cascade 220 for soakers/shorts/pants?

[pamelamama]

thoughts?

:talktalk

[Meredith]

Too funny you should ask this because that is what I am using right now for a soaker. I LOVE it!!!! I think it works a lot like fishermans. I will take a pic of what I have right now so you can see it in action... I will post in a minute.

ETA... I have to find the digital first. DH took the kids to the zoo today and took it with him.

ETA2: I still haven't taken a pic. I will of the finished product, but it is knitting up thicker (plusher) than Fishermans does. I LIKE it!

[ravingcutie]

:? Where's the cheapest place to order 220?

[Meredith]

I bought mine at a store in Toledo, OH and they had every color under the sun. $ 7.25 a skein I think.... :?

[lifetapestry]

Clearly yarn is an issue where you can have two knitters and three opinions ;)

I do think it's a lot like fisherman's in the way it knits up. I don't care for how fisherman's wears though, so I've never knitted with it.

What I do like about the cascade 220 is that it knits up "crisp" and is thus excellent for ribbing. However, it does not do well in my testing for water resistance-- which, if you don't have a heavy wetter, probably isn't an issue for you. I haven't used it long enough to know if it wears well. It is a very tightly spun yarn.

You can see a pic of some ribbing I did with the 220 and compare it to the ecological here:

http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/view?p=999&gid=4206127&uid=1136717&members=1

Karla

[danaTCT]

that's really pretty karla. there is a noticable difference in the threads. how does the softness of the two kinds of cascade you are using compare?

[lifetapestry]

Dana,

They are both very soft yarns. I think that the ecological is less "sturdy" than the 220, so it might be just a teeny bit softer, although I really can't tell the difference.

Compared to other yarns I've used that are not handspun (I just LOVE handspun, especially that manos del uruguay, I've vowed to learn handspinning to be able to afford it), the ecological is my favorite for its softness and performance, and for its semi-organicness. Also is very affordable, $15 for a 4 oz skein with lots of yardage (made a large soaker, large soaker shorts, and still have some left).

I know you like the fabric connection yarn-- I've only tried the lopi and didn't care for it. I probably should try her 2 ply or 3 ply, but the lopi experience scared me off.

Karla

[pamelamama]

Karla, the lopi does have a different hand than the others.

I suggest you sell a couple of soakers to pay for your yarn habit! You know, you can do that here in the swap-a-rama forum. Or maybe I should make a separate 'soakers for sale' forum. :chin

:need

[marnie]

i love the colors, i love how soft it is, i love that it's not merino, doesn't pill, and wears very well. i do, however, find it a bit thin for my taste. i knit it on #6 US (the packaging says 7- 8 ) and I prefer a yarn that calls for 9-10.5 which i can knit on 8s.

[pb_and_j]

I've used it and I like it. I have found that it does pill pretty bad and that kind of bugs me. Like Karla said, it is NOT good for heavy wetters and soaks up a lot instead of repelling until it is lanolized very very well. I have lanolized the heck out of a soaker and now it finally works to my standards, but it took quite a while (I'm talking about rubbing lanolin straight into it several times).

It is very very soft and I really like that and it knits up into a lovely fabric.

[blueskymama]

I'm new here :wave and so glad I found this thread. I was just getting ready to order some cascade 220 and ecological yarn. I've been using fisherman's yarn primarily (also tried brown sheep and ltk), I like the absorbency of the fisherman but find it a bit too scratchy. Is the 220 as absorbent as the fisherman? I would like to make more day time soakers for dd#2 (3 month old).

[marnie]

I've never used fisherman's so i can't help. I find the 220 plenty absorbent, though. I use it for doublers all the time.

[willowsmama]

Thank goodness I found this thread.

I was afraid I was the only person having 'issues' with getting the 220 lanolized really well. Of course, it doesn't help that both my little ones became supersoakers overnight.

[pamelamama]

I sent an email to cascade 220:

Hello

Is your cascade 220 yarn merino? Thanks



And got this reply:

Sure does seem like it doesn't it Pam. Actually, it is merino, but we neglected to have that put on the label. The next printing of the labels should say that.
Happy knitting,
Joan aka yarn goddess
Cascade yarns

I invited her to visit us here. :)

This may clear up some of the pilling questions we had. :brow

[Meredith]

I was WONDERING.... thank you for clearing that up!!!

[marnie]

interesting. i've never found a merino that i like until now, i guess.

[blueskymama]

Hmm... I just got some over the weekend and I was thinking I really like the way it feels. I guess I'll see if I can deal with the pilling or not.