Swatching it up

Urgh! I still can't decide what to do about choosing a yarn for Martha. I have 2 swatches, both in pattern stitch and blocked.


(Click to see it bigger -- the stitch shows better there...)

The one on the left in the more blue-ish purple is in Paton's Grace, very similar to Rowan's Cotton Glace. The one on the right is the Endless Summer Lara that I got last week.

Both are 100% cotton in a similar (though not identical) gauge. The Grace makes a thicker fabric, and is squooshier and cuddly-soft. The Lara has a bit of a sheen and is smooth-soft, but not cuddly-soft.

The Grace has 4 plies and the Lara has 10! The Lara is much "splittier" although I was able to avoid any split stitches by paying attention to what I was doing. The Lara costs about half what the Grace does.

So, in summary:

GRACE PROS:

• Cuddly soft


• Slightly larger gauge, will be done sooner

GRACE CONS:

• Costs about twice as much as Lara

LARA PROS:

• Has a sleeker look that might make it dressier (I will be wearing it to work)


• Slightly smaller gauge, and thinner fabric, means I can make a matching tank if I want


• Way cheaper!

LARA CONS:

• Splitty yarn


• The yarn is cheaper, but is the quality up to par?

Of course, the other option is still to go with the Knitpicks' Shine yarn. I am off to go view a color card for that one shortly ... It is cuddly soft like Grace, but a bit thicker, so definitely no sweater set for that one. (Do I really want to make a tank anyways?) Its price is comparable to Lara, and cheaper than Grace. I think I like their purple, but I'm afraid it is too dark ... I'll let you know what I think later.