Those of you that have used this yarn from Knit Picks please tell me if you think it would do well to make a shawl. I have been planning to make a faroses shawl with this yarn.
I would say it depends on the gauge of the yarn your shawl calls for. Wool of the Andes is worsted weight, so if your pattern calls for lace weight or fingering weight, you are going to have to make some adjustments to your pattern (unless you want a really big shawl :)). Your shawl will be very warm too!
The pattern calls for worsted. I’m concerned with the softness since I have no way before hand to tell. I have nothing locally to pick from and shopping on line can be like putting your hand in a bag and taking what you get. I hate to have to return things.
Ah, OK. I have used Wool of the Andes, and I think it’s pretty soft. Since a shawl isn’t typically right against your bare skin, I think you’ll be OK with it. But it is kind of subjective too, depending on how sensitive you are to wool. (I am fairly sensitive, and I think it’s pretty soft.)
Another option might be Swish from KnitPicks. It’s also wool, but it’s superwash, and is super soft. I’ve made baby blankets from it.
I’ve used a fair amount of WOTA, for felting as well as for a sweater and a vest. It felts great, btw (not that you asked). I’m only slightly sensitive to wool, and I recently finished a project that used Berroco Ultra Alpaca for a neck cozy, and that itched more than the WOTA. shrug.
Just so you know it pills like crazy.
http://www.knittinghelp.com/forum/showthread.php?t=36922&highlight=pilling
I have sensitive skin and I can’t wear it at all. Then again… I find Ultra Alpaca a little scratchy so…
Thanks for bringing that to my attention Jan. A shawl probably would not pill as bad since there are no sleeves to rub back and forth against the sides. But still, after all the work and cost involved in any project, I would not want to have to deal with a lot of pills. Maybe I’ll just continue to save my money and go with the merino superwash that KP sells instead. I don’t think merino wool would pill as bad as the peruvian wool that the WOTA’s is made from.
I didn’t have too much trouble with pilling with WOTA, but I only used it for scarves and hats.
I had no pilling at all with the Superwash merino though.
I just bought some and was disappointed with the feel of it. It’s not soft AT all. It will also cost you A LOT of money. This is why I havn’t, until then, bought yarn online. I won’t do it again. The skein is so so small. I like to feel the yarn before I buy it.
The stores, like michaels and hobby lobby, have MUCH better wool yarn and much softer yarn than knit picks.
Unfortunately, I haven’t had that luck with box stores. I like Patons Merino, but other than that, haven’t been too happy with wool yarns I’ve found in places like JoAnn and Michaels (no Hobby Lobby where I live). They do have good yarns for when I want acrylics, though. I buy most of my yarn from elann.com simply because if I want alpaca, or superwash wool, I can’t afford them from LYSes.
Anyway–another option you might look at is www.elann.com’s Peruvian Highland Wool. It’s very similar to WOTA. I have made a couple of sweaters with it, and while it does pill in the areas where there is rubbing, like just about any wool does in a sweater, I don’t find the pilling to be excessive. This wool comes in sport, worsted, chunky and bulky weights, by the way, and I love the array of colors.
And elann has fabulous customer service. So you might want to check that out.
That’s weird, Jan. I haven’t noticed WOTA pilling at all. Hmmm.
It’s great to felt, but itchy and pills. But the colors are to die for:thumbsup:
Me neither. I’ve made hats, gloves, and scarves from WotA that get used regularly with no pilling whatsoever. <3 WotA 
Funny how everyone has different experiences with this wool. I just bought some in bulky for a felting project. I started using it and am very impressed. It is softer than I expected it to be. I expected it to be like cascade 220 which I find extremely itchy. But it is surprisingly soft, less itchy than Berroco Ultra Alpaca. I’m considering using it for something not felted so am reading up on peoples comments. I wonder if it has improved since 2006 when Amy complained about her pilling sweater? Or if it has to do with the dye that some find it soft and some don’t. As I knit my project, since I’m going to felt it anyway, I’ve been trying to make it pill by rubbing it on my jeans and not being quite so gentle as I usually am with a project. I can’t make it pill. I’ve had other yarns that pill during knitting but this has not. If I have left over yarn I will make some mittens and see how quick they pill.