[apette]

My son wants an icelandic sweater and of course I want it to last a long time and be warm. It's been a long time since I've worked with Lopi. I haven't even seen it in LYS to give it a feel, so I was wondering if it's still as scratchy as it used to be 25 years ago.
I know my son won't wear it if it's too "itchy".
The pattern calls for aran weight...18 sts. Can anyone tell me of another yarn/wool that makes a nice icelandic sweater that's not itchy? Thanks,
April

 

[mjanette]

I would look for alpaca or merino (both non-itchy). My favorite knitting site Elann.com has wonderful yarn, reasonably priced that shows finished knitted projects.

 

[RoxyCatlady]

Lopi and Lett Lopi haven't changed to my knowledge - I wear them next to my skin. But I know that others can't/don't.

Any worsted weight yarn can be substituted, as long as you get the same gauge. Lett Lopi is rated at 18 sts over 4 inches, so any yarn with that on the ball band should work.

Also, for what it is worth, when I wash my Lopi sweaters, I use a (cheap) shampoo with conditioner. Every time I wash them, they get a little softer

 

[Sam2]

My son wants an icelandic sweater and of course I want it to last a long time and be warm. It's been a long time since I've worked with Lopi. I haven't even seen it in LYS to give it a feel, so I was wondering if it's still as scratchy as it used to be 25 years ago.
I know my son won't wear it if it's too "itchy".
The pattern calls for aran weight...18 sts. Can anyone tell me of another yarn/wool that makes a nice icelandic sweater that's not itchy? Thanks,
April

To make the yarn less itchy, my Icelandic friend suggests washing the finished sweater with regular hair conditioner to soften the fibres.

 

[apette]

Thanks everyone. I've washed itchy wool before with shampoo and conditioner, but it was for myself and itchy doesn't bother me. I'll check out some wools with alpaca in it. I find alpaca alone is much too limp, but perhaps a blend would work well.
April