BASIC INFORMATION – THE WOOL SKEINS:
- Skeins: 200 gr / 80 meters. (100 gr = 40 m)
- Composition: 100% wool
- Brand: We Are Knitters
- Price: 18€ / skein.
- Shade range: 31 colors available.
- Where can you buy it: WAK online store.
- Needles / hook recommended: 15MM (both knit and crochet)
- Gauge:
– Stockinette stitch: 6 stitches x 8 rows (10x10cm) *in my case it’s pretty accurate but have in mind I’m a very loose knitter.
– Simple crochet: 6 stitches x 5 rows (10x10cm)
*Note: I need to add that I bought 6 skeins and in 1 of them had a knot in it.
BASIC INFORMATION – POLARIS SKEINS:
- Skeins: 100 gr / 36 meters.
- Composition: 100% wool
- Brand: Drops design
- Price: 4.65€ / skein
- Shade range: 7 colors available.
- Where can you buy it: physical and online yarn shops (check retailers in your country in this link)
- Needles / hook recommended: 12MM (both knit and crochet)
- Gauge:
– Stockinette stitch: 8 stitches x 10 rows (10x10cm) *since I don’t have 12mm needles I couldn’t make a swatch to test the gauge, but it was a very similar gauge to The Wool for 15mm needles (6’5 stitches x 8’5 rows more or less)
*Note: I bought 5 skeins of this wool and 1 of them had a knot in it.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS & APPEARANCE
Both yarns are very chunky, with only a 4m difference for each 100gr so at the eye it’s not very noticeable.
They are both very soft, if I had to choose between one of them, I think The Wool would be the softer one but I think it is also due to having less structure than the Polaris skeins. This means it’s easier to separate the strands of the skein when working with it, it’s is more malleable while Polaris strands are winded a bit tighter and have more circular shape (you can notice it when touching both strands of yarns).
WORKING / KNITTING WITH THE WOOL SKEINS:
I knitted The Wool with 10 mm (rib stitch for the cuffs and neckline) and 15 mm knitting needles (body and sleeves). Since it is a very chunky wool it is knitted very fast and you will end up with a very soft texture that creates a warm sweater.
As noted in the beggining, my gauge was the same as stated in the skeins for 15 mm knitting needles, I think it is easy to obtain (if you a loose knitter like me). I had a great experience knitting with this yarn, it’s very easy and you have “instant” gratification since you see how your project grows in no time.
Since when I was designing the sweater and I wasn’t very sure how I would like to finish it or if I would have enough yarn, I played A LOT with the yarn, knit, frog, unravel 2 times (at least) the tubular bind-off of the body and cuffs (yes, it was a big pain!)… and one of the things I noticed was that the yarn lost a lot of structure when frogging so please be aware of that when playing around with it! After that it will still be good to knit or crochet but you will have to be more careful with the threads since they will be more loose and easier to separate.
I haven’t had the chance to try crocheting this skeins but it is completely possible and the results are incredible. You can check the WAK x Two of Wands collection where there is a bag project with these skeins and 15 mm crochet hook.
Down below you can see stockinette stitch and garter stitch with this yarn in 15mm (cuffs and neckline in 10mm in the right picture)
WORKING / KNITTING WITH POLARIS SKEINS:
I knitted Polaris with 10 mm (rib stitch for the cuffs and neckline) and 15 mm knitting needles (body and sleeves). Since it is a very chunky wool it is knitted very fast and you will end up with asoft texture and defined stitches that creates a warm sweater.
As noted in the beggining, I didn’t use the recommended needle size for the skeins, since I wanted to match them with The Wool, so I used 15 mm knitting needles and obtained a similar gauge (which again, it’s easy to obtain if you are a loose knitter). I also had a positive experience knitting with this yarn, it’s also very easy and you have “instant” gratification since you see how your project grows in no time.
I played around with both brands, since I was switching back and forth with both skeins for the tubular bind-off, so I think both had a fair share of unraveling and playing around. Polaris skeins lost a bit less of stucture when unravelling, but still maintained a bit of structure and threads would’t be so easily separated when knitting again.
I haven’t had the chance to try crocheting this skeins but I have it in my to-do list since a 12 mm crochet hook it’s on it’s way and I would love to use the left overs for at least one star for the Christmas tree (I will update the results as soon as I’m done!)
Down below you can see stockinette stitch with 15 mm needles and rib stitch with 10 mm needles for the cuffs and bottom part.
FINAL RESULT:
As you can see in the pictures, the result is way too similar (I was very skeptical at first but after a few rows I couldn’t be happier with the results!), almost even identical to the eye having only as difference the proportion of gr / m (The Wool has 4m x 100 gr than Polaris).
When it comes to softness and touch, you can appreciate a bit of difference when touching both, I think The Wool is a bit softer and hairy (at the begginig with no wear).
After wearing both projects, the Nolita Sweater (all knitted with The Wool) and my chunky sweater (own design combining The Wool and Polaris), you will find below pictures of how the yarn has changed and the effect of wear has affected them.
I think Polaris is the one that is affected the most by wear, since it becomes a bit more hairy in the parts that have more fiction (sleeve side that touches the body and the body – to be fair both sweaters have more peeling in those parts) but both stand wear pretty good for now. Since the Polaris had a bit more of structure and the stitches were more defined at the beggining I think the peeling gives that hairy look that matches perfectly with The Wool and makes them seem like the same yarn.
Before use:
After use:
COULD ONE BE THE SUBSTITE OF THE OTHER?
I would totally say yes, as you can see in the picture both are worked up just fine and you can barely notice visually that they are from different brands. I would base my choice in the following aspects:
- Price: there is a big difference between both yarns, and that’s a factor to consider when buying.
- Peeling: Polaris becomes a bit more hairy with the use due to friction (as commented above, it happens to both of them), so you will have to choose according to the final result you would like to achieve (but as you can see in the pictures, it’s pretty similar!)
- Softness: as stated before, I think WAK – The Wool is a bit softer but there’s not a huge difference between them, that’s up to your preferences and taste!
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Have a great Monday evening!
Xx
Marta