looking for advice

[theliterator]

Hi again! Lurker still... though less of one since this is my second post?

The thing is, I've recently moved to the arctic and I think I need warm... things. I kind of want a balaclava, actually, and I'm probably going to end up making one, but I was wondering if anyone had advice regarding what sort of yarn I ought to use? (I'm open to the idea of a scarf, but I don't like how hard it is to keep them in place. Maybe a neck gaiter type thing?)

I'm a casual knitter, but I just found out my tuition for fall semester is paid, so I have an unlimited budget (I've bought a new coat and fur-lined cap and everything first, the balaclava idea is secondary, promise!) and I don't have a pattern either but I figure I can find something in my book of random patterns the person who taught me gave me or online if I had too, I was mostly at a loss on fiber, given how I mostly just stick with cheap acrylics (or more expensive acrylics) given the casual nature of my knitting.

Also, I live in a dorm, so something that requires minimal post-knitting care would be nice. Warmth though, would be good. I hear it gets cold here.

So any advice before I give up and throw the internet out the window would be awesome. (There was a muskox one at the store, but it is scratchy in its warmth which is not an ideal balaclava, in my opinion.)

ETA: according to wikipedia muskox yarn is qiviut, but i think the stuff they're selling at dundas hasn't been seperated from the guardhairs like what you can buy elsewhere. i'll consider picking something like that up in qanaaq or having someone else do it for me, but it seems prohibitively expensive otherwise.

Comments

[neotoma]

There are any number of superwash wools -- even merino wools -- out there. But if you're worried about scratchiness, you're going to want to do a touch-test yourself.

I'd recommend Lorna's Laces Shepherd (in Sock, Sport or Worsted), but you might like something else --KnitPicks has a very affordable range of machine-washable yarns. I also like Jojoland, and Melody (fingering) and Rhythm (worsted) both come in superwash.

Or you could just indulge yourself on what you like best in the skein -- because it's not like you have to wash a scarf every time you wear it, is it? I'd look for quiviut (lace or fingering), alpaca (lace to sport), cashmere, angora, or merino sheep's-wool in a weight you want to work with.

You'll definitely want to avoid acrylics and other synthetics if you're living somewhere cold -- they don't retain heat well, and they *do* retain moisture, at least in my experience.

[theliterator]

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.

[neotoma]

You might look for locally milled quiviut -- it's got to be hand combed to remove the guard hair, and maybe they stuff you've seen hasn't bothered? The quiviut I've got is like petting butter, it's so soft.

Merino is a breed of sheep that has extremely fine wool, even as adults -- soft enough to wear next to your skin, if the sheep are actually withing the breed standard.

Cashmere is more fragile that wool, since it doesn't have the 'bounce' of wool -- no other animal fiber has 'memory' like wool, so it's generally a trade-off between drape and shape in other animal fibers. You might like a wool-silk blend, now that I think about it.

[theliterator]

So, it looks like what everyone's suggesting narrows down to:

Alpaca/Silk

Alpaca/Wool

Wool/Silk

with an option on taking a weekend boat trip to Qanaaq to see if I can find some qiviut yarn, or sending money with someone to look for me. (This option has a very short window so it probably won't happen. Winter is coming.)

And merino is really soft wool, so I could switch out merino in any of those blends? Or am I confused and by wool you mean, say, normal everyday wool with the alpaca/silk to make it softer?

Merino is just as warm as wool, right?

[jumpuphigh]

If you don't have a LYS, I do like this yarn a whole lot.
http://blueskyalpacas.com/yarns/alpaca-silk/
It's not cheap yarn and will spoil you tremendously but it is so worth it.

[neotoma]

Silk blends are definitely something you should consider -- I've done a shawl of 50/50 wool-silk, and it knit well, had nice drape, and was still easy to block like wool is.

Merino is really soft wool -- but most people find alpaca about as soft as merino.

Merino is wool, so yes, it's just as warm -- most of the other animal fibers like alpaca and qiviut are warmer, but they don't have an stretch to them and not much loft, so they drape more like cotton than wool, which is not bad, it just means you're going to get much more drape-iness with them than with wool.