I just got 4 balls of merino/cashmere for $4 each.

[MaineDem]

I'm in heaven! It's beautiful yarn - Karavella Margrite. I can't wait to start the socks or the mittens or a hat. Two are lime green and two are grey.

I also picked up some natural Cash iroha. Japanese cashmere, silk, lambswool, nylon worsted. $3.30 a hank.

They were at a store that buys from closed or damaged stores around the country. I may have to go back!

[WolverineDG]

1. share

;)

Do they have an online store?

dg--stash junkie needing a fix

[knitter4democracy]

2. Be careful with the color washing out of Cash Iroha.

I had trouble with two different batches--all that lovely color went right down the drain. Grr.

[China_cat]

3. With hand-dyed yarns

add some vinegar to plain water and saturate either the garment or the yarn before washing it. Some dyers don't believe in mordants...which set the color. Then wash in cool water with a mild soap. NOT Woolite. For some reason, Woolite takes the colors out of some dye stuffs. And, mordant or not, out of any yarn with a silk component.

[knitter4democracy]

4. Noro's not hand-dyed. For some reason, their dyes don't work on that blend.

I'm not sure why, either.

Oh, and I haaate Woolite. That stuff is crap. Kookaburra's the best. I've never, ever had a problem with it. When the Cash Iroha first faded on me, I tried my very gentle dishsoap (what spinners use) after first doing the vinegar trick. No dice. All that lovely blue washed right out. Made me mad as heck.

[China_cat]

5. What a shame.

Do you have any of it left? Even a few scraps? Maybe it would work with an alum mordant.

And maybe you could try redying it yourself. Knitpicks offers acid dyes at a reasonable price or you could even try Kool-Aid dying it.

[knitter4democracy]

6. I do have the leftovers. I hadn't thought about testing it.

Pricey yarn to have to re-dye. Original price was $10/50g. skein, but I got it for seven.

The reality is, I've yet to get a skein of Noro I thought was worth the price. Poorly spun, poor quality wool, gorgeous colors that aren't worth it if they run like that. I just spend my money elsewhere now.

I don't really dye much. Spinning and knitting are enough for now. :)

[China_cat]

7. Have you ever tried Sarah's Yarns?

http://www.sarahsyarns.com

I got some cashmere/silk blend from her to make a christening outfit and shawl for my niece's baby. It wasn't cheap but it also wasn't outrageous, either. Lovely yarn. Not a join in any of the hanks I got, very consistent, made up beautifully.

She's got a lot of yarns, has samples and even will send you enough yarn to swatch for $3.

[knitter4democracy]

8. I'll take a look.

Thanks!