Rowan Calmer

[kickassangel]

Does anyone know where i can buy Rowan Calmer, or a very similar yarn, at less than £6 a ball? I've seen a pattern i like, but the yarn will cost £90 ! it's a very soft 2 ply cotton yarn. anyone know something silimar, preferably around £4 a ball (or less)

[tamum]

I don't think you'll get it cheaper anywhere unless you score a rare bargain on eBay. Rowan operate a pretty tight pricing policy, so a sale would be your only real option. It's quite a standard double knitting tension, though. I think Patons Cotton Rich would be a near-perfect cheap substitute, but I'm not sure if it's widely available any more. It does have the same tension, and it's 50% cotton and 50% acrylic.

[kickassangel]

thanks tamum, i'll try to track it down.

[Marina]

Is Calmer really only two-ply kickassangel? If it is in fact near to dk as Tamum says (and boy does she know her skeins ) then the cheapest substitute I can think of is Kool Kotton, currently on spesh at Texere and Readicuts, and a cheaper version of the lovely Rowan All Seasons Cotton. Kool Kotton is slightly thinner than ASC (I have some in my stash) and recommended to knit up at dk tension/needles. Quite a limited range of shades though, and the annoying thing about Rowan is that they are lovely yarns. KK is not quite as luscious...

[bundle]

marina have you found any nice all seasons cotton patterns, i do believe we identified a dearth..

[bundle]

[kickassangel]

i keep going back & stroking it. can you be arrested for stalking a yarn?

i'm farily new to knitting, so not sure about how to substitute a yarn, i've foud sirdarluxury soft cotton on the internet, but not seen it in ral life. if the number of stitches & rows for 10 cm tension is v similar to rowan calmer, could i substitute it? will need to give it a stroke before i decide anyway. sirdar's is only £2.99! icould make 2 jumpers

[Marina]

There are some OK-ish but tendance boxy ones in the Louisa Harding mini-books Bundy. Other OTN is a jumper for dd using up a small stash of Acid Drop ASC (very springlike lemony green, much nicer than sounds).
But agree with you there is not much around for gurls in this lovely yarn. The finished Fletcher hoodie looks terrific, the first completed project (apart from the Mn Blanket of course ) that I feel has gone 100% right even down to blocking and assembling!
Although that pattern is aimed at boys, I think it is perfectly unisex, so dd is getting a grey/lavender version some time this year.

[bundle]

i always thought it looked nice. am aiming for (I think in the big children rowan book) a zippy cardi in green (dd1's new favourite colour) and pink fat stripes (rowan cotton - have just not quite enough of each to make a whole garment, so thought what the hell, they look quite nice together actually). it's the one with a turnover collar. have knitted a sock in cashmerino but have to work up to doing the other one (my heel is a bit pointy which can't be right, but i'm not undoing it now..)
I finished it at ballymaloe but ryanair wouldn't let me have my needles on the flight, which is odd because when i flew to prestwick in october they took the piss out of my "declaring" my needles and waved me on

[Marina]

Those Denise clip together circulars are supposed to be non-Customs-annoying. :(

[bundle]

but would you knit with something called Denise?

[Marina]

No. It's like having a knitting bag called Ena or Avis really isn't it...I have been known to avoid patterns because of having to tell people, yes, it's called Hussy or Britney or something

[bundle]

I know. Calmer appeals even if it is pricey/fine gauge, because it has a nice name.

[kickassangel]

so does sirdar's luxury soft cotton sound like a possible substitute? i'm going to the shop this pm, so may be able to cop a feel!

[Marina]

Yes, it does sound promising, but remember when copping a feel to check the yarn composition - a mix of cotton/synthetics does work well for a lighter feel and may well affect how the finished garment drapes and washes. Happy groping :)

[tamum]

It sounds reasonable to me too!

Completely know what you mean about Denise, but they are rather wonderful. Am coveting the PDA sized bamboo set rather, but I can't possibly justify it. I am in the middle of another Charlotte's web shawl, but just can't quite get the right colour for the last part, and at £7.95 a shot my mistakes are getting a bit expensive... And since I was ordering from Get Knitted anyway it seemed worth getting yet another skein of wonderful Kaalund. Sigh.

[bundle]

tamum = yarn hussy

[kickassangel]

OOh, just been on get knitted. should i get so excited about all those lovely textures? maybe i have a yarns fetish? sirdar is 100%cotton, the rowan is 75%cotton,25% acrylic. does that still make the sirdar a good sub? (as you can tell, i'm learning baout yarns)

[tamum]

Yes, you can be a yarn hussy with me . Pure cotton will be stiffer than a cotton/acrylic mix, which may well not matter, but might if you had a particular structure to the garment. I love Get Knitted... (you get free pens and lollipops, too).

[Marina]

That there hussy got me on to Texere. I am half desperate, half dreading the arrival of their apparently gorge catalogue which features samples of all their yarns for maximum fetishistic pleasure :) I want it to arrive...dh and my bank balance don't...

[tamum]

Oh, it's an enormous great folder full of samples! Mine is out of date, so I should really find a fibre artist to pass it on to. They do have some great bargains though. I wonder if there's an alternative to Debbie Bliss's new silk yarn ....

[bundle]

tamum, do you mean the 100% silk stuff in tiny hanks? swooon.

marina, how much does this stroking-fest object cost?

[Marina]

I had a really kind note off Christine saying there'd be no additional charge when the new one is finally ready tamum...now might be the time to put in a request
The Provence cotton dk from them is a touch crunchy but perfect for ds' vintage Just William slipover...likely total cost, £3.95 , not including chiropractor fees for hauling one of their ginormous cones on the train
Happy belated birthday to dd btw :)

[Marina]

I think you pay a fiver but it has samples of all their yarns and I do feel happiest going off pattern when I can cop a feel first, as kickassangel so fragrantly and accurately put it...
But I'm getting mine free, Free, FREE, I tell you, because Christine can spot a regular in the making...

[bundle]

it still says sold out on the website..is that the one you're waiting for? i'd gladly part with a fiver for it