Peon Sings Praises of Budget Cashmere

Don't you just love days when your postman leaves you one of those lumpy tyvek packages? For me, those packages almost always contain yarn.

Today my kid brought such a package upstairs and dropped it at my feet as I was working on the MS3 clue #4. I had a hard time making myself finish my row before reaching for the big scissors and carefully cutting open what must be . . . yes! . . my order from Sarah's Yarns! In addition, there was a smaller package containing 3 patterns I'd ordered from Loop Yarns. It was like a mini-Christmas morning with 85-degree heat. All this and a new super-sized MS3 clue!! Let the wild rumpus begin!

So here's what was inside my Sarah's Yarn order:

Click for close-up. Really, this one is worth the wait!

In short: 2 skeins (800 yards total) of a 2-ply cashmere/silk blend I plan to dye, and "samples" of dk weight bamboo, dk weight cashmere, fingering weight merino/cashmere blend, sport weight spun silk, and 2 different lace weights.

If you haven't bought from Sarah's Yarns before, the deal is you can order free yarn samples for swatching on many of the yarns she carries. If you order just samples, you pay only postage costs. If you order additional products, the samples ship for free. (I'll post photos of the swatches as I knit them up, so you can get an idea.)

The first time I tried out samples from SY, I was shocked by how much yardage there was in each. These are truly generous dollops of yarn -- enough to knit at least a 4" X 4" square, and generally a fair amount more. It's a smart business move on the company's part, because the luxurious yarns do sell themselves.

Just in case you're wondering, no I don't work for SA, and no I haven't received a clandestine bale of cashmere (dropped on my stoop by the cover of a moonless night) in exchange for blubbering about how much I lo-oo--ove their yarn. (Not that I wouldn't accept a clandestine bale of cashmere from just about anyone.) But my orders from SA have been so universally delightful, I wanted to pass the word on. Have I mentioned that I usually receive an SA order 3 to 4 days after I place it? Or that they ship priority for what others charge for parcel post?

I love several of my local yarn stores, but it's hard for them to carry all the yarns I am interested in. Around here, it's especially hard to find a good selection of quality yarns for dyeing. (Undyed cashmere, in particular, is almost impossible find within 40 miles of where I live.) So, with the price of gasoline what it is, I yarn shop on the internet reluctantly -- It's so hard to really know a yarn based on a tiny picture and a one-paragraph description. That's where swatching samples come in handy -- the whole process (i.e. ordering samples, waiting, swatching, waiting again . . .) takes longer, but it's great ordering yarn having swatched it and knowing you will love it when it arrives.

And, finally, there is the $$$ factor. It's not the only factor, but it does rare its ugly head. I want to buy locally, but if local prices are two or three times as much as internet prices, my resolve weakens. Like almost everyone, I'm on a budget. The bottom line: 400 yards of 2-ply 55% silk/45% cashmere is $12.50 at Sarah's Yarns. Seriously. Pure cashmere is just slightly more. I don't know how she does it -- maybe her back yard is cheek-to-jowl full of cashmere goats -- but these prices allow me to knit cashmere on a merino budget.

Here's the patterns that came, which I am also quite thrilled with:

Patterns from Bad Cat Designs / Jade Sapphire

I bought these particular patterns not only because I like them, but because each calls for approximately 400 yards of 2-ply cashmere. I think these will make great gifts -- little kitten-soft handmade luxuries. And (this is a total win-win, as far as I can see) I get the gift of working with blissfully decadent (and easy-on-the-debit-card) yarn. All-in-all, I am currently one copacetic, yarn-besotted peon.