Lion Brand is Crap

[Mermaiden]

I think it's all in the hook. I had a hard time with it, plus the RH Light n' Lofty, until I got it going on the right hook, then it was a breeze.

[Bethany]

I typically can't get to my LYS either -- the only time I could get there is Saturday and it's a half-hour drive, and I don't usually fancy giving up that much of my Saturday to look for yarn.

 

But the Internet is open 24-7. :-) That's how I buy most of my yarn, not at either my LYS OR Michaels/AC Moore. (I do buy most of my notions at AC Moore.)

[CLLinda]

Each to his/her own opinion. I do love the variety that Lion Brand puts out. Their catalog makes me want to drool. I have used many different products and some are better than others. But that is with any company.

 

And they are very good about problems that come up in their yarns. I like a company that will give you another product when you tell them what was wrong.

 

We all just need to find a yarn company that fits our needs and our wallets!

 

Linda:manyheart

[Happy_Hooker]

One thing that they do have which most companies don't as far as I can see is their dp knitting needles are sold in sets of 5... most companies sell them in sets of 4... and most sock patterns call for 5 needles That is a really good point to LB

[cgd]

Budget is definitely a consideration for me. I make OK money, but have a son, house, car etc. Also, being a beginner, I feel like it's wasting money for me to buy expensive yarn. I need to work with WalMart-type stuff for awhile. Some argue that I'll get discouraged using budget yarn, and that's a valid point, but it hasn't scared me off yet! Heck, I end up frogging and sometimes just stopping without frogging.

 

Also, my family is of humble origins, and the crafting of my mother, grandmother, and aunts was done mostly out of necessity. They mostly sewed (one aunt crocheted a lot); my mom made everything we wore when I was little. There are still handmade family quilts floating around, but most of them are simple and wouldn't win a county fair. Heck, they quilted from leftover sewing scraps. I guess I'm weird, but the resourcefulness and yes, the simplicity of this appeals to me. That's one reason I love cotton dishcloths so much--it reminds me of that quality of women's hands (in my family at least, I know some men also do these crafts) providing for their families. I'll probably never do extremely complicated designs, but I still have a right to crochet and knit. I'm not selling work or touting myself as an expert, just doing this for relaxation. If it gets too hard, it won't be very relaxing for me!

 

One day, when I crochet or knit a pretty sweater, or if I make a special gift for someone, I might venture into the next level. But for now, I can buy more yarn for the buck with Red Heart, Peaches and Cream, LB and the occasional Bernat Softee Chunky. The more yarn I can buy, the more I can crochet and/or knit!

[zazzu]

One day, when I crochet or knit a pretty sweater, or if I make a special gift for someone, I might venture into the next level. But for now, I can buy more yarn for the buck with Red Heart, Peaches and Cream, LB and the occasional Bernat Softee Chunky. The more yarn I can buy, the more I can crochet and/or knit!

 

I can relate to this. Some folks HATE Red Heart, and they make valid points, but I love it for durable gift afghans. I'm not paying LYS prices for yarn to make an afghan that the dog may end up sleeping on.

 

And P&C? LOVE it! I'm knitting baby bibs and burp cloths with it now.

 

Yeah, for a sweater I'll definitely go for higher quality. Wouldn't want to itch to death!

[cgd]

I can relate to this. Some folks HATE Red Heart, and they make valid points, but I love it for durable gift afghans. I'm not paying LYS prices for yarn to make an afghan that the dog may end up sleeping on.

 

And P&C? LOVE it! I'm knitting baby bibs and burp cloths with it now.

 

Yeah, for a sweater I'll definitely go for higher quality. Wouldn't want to itch to death!

 

I can relate about the afghan durability issue. I crocheted one for my 9-yr-old son, who uses it for an imaginary cloaking device when playing like he's an astronaut in space, pretending he's a turtle and the afghan is his shell, and sometimes actually for cover!

 

I'm crocheting and knitting dishcloths with the P&C, which many people on my birthday/Christmas/housewarming/wedding gift list might get this year! I hadn't thought of the baby bib/burp cloth use, but will have to do some of these too since SIL has a 3-month-old. Thanks for the idea!

[funkyreporter]

...my mom made everything we wore when I was little. There are still handmade family quilts floating around, but most of them are simple and wouldn't win a county fair. Heck, they quilted from leftover sewing scraps...

 

Well, I'm a self-tought crocheter/quilter but my husband is oldest of seven and his mom was a very accomplished seamstress, quilt-maker, crocheter, knitter... She had three sons by the age of 19 and there is a 16 year span from her oldest to youngest child.

 

I never had the honor of meeting her as she passed just when my husband and I were meeting each other (he was 46 at the time).

 

I did get to see some of the beautiful quilts she made in her later years (Award winning stuff) and my husband says that her early quilts were 'of necessity' and creating a quilt top was her way of 'cleaning up' around her sewing machine while she was making her children's clothing! He says she'd just reach down and pick up the scraps and there would be part of Tommy's shirt or Kathleen's skirt or his pajamas all appearing in a truly crazy quilt! She was also great with yarn as she felt "any colors can be put together if you put a nuetral in between." Sounds crazy, but I've tried it and it works (to a point)... I don't believe anyone was ever cold in her house growing up:lol

[cgd]

Wow, your MIL was a strong and talented woman! The award-winning quilts probably happened in the later years because she had some time to actually sit down and make them for pleasure. My mother is quilting for pleasure now. She also took up woodworking and is quite good at it. She made my son a racecar bed that is the envy of anyone who sees it. It's amazing how creative you can get when you're not chasing kids or working full-time anymore! (Maybe that's when my creativity will come--not much has showed up yet. I enjoy this, but have no natural talent. Didn't get my mother's or aunt's genes).

[knitcrochetandpray]

I LOVE Lion Brand!!! As has been mentioned in previous post, my fondness for this company has to do in part with the prices they are able to offer. I am a SAHM, we live on one income, and while I am an avid fiber artisan, I cannot afford the lavish prices that many companies command for their yarns . Lion Brand offers a great variety of yarns in many textures, weights, and colors, for prices that most folks can afford . I have been very pleased with all of the yarns I have purchased and used from this company (which has been LOTS) and will continue to use their products . Just my 2 cents.

[Calesmommy]

Me being a single working mom I use whatever yarn I can get on a good deal. Usually won't pay over $4 a skein. I have used alot of the new yarns and complicated ones. I have had problems with them but I also taught myself most of that I do know. My theory is that is you use yarn that is harder to work up you become a better crocheter As far as brand loving, mine is what I find at goodwill on a great deal. Anyways I like this village alot you all have good points. I have done all kinds of projects with all kinds of yarn. One thing I did find is that sometimes certin kinds of yarn like certin kinds of hooks. For homspun I try to use a wooden hook. Slides better. Kay shared my thoughts have a good one.

[CLLinda]

Recently, I had a problem with some Jiffy and a Pound of Love. The Lion Brand company appologized for the problems, and sent me replacement yarn. They do stand behind their products. I think it is a good company.

 

[origami]

The fact of the matter is that I don't think Lion Brand is any cheaper than Cascade or Brown Sheep. I realize that some yarn stores only carry very expensive yarns, but my LYS has Cascade, Brown Sheep and Plymouth, which are all very comparable in price to Lion Brand and what's more, they have many, many, many more color choices than JoAnn's or Michael's. I also will sometimes buy Peaches and Cream at the LYS. It's about 30 cents more expensive per ball but the LYS owner picks out all the colors herself and so there's a much wider variety there than at the big boxes or Walmart. You really have to look at the price per yard and ounce to figure out what the yarn truly costs. And for me, color choice is a huge consideration as well.

[Carol]

The fact of the matter is that I don't think Lion Brand is any cheaper than Cascade or Brown Sheep. ...You really have to look at the price per yard and ounce to figure out what the yarn truly costs. ...

 

So true! Price per skein doesn't really mean anything; you really do have to look at yardage and divide the cost by the yardage. You have to do the math.

[mudpie]

Exactly, you have to do the math, and my calculator still says that Cascade, Brown Sheep, and many other "comparable" yarns are sometimes 2 and 3 times more expensive than Lion Brand, Red Heart, and Bernat yarns. Check the price per yard. Take wool, for instance: Lion Brand's Fisherman's Wool runs about 1.7 cents per yard and Lion Brand's Wool Ease Worsted runs about 1.5 cents per yard. Cascade 220 runs about 3 cents per yard and Lamb's Pride Worsted runs about 3.7 cents a yard (of course it has that little dab of mohair in it). I know prices vary, but that is the average I came up with. And if you have to order those items online (because many are not available in my local yarn store) you must figure in the cost of shipping, which makes them even more expensive. I go to my local yarn store to buy hooks and needles, and sometimes patterns, but as a rule I'm afraid to even touch the yarns. Little "poufs" that would hardly qualify as a skein may start at $24 each. I can either choose to pay ridiculous prices for yarn for every project and end up knitting and crocheting less, or only buying the pricier yarns for special projects and use the less expensive yarns that will continue to keep my fingers limber and happy. And don't kid yourself into believing that just because you pay more for a yarn that you're going to like it better. There are as many opinions about yarn as there are brands/types of yarn.

 

To each her own.

[Ixa]

Interesting the original poster never came back to continue in the discussion or back up their points. Well, actually, it's not really surprising at all. They didn't seem interested in sparking a reasonable discussion, but rather it was just a "flame" post. Glad to see everyone else HAS been interested in talking about the subject in a civilized manner!

[bkrul]

The only Lion Brand yarn I've tried is Pound of Love. I bought a lot of that yarn before trying sample swatches. I did a lot of experimenting with that yarn before using it on actual projects and found only a few patterns really turned out well with that yarn. The yarn itself is easy to work with, no problems in that regard. The only projects that turned out really well included the blanket that is included on the label and two projects (a shawl and afghan) that both included a lot of chaining and were very loose and open. The shawl and afghan retained the softness of the yarn as it felt in the skein but it seems like the baby blanket didn't. I haven't tried using this yarn for knitting, just crochet. To me, this yarn was not as usable as I thought it would be because it either didn't look nice or lost it's softness with many of the samples I tried out. Just my opinion.

[lhasaapsolady]

I've never had a problem with Lion Brand Yarn. I absolutely love their suede and their boucle. Each person has their preference in yarns and I'm sorry you haven't found any of their products that you like.

[V-Hooked]

I'm glad to know that before I get some yarn from them. So far the only thing I get from Lion Brand is the patterns, they are not that bad!

[zagraham]

You should try it on a scarf first. They're quick, easy, and small. That is if you like scarfs.

 

The bottom line is: if you don't like it (whatever "it" is), don't buy it. Don't make the rest of us feel like dirt because we do buy it. We have our reasons and we don't have to justify them to anyone.

 

Ummm.... entering this conversation a bit late, but I didn't get that the original poster was trying to make anyone feel like dirt. It could be that she'd recently used some LB, was disgusted with it for whatever reason, and decided to vent here.

 

I also don't believe that, though the poster's entry was strongly worded, it needed to be more tactful. It's okay to express opposing viewpoints without having to tippy-toe around, no? It's just yarn, after all.

 

By the way, I don't like Homespun but am really liking Magic Stripes as a low-priced sock yarn (for knitting -- horror of horrors!).

 

Keep the opinions -- pro and con! -- coming. I enjoy hearing about people's experiences.

 

Beth (crawling back from whence she came)

[Natasha]

SMG, thanks for sharing your opinions with us. Since you're new here, you might not realize that it can be a good idea to temper your opinions just a little bit, and not make such broad sweeping negative generalizations.

 

I understand that you personally don't like Lion Brand products, and nobody will give you a hard time about that. They won't even give you a hard time if you phrase things a little differently to just focus on what specific aspects of Lion Brand yarns you don't like.

 

But when you state that all their yarn is crap, you're going to touch off some strong feelings in a lot of other members who actually like Lion Brand yarns. By calling what they like and use crap, and saying that you feel you have to warn everyone that all Lion Brand is crap, you can make them feel as if their choices and preferences are being personally attacked. (Which I'm sure is not what you wanted to do at all.) And since they feel attacked, they may respond in a not-so-polite manner to you. (Which could end up being a violation of our forum guidelines. )

 

I'm very glad that so far everyone who responded has been able to focus on the actual issue, which is that they do not believe all Lion Brand yarns are crap, and they have shared information about which yarns they do like and why.

 

I hope that all other posts made to this thread will be made in the same light and will comply with all our forum guidelines about being nice to each other.

 

I also don't believe that, though the poster's entry was strongly worded, it needed to be more tactful. It's okay to express opposing viewpoints without having to tippy-toe around, no? It's just yarn, after all.

 

Zagraham, I think Amy/yarnaholic would disagree with you. And since she's admin....

 

I really wish this thread would die already!

 

Can we all agree that some of us like Lion Brand and some of us don't, and leave it at that?

[Empress Busy Bee]

Natasha I agree with you.

 

I didn't get that the original poster was trying to make anyone feel like dirt.

I wasn't calling out the orginal poster otherwise I'd have quoted her. I was just saying in general because the yarn debate always seems to come up.

[origami]

I guess I'm lucky in that there are several yarn stores in my town.

 

I am also comparing like with like though. Cascade and Brown Sheep (LYS) work out to being the same cost as Paton's (JoAnn's/Michael's) when I compare like yarn with like yarn. I am comparing the price of Cascade 220 and Paton's Merino, which are 100 percent wool and feltable. I think the Superwash Cascade 220 is about the same, maybe a little more expensive than Wool-Ease. Cascade 220 is still superwash and 100 percent wool whereas the wool-ease is a blend.

 

Red Heart IS cheaper than any of these, but it is acrylic so it is not the same. (I am NOT saying acrylic is not good yarn. I am saying it isn't the same type of yarn.)

 

But what it comes down to is that Cascade and Brown Sheep have more color choices than Paton's Merino or Lion's Wool Ease. At least as far as what's available when I walk into these stores. I know that not everyone has the luxury of having a local yarn store or even JoAnn's or Michael's.

 

I have never paid 24 dollars per skein for yarn, but I'd hope that it was hand painted or hand dyed or had something about it that made it worth that amount of money.

[cat3crazy]

Interesting the original poster never came back to continue in the discussion or back up their points. Well, actually, it's not really surprising at all. They didn't seem interested in sparking a reasonable discussion, but rather it was just a "flame" post. Glad to see everyone else HAS been interested in talking about the subject in a civilized manner!

 

Very good point Ixa. It has been interesting to hear every ones view on this subject. It proves that even though we all have different likes and dislikes, we can be civil when voicing our opinions. This is a good group and I'm really glad that I joined!

[sammimag]

If you get a chance to visit your LYS or any LYS. Find out if they have any bulk ordering deal.

 

My LYS in Lawrence, KS - The Yarn Barn offers a %10 discount on yarn purchases after you spend $100 and then it goes up to %20 after $200 or something close to that. I have spent that easily in a years time.

 

It would take planning on my part to know exactly what I want to make abut certainly is doable. Another way you could save is to go with a friend or two and get yarn at the same time.

 

Although LB cotton is more expensive I like the feel of it over sugars and cream and that I can get larger skeins. Although maybe the color selection is smaller I like the colors LB cotton does have. I also like their microspun.

 

As far as their wool and wool-ease. I prefer using Plymouth Encore because they have WAY more colors than LB wool-ease.

 

You can see the color options here for encore and here for LB wool-ease

LB looks like they had more colors but many were discontinued. Some of this is the stores "fault" they don't always carry all the colors so you don't even know there are more options then maybe they discontinued.