I posted a while back about a cable-knit Knit Claudia Winkelmann-style jumper my daughter wanted, and had some really helpful replies. I found a nice pattern and started it with King Cole fashion aran, but it is felting quite a bit, and I’m wondering whether to go upmarket. Someone said they had had good results withe the DB cashmerino, but the review on ‘Yarn Untwisted’ said it wasn’t as soft as they hoped, and did pill as they worked. Lot of money to pay for a mistake, so I wondered what others’ experiences had been. Poss I should just go for merino; the Drops make looks pretty good value.
Debbie Bliss cashmerino
I was very disappointed in the amount of pilling with DB cashmerino aran. I used it once for a cardigan and haven’t used it since. It’s lovely yarn to knit with but the pills make it awful.
I quite liked the feel of the cashmerino - though it’s not as soft as it sounds like it should be - but I was also disappointed by the end result, and didn’t think it was good value for money. For the design you’re looking at, I’d go for something which will give you good stitch definition, and a merino will do that - if you want a bit of extra softness, perhaps a merino alpaca blend.
Drops is always a good option (especially in the UK/Europe) and is far more affordable for some great quality yarns than you might otherwise find.
Merino yarns tend to pill, in my experience. (It doesn’t have to be that way, but it seems it’s often not spun in the right way to balance softness and durability.)
I’ve had reasonable results with Drops non-merino ones, although you will sometimes have bad luck and get a pilly batch, judging by reviews.
I also don’t mind Knit Picks’ Wool of the Andes.
A lot of my favourite wools from bigger companies have bern discontinued so I find it hard to recommend a range of choices for jumpers.
Are you in the UK?
I have heard good things about New Lanark wool, but it is slightly on the rustic side: https://www.newlanarkspinning.com/
Edited to add: Did you want machine washable? None of the ones I mentioned are machine washable.
I have used DB cashmerino baby and also found it pills very quickly. I does feel lush to knit with, but I agree, not worth the money for a finished product that doesn’t hold up well.