Thursday, June 15, 2006

Bawk, Bawk

I really want to join in on this KAL. I chickened out (hence the subject line) on the last one because I didn't think I could conquer Orangina. I'm sorry I did because they all look so great. Maybe one day. Anyone, I thought I would join in, but since I'm a challenged beginner, I'm thinking Tempting I (because it's more mellow and I've always wanted to make it. But I need a little advice from you more experienced (& more sexy) knitters out there. Should I buy the Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran? It's a lot of money for someone who has never knit anything wearable (other than scarfs & baby hats). And, I'd take a lot of yarn (nudge, nudge, wink, wink). I'm not very good at that whole yarn substitution thingy ...
So:
1. Should I buy the expensive Cashmerino Aran?
2. Is there a cheaper substitute? I live in the hot, sticky, Right Coast, so I thought cotton may be more practical. The only thing I knit with cotton was a baby hat and I hated it because there wasn't any stretch AT ALL.
3. I'm NOT knitting an XS (get my drift) so is there a yarn that doesn't cling too much? I don't think I'd be "tempting" with a muffin top! :-p
I would GREATLY appreciate any advice you could throw my way. (I know, I know - newbies are so pathetic!)

Anita
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6 comments:

Kati said...

Personally, I wouldn't bother with the Cashmerino Aran. I started Tempting I in it about a year ago and ended up frogging it because it seemed very heavy to me. I was also worried about the heavy ribbing being a little unflattering for my less-than-petite body type. (Still have the yarn in my stash). Have you ever checked into Knit Picks yarn? They might have something that knits up to a similar gauge that is much less expensive than the DB yarn.

9:16 AM
knitncycle said...

Okay, I'd definitely go with a mid range yarn. I did a little searching and here is what I found. DB's Cashmerino Aran is a worsted wt yarn with 98 yds to a skein at about $7.95 per skein. You need to establish what size you plan on knitting and take the number of skeins required for your size and multiply it by 98 (yds). This will give you the total yardage you need to purchase of a worsted weight substitute. I'd recommend staying with the same weight yarn. Otherwise, you're gonna have to do some math that you may or may not care to do. So, let's assume you've determined your yardage and now you want a worsted weight sub. Here's some options I found that might work: At knitpicks.com, they have a summer yarn called Main Line. It's a cotton/merino blend. The merino gives the yarn spring. The yardage is 82 yds/skein at $3.29/sk with shipping over $40 being free. Not too shabby but the low yardage and limited color choices are a consideration. I didn't find anything at elann. Hate that because they are really awesome. I did at Webs (yarn.com) find many viable subs. Please note that for orders over $60, webs gives a discount on most yarns. I think it is 20% but you'll need to verify that at their site. Here's what I found there: Cilantro from Nashua at $7.95/sk with 136 yds/sk. High price but a lot of yardage. Four seasons Cotton from Classic Elite at $5.00/sk with 87 yds per skein. Madrid from Plymouth at $3.50/sk with 115 yards/sk. Sugarloaf from Valley Yarns at $4.49/sk with 81yds/sk. Also, there were other good subs but since you live in a warmer area, I didn't look at anything that had a very high wool content. Please consider the discount for orders over $60 as well if you plan on spending that much. If not, the prices are still good. I've shopped with Knitpicks and Webs and have had good experiences with each.I hope that's helpful.

4:25 PM
Inanna said...

Fortunately there is a knitter here who has a connection with Debbie Bliss yarn: anyone dead set on using Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran can contact me - I can order it for you through my yarn shop. You can order a bag of ten at a time at 20% off, so about $64/bag, plus shipping. My email is: luminousthread@earthlink.net. I am here to help the sexy knitters club members not have to pay full retail! You can check out my blog, too so you can see that I'm a real knitter and not just some random person advertising here... www.starlitnest.blogspot.com. Personally I LOVE Debbie Bliss Aran and recommend it.

10:21 PM
Anonymous said...

You are TOO funny. As a curv-a-liscious knitter myself, I always fret about the $$ it takes to make me a sweater. I'd love to be teensy for a little bit just to be able to upgrade on the yarn, since I'd have to buy less.

11:49 PM
Eatsruns said...

definitely don't go with the cashmerino - it's very warm so you'd probably never wear it!

as you say though cotton's probably also a bad idea. You can get cotton/elastane blends but I don't think they're recommended for the beginner as the tension is very hard to get even.

I would almost suggest something like a tencel blend if you can find one. I have a cardigan I made out of a 50/50 tencel/acrylic blend and it's great. Cool in the summer and warm-ish in the winter, it hasn't pilled and it washes well. I know acrylic can be a bit of a dirty word and I'm a bit of a yarn snob myself, but in this instance it was great.

Unfortunately I'm in NZ so you wouldn't be able to get the exact same yarn there, but I'm sure there are some tencel blends around! Or maybe even a cotton/acrylic blend to add a bit of stretch to the cotton? Or failing that a wool/cotton blend.

2:07 PM
Jonnie said...

WOW. You guys are the BEST! I'm passing on the DB - not because of the price or anything - but basically because I really don't know much (knit-wise). If I successfully - I mean - WHEN I successfully finish Tempting, then maybe I'll get some DBCA and make something else for myself (like Tempting II)!! Sometimes when I get "really nice yarn", I have a hard time using it. I get so afraid that I'll "mess it up" or not be able to make the piece I've chosen correctly. TOO MUCH PRESSURE. I've decided to be a follower and go with the TLC-CP for my first sweater. I also found a Cascade Cotton/Tencel blend (whatever that is) that I'm going to try and see what seems to work/look better for me. (Thank you very much, Sarah!)

I really appreciate yall taking the time to respond to me. Keep your needles crossed for me!
ah

12:40 PM

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