Yeah, I have a lot of weird issues with acrylics freezing stiff; I ended up buying Greenlandic-made mittens when I first got up here because my gloves kept getting "hard" if that makes sense.

Also, I've played with the quiviut balaclavas they sell up here and it's too "scratchy" for me; unless maybe the locals treat it or card it differently than mass produced or US produced stuff, I don't think that's for me.

I'm actually leaning towards alpaca, but I don't actually know why merino is so... special? It's still sheep, right? And isn't cashmere a little breakable, or is that only in lighter weight yarns? I knit kind of tight, which is why I've stuck with acrylics; it doesn't mind my tension so much.