there are quite a few. I love Drops yarn, especially extra-fine merino and blends with alpaca, or even blends of merino and cotton.

When we’re in Ravensburg, I love the Finkhof market stall there. They have beautiful merino yarn in many colors and color blends. I can never decide which ones to take home. I’m already looking forward to when it’s possible to go again. That’s where the temptation is strongest for me. Since I’ve been on a yarn diet for over a year and am just working through my stash, I gave the stand a wide berth last year. I don’t know yet if I’ll be able to do the same this year.

One of my favorite yarns is definitely Fine Merino Socks by Lanartus. It has a polyester blend, which keeps it sturdy and makes it perfect for clothing or baby blankets.
It’s incredibly soft and works for just about anything.
In general, I’m a fan of anything with silk or yak in the blend, and I almost exclusively knit with hand-dyed yarn. 

Oh Petra, I know that feeling too. You’ve finally found it and are planning the most beautiful things with it, only to find out, when you finally want to start, that it’s no longer being made. That is soooo annoying. I always ask myself then, why do they take such good products out of the range? It’s even more annoying when there’s a pattern that is based exactly on that yarn. Then you have to painstakingly look for what might work as a substitute.

I immediately googled Line 8 by online. Yes, I understand why it’s your favorite right now. Very good quality and 36! colors besides. That makes it hard to choose.

Monika, I can understand you very well too. I’m also a fan of Drops yarns. I admire your willpower when it comes to buying yarn. A yarn diet is extremely hard to stick to. I wouldn’t manage it. And I could never walk past a yarn stand with beautiful handmade yarn. I would circle the stand for hours because choosing would be so hard. But in the end I would decide after all.

Yes, what would I choose right now? If I went into my favorite yarn shop, I would automatically be drawn to grass-green colors. Or royal or medium blues. I’m really into these bold shades right now. So it would absolutely have to be a rich shade of green or a bright royal shade. Only after that would I look at what it’s made of. But it would definitely have to be soft and cozy. If the color is right and I know what it’s made of, I would think of what I could make with it.

If those colors weren’t available, the hand-dyed yarns would attract me ... oh yes, soon the time will come. Until then, I’ll practice being patient.

Best wishes, Ina

Dear AnLis-Strickideen, I’m also familiar with the Fine Merino Socks from Lanartus—and I loooove them. You’re absolutely right. It’s so soft and smooth. You’d never think it’s sock yarn. When I knit my doll clothes with it, the stitch pattern always turns out perfectly even. It’s really a hidden gem. I especially love the cyclamen-colored one from this line.

Here are two quick examples of what I’ve knitted with Lanartus sock yarn...

My favorite yarns also include a few lines from Online—I haven’t really settled on just one type. First, I go for the color, and if I want to make a figure, the color ends up being the deciding factor in my purchase. Unfortunately, our local craft store has now closed down, so I’ll have to figure out where to buy yarn once things get back to normal. I buy familiar types more or less online, but I’d still like to see and feel the colors and qualities in person.....

I love working with Catania cotton. Such beautiful colors, and you can only get it online.

We don’t have a yarn shop in town. I always have to go to Ludwigsburg for it.

Love, Gabi

Yes, women know all about favorite yarn disappearing *snort* I once wrote to a manufacturer, and they said they had to keep inventing new, exciting yarns. Um, no! Just look at Catania—it’s been around for ages and is still a huge hit! By the way, it’s my favorite for crocheting. 

I really like Bingo by Lanagrossa. I’m extremely sensitive to scratchy yarn, which is why I almost prefer synthetic fibers—they hardly ever scratch. 

The Turkish yarn Alize is also awesome. Great colors and it knits up beautifully in every quality! 

And I admire Monika so much for her yarn diet! I just can’t manage it. Either I don’t like the colors I have, or I don’t have enough for a project, and then other colors don’t match. And of course, that means it never gets any less. 

When I’m bored, I get a thrill out of bidding on yarn bundles on eBay (at a bargain price, of course), and sometimes I win, and then it gets full here again. But I don’t feel like selling or giving any of it away either... *tearing my hair out*

Oh Anja, I’m slowly starting to really long for some new yarn, because I’m actually running out of certain yarns now, especially solid-colored merino wool. Let’s see how much longer I can manage ... phew. Because I now have a free drawer in my cupboard that’s already waiting for new yarn.

And today my friend asked me what I want for my birthday.... my first thought was:
a yarn gift certificate for Finkhof. 

I’m actually going to ask for that as a gift. I don’t know yet when I’ll redeem it. I’m leaving that open for now. But I’m really looking forward to finally going yarn shopping again with a specific goal in mind. In June it’ll be 1.5 years, and I want to hold out until then ... sigh.

I feel much the same as Monika. The beautiful colors are slowly running out, and the amount is often only enough for small projects. Those are usually good for blankets, pillowcases, or using up scraps, like the flip-flops… since I’m also on a yarn diet. I’m trying to hang in there a little longer.
Sometimes I find myself eyeing new yarn, but then I know for sure that if I bought any, the “old” yarn would just sit there unused.

I like to crochet often with mercerized cotton yarn from Järbo (it used to be Bianca yarn, but that’s no longer available), Schachenmayer Catania (I only have a little left—I bought it in Germany once), then these bobbles (a cotton and acrylic blend), and yarn from Katja (Jaipur)—
so mainly cotton yarn. The more colorful, the better—both bright and pastel colors.

I rarely crochet with dark yarn.

@Bastelfan: I still have some Jaipur lying around here, too. I can’t think of anything I could make with it. Nothing at all. I’ve started so many crochet projects with it, but nothing ever turns into something I’d actually want to wear. :-(

It’s not like I don’t still have enough yarn ... it’s just that it isn’t enough for what I’d really like to make. Or it’s not the right color.

I actually managed to make it to 1 1/2 years back in May. I definitely want to get to that point before I redeem a gift card.

I still have plenty of colorful cotton too, and I’ll think about what else I can make from it. It’s perfect for summer, after all.