Beginning Knitter

[zebrabelly]

I want to make my friend a hat and scarf for Christmas. I have a pattern that's easy and that I have played with before. I was thinking of making it out of chenile since that would be classy, but the pattern calls for something else (I can't tell you right now, b/c it's under the bed my baby is asleep on) - is it easy to substitute different types of yarns? Also, my friend tends to wash and dry everything the same, regardless of material so I'm not sure if chenile is a good idea. Is there a sturdier yarn that's similar in classiness? LOL Hope I am making some small amount of sense here - I'm totally new at this!

Bons

[Charmie981]

My MIL, who is a pretty crafty person, and also *very* fashion conscious, decided to learn to crochet by making a black chenille hat and scarf. She had her mother sitting right there to guide her and said that it was *very* difficult and her mom ended up finshing it for her because the yarn was so slippery. She equated it to learning to sew with a creepy crawly fabric like silk or chiffon and said it wasn't a good idea, so I'm kind of leary of chenille now (although I do love the look of it!).

As far as the weight and other classy but easy care yarns, I don't know . I just thought I'd share my MILs experience.

[Queen Gwen]

Okay, I just reread your post and realized I answered a different question than the one you asked, LOL!

I rarely used the suggested yarns in patterns. It makes it more original to pick something else, KWIM? But, in the spectrum of things, I think chenille is sort of hard to deal with (eyelash yarns are worse, though). I kept dropping stitches when I was making chenille sweaters for dds, and I've been knitting for decades! Then again, I rarely pay attention to my knitting, usually reading a book or something while I knit. YMMV.

Anyway, there are lots of interesting yarns out now, it's just a matter of browsing. How about 2 yarns held together -- you can get some neat textures and colors that way.

[baileysmommy]

I think using the chenille would be fine even though the pattern doesn't call for it. Especially since a scarf doesn't need to fit. If it was a sweater you just would have to make sure that the gauge was correct.

I have had chenille sweater that I washed on delicate. Plus a hat and scarf don't really need wased that often. So I think it would be fine. Even my hobby lobby has some cool new yarns for the winter. Like washable acrylics with a little sparkle. you could maybe try something like that if you are concerned.

[Knittin' in the Shade]

It depends on what the gauge is in teh pattern and if you can get the same gauge with the cheneille. Also, acrylic cheneille is a B*^&h to work with, very slippery, and if the pattern is detailed with texture, it will be completely buried in the fluff of the cheneille. However, there is a cotton cheneille made by Crystal Palace that is a worsted weight yarn, and is absolutely beautiful when it's worked up. It's a little tough on the hands because there's no give to the yarn at all, but it really looks gereat when finished.

[Queen Gwen]

Yeah, I think I used acrylic because that's what Hobby Lobby had. Thanks for the tip on the cotton.