Friday, May 25, 2007

Eco-friendly yarn review

'Eco-friendly' is the hottest new buzzword on the catwalks nowadays. Just check out these articles by Elle, and Thinkfashion. Fabrics & fibers that are bio-degradeable, chemical fertiliser & pesticide-free, sustainable and renewable are the latest trends in the fashion world today.

The buzz has translated into 'eco-friendly yarns' and this has led to the emergence of bamboo, linen, hemp, soy, organic cotton, even corn yarn!
If knitters elsewhere in the world are excited over this, let me tell you that knitters living in tropical climates like us are jumping up & down everyday, and no longer plotting to migrate to someplace with four seasons. We used to have only one sweaty-weather alternative to wool - cotton. Now.. we have all those other exotic fibers, PLUS we get to slap an 'eco-friendly' tag to it & feel good about ourselves!

So with above excuse (reasoning? whatever) in mind, I picked up 6 balls of the Sirdar Just Bamboo yarn - for a simple tank for my SIL's birthday present. All in the name of saving the environment, you see...

Sirdar Bamboo Tank_1


This is a 100% bamboo tape yarn that is extremely soft and lighter than cotton. Unlike some of the metallic-looking ribbon yarns, there is only a very slight sheen and it doesn't have any of the crunchiness so often seen in ribbon yarns. The resulting knitted fabric is soothingly drapey, elegant, soft & light; and slightly cool to the touch (although actually, that last bit could be due to the air-conditioning..)

The yarn is roughly worsted weight (19st to 4 inch), using a 5.5mm needle. The yarn is a joy to knit with as it doesn't split and even though it is slightly slippery, it is not unmanageably so.

Sirdar Bamboo Tank_2


I chose a light tan color - not the most exciting but I think it showcases the simple pattern well. The only quibble I have about this yarn is the rather small color selection - muted shades of rose, lilac, blue, and neutrals - would definitely have preferred a wider range with darker shades or jewel-tones.

Now that I've tried bamboo.... some Amaizing corn yarn.. anyone?

3 comments:

alt.ayu said...

you make me wanna try this too!!! lol!!!

looks great~~~ now you can have a Farm of Fos... ;P

Anonymous said...

That looks pretty. Hope to see your finished project soon.

Trudy Gruenhagen said...

Can't wait to try this yarn. Your project looks great!