http://store.knitting-warehouse.com/yarn-nyyarns-cotton.html
This is the STIFFEST yarn I have ever worked with. It looks shiny and is very smooth, but the skein collects lint and bits of carpet better than any I’ve ever seen! When I began knitting a jacket with it, I noticed that the yarn became difficult to move on my metallic needles, and I am not a tight knitter at all. Is there anything I can do to soften the yarn up?
It may be that it will soften up with use and after washing.
I noticed the colors were red & black. The two colors notorious for having excess dye after processing. Which I think is what is making the yarn so stiff & a lint magnet.
That is a tough one. You could prewash or steam the yarn. Both are a hassle. But the bigger issue is you risk losing the tight twist in the cotton yarn.
How to get gunk off cotton without loosening the twist? Let me think about it some more.
It could be the excess dye, which I recently learned can really stiffen your yarn if it’s not rinsed properly (and can leave a residue) or… it might be that it’s cotton. Sugar’n Cream is mostly cotton and it’s a tad stiff, which softens in the first washing.