Review: Synchrony Yarn from Brown Sheep Company

Today, I will be reviewing Synchrony, a DK weight yarn from Brown Sheep Company. Disclaimer: I received this complimentary yarn in exchange for a review. I am not being paid to write this review and everything shared here is my real opinion. Big thanks go out to Brown Sheep Company for providing me with yarn to test.

With the winter doldrums of the Pacific Northwest finally wearing off, I've been feeling pretty bold lately. I'm enjoying trying new things, being adventurous, and getting the most out of life. This new attitude has also been reflected in my yarn and pattern choices. When I was presented with the opportunity to try Synchrony yarn, I got really excited. All of the colors are so fun! It was really hard to decide which one I wanted. Also, I don't normally work with DK weight yarn. I've done a lot with bulky, worsted, and fingering weight yarns, but not DK. What a perfect opportunity to play with something new!

Synchrony is 60% Pima Cotton and 40% Merino Wool. This makes it both sturdy and soft.

Since I've been in such a party mood lately, the colorway I settled on was Soiree. I totally love it! It is bold and exciting. Plus, I've always found marled yarn to be very attractive. The yarn wound very easily, with no snags.

Crochet is my first love, so I decided to choose a crochet project for it. I finally settled on Fat Bag, a free pattern by Samanta Maragno. The original pattern makes a large bag. However, I'm being bold! I decided to try the pattern with DK and a smaller hook in the hopes of making a small purse. It went wonderfully! Even though the direction of the twist made the plies come apart a little while I crocheted, I had no issues with the hook catching. It was very smooth and enjoyable to work with. I think the bag turned out super hip! The pooling is very even, producing a modern finished item.

This yarn is awesome and I'd happily work with it again. It took so much less yarn to make my purse than I expected, so I have a whole hank left. I am currently knitting with it, which is just as pleasant as crocheting with it was.

I'll have to share my improvised knit bag with you when it is complete. In the meantime, here is some info on Synchrony and Brown Sheep Company:

• Brown Sheep yarns is a family-owned and operated company located in Mitchell, Nebraska. 
• Synchrony blends pima cotton and merino to create a springy yet sturdy yarn. 
• In DK weight, Synchrony pairs perfectly with our Cotton Fleece and Serendipity Tweed yarns.
• The mill employs sustainable practices such as recycling 70-90% of their daily waste water.
• Brown Sheep Company buys the majority of their wool directly from the growers who have a variety of good wool breeds such as Corriedales, Rambouillets, and Columbians.
• Not only are Brown Sheep yarns excellent for knitting and crocheting, they are great for weaving as well! They also offer roving for handspinners.

Review: Eucalan Delicate Wash

Today, I'll be reviewing Eucalan Delicate Wash. Disclaimer: I received this complimentary product in exchange for a review. I am not being paid to write this review and everything shared here is my real opinion. I'm thankful for the opportunity to review this gift pack. The package even included a handwritten note from the CEO of Eucalan. Super classy! The gift pack includes five scents: lavender, grapefruit, eucalyptus, jasmine, and unscented. They all smell very nice.

Wanna know a true story? I can be pretty lazy when it comes to 'proper' care of my clothes. Dry clean only? Well, I hope it doesn't get ruined when I toss it in the wash! Lay flat to dry? Guess I'm throwing it on the drying rack! Hand wash only? I hope the gentle cycle does the trick!

This attitude also extends to my finished objects. I know that a diligent, mindful yarn-lover would take the time to care for their handmade items on a regular basis in the most thoughtful way possible. However, I am a super busy person. I have an intense full-time job, a boyfriend, wonderful friends, more chores than seem reasonable, a karaoke habit, my designing... Who has time to hand wash and block a scarf after each wear? Therefore, I think I am the perfect person to review this delicate wash. I'm not even a typical user... I'm perhaps a shade lazier.

Check out my scrunched up, well-worn example items. I chose a crochet scarf that is a silk wool blend, a woolen knit cowl, and a silk scarf by Laurel Burch that I never got around to having dry cleaned.

The directions on the bottle say to fill the basin with room temperature water and then soak your items for at least 15 minutes. Totally reasonable. However, lazy Sara watched the sink fill about halfway before putting the crochet and knitting in and then dumping in some wash. I didn't even measure how much I was using; I just eyeballed it. As a result, there were some suds when the wash met with the running water.

You know what? This delicate wash is awesome! I took a relaxed approach to its use and it still went wonderfully. The best part is that you don't even have to rinse it out! You just squeeze out your now nice-smelling items and lay them out (which for me means putting them on the drying rack). I spent the 15 minutes they were soaking doing some other chores, so it worked out really well. Super easy, even for a lazy person like me. Side note, don't you think the squeezed out objects look like pretty flowers sitting in the sink?

When I washed the silk scarf, I was a little more regimented. I waited until the basin had filled before adding the wash, and I also measured it more carefully. I washed it separately so it wouldn't pick up any dye from the other two items.

Again, so easy. No rinsing needed. I think the no-rinse aspect and the good scent selection really make this delicate wash a winner. Grapefruit is my favorite one.

I had a great experience using this wash. It's so easy to use that I'll actually be willing to wash my items more often. In fact, I got inspired to use it to wash my bras. I hate washing my bras because I have to hand wash them, then rinse them, then hang them out. However, the no-rinse quality of the Eucalan wash meant I could just throw them in the washer on the soak setting and then spin them. So much less effort, and they came out clean. Sometimes regular detergent ends up making my bras itchy, but they weren't itchy this time. Win!

I wholeheartedly endorse Eucalan Delicate Wash. It's easy to use, smells nice, and gets the job done -- even though I was lazy about it. Before I tested it, I thought about sharing a bottle or two with my fiber friends... but now I think I'll keep it all to myself :3 Here are some additional details from Eucalan:

• Eucalan Delicate wash is a delicate no-rinse wash that is perfect for caring for handmade items.
• Our formula is non-toxic, pH neutral, biodegradable, and free of optical brighteners, phosphates, synthetic fragrance and dye.
• Eucalan is scented with only quality essential oils (which are naturally antiseptic), in addition to natural/unscented.
• The lanolin acts as a natural conditioner, keeping fibres supple and reducing static.
• Eucalyptus and Lavender are naturally moth- and flea-repellent, making them an excellent choice for wool fibres and fabrics.

Review: Charley Crochet Cactus Kit from Global Backyard Industries

Today, I will be reviewing the Charley Crochet Cactus Kit from Global Backyard Industries. Disclaimer: I received this complimentary kit in exchange for a review. I am not being paid to write this review and everything shared here is my real opinion. Thanks go out to Global Backyard Industries for providing the kit.

So, there are 10 days until Christmas. How did we get here so quickly? Who knows. I am pleased to report that all of my (modest) shopping is done. Are you sitting there with no idea of what to get for someone this holiday season, be they crocheter or not? This kit could be a great solution to your problem! Since it is available on Amazon, you can buy it now and it will ship out quickly. Furthermore, the cactus it creates is quite giftable as well! Finally, this kit is priced very reasonably.

The kit comes with everything you need to create the cactus, even the hook! I trusted this to be true before opening it and brought it to my fiber group the other day, ready to work on it. The only thing it doesn't contain is scissors. The materials are of good quality.

The instructions were clear and the cactus was really fun to make. I was a little unsure about working with the green novelty yarn, but it turned out to be sturdy and just fine to work with. I love my little cactus! I haven't decided if I will give it to a friend or take it to work. Check it out!

How cute! I unhesitatingly recommend this kit.

Review: Gradient Trio from Zen Yarn Garden

Today, I will be reviewing the Royal Time Gradient Trio from Zen Yarn Garden. Disclaimer: I received this complimentary yarn in exchange for a review. I am not being paid to write this review and everything shared here is my real opinion.

Gradient patterns are really hot right now. The bold ombre trend came up a few years ago, and now the focus has shifted to slightly more subtle color transitions. I love gradient projects. I think they are really classy. However, something that can sometimes be challenging is finding the right yarn for the pattern. Zen Yarn Garden has got you covered with their prearranged gradient sets. They even suggest patterns!

I am currently working with this yarn and it is a very pleasant experience. I'm using a smallish hook (3.5mm), and yet my hand is not tiring too much. I think it is because the yarn is very smooth and easy to work with. It is soft, yet it also provides good stitch definition.

Purple is my favorite color, so this is the perfect set for me. At first I thought I might find an existing pattern to work with. However, I got a flash of design inspiration and I've actually been developing a simple crochet pattern. Guess what? It will be a free pattern!

This is just a little teaser picture. The free pattern should be posted sometime at the beginning of December. Speaking of December, I heartily endorse this gradient trio as a holiday gift. For a knitter or crocheter. If I have extra yarn after the pattern is complete, I'll knit it up and let you know what I think. For now, I am perfectly pleased to be crocheting with it. Thank you for the yarn, Zen Yarn Garden!

Review: Manos del Uruguay Alegria Grande Yarn

Today, I'll be reviewing Manos del Uruguay Alegria Grande yarn. Disclaimer: I received this complimentary yarn in exchange for a review. I am not being paid to write this review and everything shared here is my real opinion. Thanks go out to Fairmount Fibers for providing this lovely yarn for me to play with.

Despite having both my personal and professional lives being very busy, I am getting into the groove with my crochet business again. As such, I need to be very picky about how I spend my time. I have some big, exciting projects that I am working on. That said, when I got the opportunity to review another yarn from Manos del Uruguay (I previously reviewed Franca), I accepted right away. What a wonderful yarn company! They care about the people who make their yarn and the yarn itself is wonderful to work with.

As soon as I received my skein of Alegria Grande, I knew I would not be disappointed. There were many colors to choose from, but I selected Orquidea because it reminded me of a spring garden. The hank of yarn was so soft and squishy! Wanna know something silly? I ended up winding it up by hand instead of using my winder, simply because I wanted to play with the squishy goodness.

Having only one skein, I decided to dive into my crochet One Skein Wonders book to find a suitable project. I settled on the Boutique Weave Scarf because I wanted to show off the colors in the yarn. I ended up making some alterations to the pattern. First, I included more repeats of the mesh base. Second, I added a decorative border to either end instead of fringe. Last, I whipped up a little cinch with the remainder of my yarn ball so that the scarf could be worn once around the neck more comfortably.

I enjoyed every moment I spent working with this yarn. It is soft, doesn't snag, and has just the right amount of stitch definition. I will absolutely be working with this yarn again in the future. Don't just take my word for it; take a look at the finished product and decide for yourself.

Once again, I wholeheartedly recommend this delightful yarn.

Review: June Cashmere DK Yarn

Today, I'll be reviewing Cashmere DK yarn from June Cashmere. Disclaimer: I received this complimentary yarn in exchange for a review. I am not being paid to write this review and everything shared here is my real opinion. June Cashmere as a company is really interesting and worth reading about. Check them out!

When I received this review yarn in the mail, I was very excited. It is completely gorgeous and soft. Also, the lot for the colorway was 1! I've never had that happen before. Very cool. I was feeling old-school that day, so I even wound it by hand instead of using a winder. There were no snags in the hank at all, making winding no problem.

To be honest, I was concerned about one thing; I only had 50g of yarn to test with. As you may know, I am looking to improve my knitting skills. Crochet is my first and forever fiber love, but branching out into new territories is good for everyone. Plus, knitting illuminates my crochet skills and design ideas in new ways! Since knitting tends to use about 1/3 less yarn than crochet (on average), I decided that I had better knit with my precious June Cashmere in order to stretch it out.

The yarn and the project ended up being a heavenly match. I chose this fox scarf pattern, but I diverged from it quite a bit. I had exactly the right amount of yarn, with a touch leftover. The yarn was very pleasant to knit with and produced crisp stitches. I supplemented with some stash DK in the appropriate colors.

I don't think I could have chosen a better yarn for my fox scarflette if I'd tried. The color, Pumpkin, was spot-on. I totally adore the finished project. Usually, I would love to tell you about the alterations I made to a pattern as I worked it up. However, this time I just went with the flow. I practiced my knitting shaping in a very organic way and didn't write anything down.

Thank you to June Cashmere for letting me test their yarn. I unhesitatingly recommend it, especially for its rich colors and stitch definition. Maybe I can squeeze a tiny project out of the leftovers!

Review: Bali Sky Yarn from Mango Moon

Today I'll be reviewing Bali Sky yarn from Mango Moon. Disclaimer: I received this complimentary yarn in exchange for a review. I am not being paid to write this review and everything shared here is my real opinion.

Bali Sky is a very unique yarn. It is made from recycled sarongs, so it is good for the environment. It is also made by spinners in Indonesia who financially benefit from the fair business practices of Mango Moon Yarns. Very nice! Also, how cute is it that they sent me some tea with my yarn?

The yarn is very colorful and exciting. It is also very strong, so I decided to test it by working up several small projects that benefit from strength. Sometimes it can be interesting to figure out what to do with such an exciting yarn, so here are some ideas.

First, I crocheted a coaster. It turned out tight and sturdy, just as I thought it might. A set of these would be really cool, or I could have kept going and made a neat place mat that could sit under a decorative vase or similar.

Next, I knit a simple garter stitch headband. It turned out really funky and fun! The color striping came out much more rainbow-y than when I crocheted with it. Granted, I was working in rows instead of rounds. The colorway I was playing with is called Dawn.

Then, I really wanted to test the strength of the yarn, so I crocheted a mesh drawstring bag. The resulting bag is very unique and colorful and certainly lives up to my strength expectations. A wider base could easily give you a stand-out market bag.

Finally, I had just enough yarn left to work up a little crochet bracelet. If you gave one of these to a bunch of your friends, each one would be unique and different. You could even add beads.

I was pleasantly surprised with how far the single skein went. I love where the yarn comes from, how it looks, and what you can do with it. However, the one big drawback was the twisting. The yarn tended to twist up as I crocheted with it, making it so I had to stop and untwist it periodically throughout each crochet project. When I was knitting with it, the problem was much less pronounced. I do want to acknowledge that each skein is different and that the yarn came pre-wound for me, so it is possible that the twisting was a result of something that wouldn't affect other skeins. If you are dedicated to crocheting with it despite the twisting, the resulting projects are bold and exciting. If you want to knit with it, I'd say you have little to worry about.

I am looking forward to deciding who to gift the above projects to! Thank you to Mango Moon for the chance to work with such cool yarn.

Review: Tatamy Yarn from Kraemer

Today I'll be reviewing Kraemer's Tatamy yarn in DK, DK tweed, and worsted tweed. Disclaimer: I received this complimentary yarn in exchange for a review. I am not being paid to write this review and everything shared here is my real opinion.

Cotton is a very versatile, strong, and breathable fiber. However, cotton can be a bit hard on your hands as you work with it. Kraemer has blended cotton with acrylic in their Tatamy yarn line. The result is a yarn that has many of the qualities of cotton, but is softer and more pleasant to work with.

I am happy to report that testing this yarn has helped to pull me out of my designing slump. Not only do I have an awesome crochet pattern in the works, but I am also writing my very first knitting pattern with Tatamy! Be looking for a sneak peek soon, following by pattern announcements when they are complete and back from testing. I'm grateful to Kraemer for producing yarns that have inspired me to design.

Review: Rosemary Bag by della Q

Today I'll be reviewing della Q's Rosemary bag. Disclaimer: I received this complimentary bag in exchange for a review. I am not being paid to write this review and everything shared here is my real opinion.

 della Q makes adorable cases and project bags for knitters and crocheters. You can learn much more about the business by following the link to Della's website. In fact, della Q is located right here in Seattle where I live! I have heard a bit about these bags from local friends, but I hadn't really had the chance to try one out until now. It is super cute! I love the colors, and though it was really hard to decide between them, I chose purple. How could I not?!

I love that the bag has a sheen to it. It's small and easy to carry, yet it still fits a surprising amount of stuff. The bottom of the bag is fuller and rounds out, while the top of the bag is slightly more narrow. This keeps everything inside the bag from falling out or moving around too much.

 This bag could be used as a stay at home project bag or as a portable one. The front pocket would be great for notions, but I think I'm going to use it to carry my keys, cards, and phone when I tote my projects around to coffee shops!

I would not hesitate to recommend this bag. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to review it, Della!

Summer Sprigs Lace Scarf in a Special Colorway from A Good Yarn Sarasota

It's done! It's done! It's finally done! Can you tell I'm excited? The lace weight shawl that I have been working on is blocked up and aired out. I made this shawl to test out a special colorway, Cabbage Patch, produced by Dream in Color for A Good Yarn Sarasota. I think it was perfect for this project and I was very pleased with the yarn.

I followed this pattern by Esther Chandler. I have followed one of her patterns before, something I just remembered. I was a touch confused in a few places, so I fudged and hoped for the best a few times :) Overall the pattern is a good one, and the finished product is delightful. Plus, I am super grateful for free patterns, especially since I know what goes into writing one.

Without further ado, here's my Summer Sprigs!

Review: A Good Yarn Sarasota, Exclusive Colorway from Dream in Color

Today I'll be reviewing Jilly Laceweight Yarn from Dream in Color yarn in a special colorway hand-dyed exclusively for A Good Yarn. Disclaimer: I received this complimentary yarn in exchange for a review. I am not being paid to write this review and everything shared here is my real opinion.

I love nature. Even the smallest of creatures captivates me. Look at this beautiful, delicate little moth I found the other day. (Don't worry, my precious yarn is secured and safe from moths)

Nature is so inspiring. Indeed, many designers and dyers are inspired by the great outdoors. A Good Yarn Sarasota loves nature as much as I do, especially sea life. In fact, they've partnered with several yarn companies to develop a whole line of exclusive colorways based on nature, predominately ocean life. Cool, huh?

I was lucky enough to receive this hank of lace weight yarn to try out.

The colorway is called Cabbage Patch, named after cabbage coral. It's a great blend of greens with touches of blue. The hank is very generous in yardage, coming in at 880 yards. That's plenty of yarn to complete any shawl, scarf, or other traditional lace project.

I decided to use this yarn to work up the Summer Sprigs Lace Scarf pattern by Esther Chandler. This project will take me a while to complete, but I think it will be lovely when it's done.

I'll keep you posted on my progress. So far, working with the yarn has been quite nice. When I made a small mistake it also frogged fairly easily, even despite its halo. Sometimes colorful yarns aren't advisable for intricate stitch patterns, but I don't think that will be an issue here. The colors blend subtly enough that I think my finished project will be crisp and pretty.

What do you think of Cabbage Patch?