There is an exciting new addition to the recycled yarn world, it’s Knit’s Recycled by Wendy Wools. Just launched in March 2022, it’s a Super Chunky weight Recycled Polyester, made from recycled plastic bottles making it an amazing reuse innovation.
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But don’t be misled by the thought of hard plastic bottles, this is a super soft, silky yarn! So much so that you’d find it very hard to believe it could ever have been plastic bottles!
Think beautiful cosy Winter wearables, gorgeous blankets and cushions and hats mitts or cowls whipped up super quick in this lovely thick yarn.
When we think of Super Chunky, particularly with recycled yarns, we are likely to think of fabric yarn, like t-shirt or ribbon or braided rope type yarns. Knit’s Recycled isn’t at all like any of these yarns and nowhere near as thick.
While it is labelled Super Chunky #6 weight with the recommended needle size of 8mm (crochet hook 9mm) and tension (knit) of 10 sts x 15 rows to 10cm/4in square, it is at the very thinnest end of this #6 weight category and so is really bridging between Chunky (US Bulky) #5 weight and Super Chunky (US Super Bulky) #6.
It comes in 100g skeins 92m/100yds in 4 solid shades and 4 tweed shades. The fibre composition for the latter is slightly different with the flecks comprised of viscose (98% recycled polyester, 2% viscose). It is a delicate wash yarn with hand wash only and no tumble dry stated on the care label.
I was so excited when I spotted this yarn launch that I asked Wendy Wools if they would send me some to play with (okay, to review, but we all know I meant play!) and they sent me some, how amazing is that? What a lovely generous yarn company.
This is my first review of yarn very kindly gifted by a yarn company, but I promise you it is just as honest and unbiased as it would be if I had purchased the yarn.
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Eco-friendly Credentials
Made from 100% recycled plastic bottles (Solid colours, 98% for tweed colours).
I love this, what a fantastic way to reuse single-use plastic. It’s genius to turn it into polyester fibre for us crafty folks to create beautiful things from, wouldn’t you agree?
Polyester fibre is normally durable, easy to work with, easy to care for and not expensive. It’s often blended with other fibres to make them stronger. The care for this yarn, however, is hand wash only, but having worked with it, it certainly feels robust and durable and I would expect it to cope well with washing and wear and tear.
Being a plastic based product, washing it will release microplastics. These are very bad for the environment so to minimise these fibres shedding into our waterways and to reduce wear and tear, I suggest using a fine knit wash bag designed to capture them, like the Guppyfriend. There are many suppliers worldwide.
The ball band is thin card and therefore is recyclable, as you would expect for an eco yarn.
First impressions
It looks like roving wool, single ply, very loosely spun, non-superwash wool. Without the distinctive wool smell of course, and, for me, the horribly itchy dermatitis and asthma that the misery of a wool allergy brings!
It’s soooo soft! It’s really touchably soft and cuddly with a subtle sheen that catches the light, this is a really beautiful yarn that’s lovely and thick.
Although it is very loosely spun, the long fibre lengths seem to hold together very well. At first I thought it might be a difficult yarn to work with, fearing splitting frustrations, but I was wrong. I also worried it would break easily as the soft fibres looked like they wouldn’t be strong. I was wrong about this observance too! This yarn is very strong and does not break easily.
I think if you used smaller needles and hooks the loose fibres would be a problem though. I tested it out on 7mm, 8mm, 9mm, 10mm and 12mm crochet hooks and it worked best on the 9mm and 10mm with simple stitches.
There is a little bit of fluffiness to it, a slight fluffy haze that adds to it’s charm.
I haven’t worked with any polyester yarns like this before, only chenille and faux fur types of polyester, so didn’t know what to expect. I assumed it would be quite like acrylic and it is, just a little firmer.
It’s super cosy and warm and it actually passes my itch test!!! This is a biggy for me because I have super sensitive skin (and my kiddos are even worse!), believe me not many yarns pass this test! While sometimes this can vary with different colours, I tested out 2 colours: Light Sage and Off-White and found both to be the same and will happily wear both against my skin. Look out for some cosy cold weather patterns coming soon!
What to make with it?
Anything cosy and warm! It would make a gorgeous big squishy blanket to snuggle under in Winter. Homewares are a must and as it’s soft it’s going to be wonderful for wearing. Being super chunky you can work up your creations in super quick time too, making it a stash staple for those last minute gifts and craft fair items.
- Hats
- Gloves
- Scarves
- Shawls/Wraps
- Jumpers
- Cardigans
- Blankets
- Throws
- Cushions
What it’s like to work with
It’s smooth and glides on the hook/needles beautifully with amazing stitch definition. The more I played with this yarn, the more I fell in love with it!
It was very difficult to capture the beautiful light sage colour well, the camera consistently made it more of a light grey, but I think I’ve caught the lovely sage colour better below.
It pulls down well but only if you go slow, otherwise the fibres can get caught in the stitches. It didn’t go too fluffy on being pulled down but when I went too quickly I had to snap some tiny caught up fibres. This was less of a problem with the bigger hooks and it also didn’t split much with the bigger hooks. It was more difficult to work with smaller hooks (7mm and 8mm) and produced a firm rigid fabric in the shorter stitches.
Dyes were even throughout the skeins. I didn’t do a wash test. I will update with results when I have.
Quality/Cost
This yarn is very good value and the quality is incredible for it’s price point. It feels like a much more expensive yarn. Price is around £3.50 for 100g. It is in the same price bracket as popular, non-recycled brands.
If we compare the stated tension and hook size for yarns, then this yarn can be a great, more eco-friendly, swap for many polyester or wool blends and acrylics too. Examples of yarns with a similar stated tension might be: Deramores Studio Chunky, Stylecraft Special XL Super Chunky and Lionbrand Wool Ease Thick & Quick.
Patterns written for these yarns (and others with similar tension) should work well with Knit’s Recycled too.
Pros
- 100% recycled
- Vegan
- Wool-free
- Versatile, with many uses
- Hardwearing
- Amazing stitch definition
- Glides well on the hook
- Doesn’t split badly
- Affordable
- A practical and very popular yarn weight
Cons
- Not biodegradable
- Not machine washable (hand wash only)
- Limited colour choices
- Not the best for ‘frogging’ (pulling down), essential to go slowly
Where to get it?
Wendy Wools is a British yarn manufacturer, and this yarn is still very new, but there are several online UK yarn shops (Wool Warehouse, The Wool Factory, amongst others – I googled it). Local yarn shops are likely to stock it or be able to get it for you without difficulty. It has now also launched in the US and Canada too, be sure to check online or ask in your local yarn shop.
Overall View
I love this yarn!
I love that it is 100% recycled and that it’s Super Chunky weight. It is a much needed type of yarn in the recycled yarn world with very little alternative sustainable choices for making soft chunky wearables and home accessories like blankets and cushions.
While the colours are all lovely, I would like to see more available, especially solid colours co-ordinating with the tweed flecks. This would really make this yarn stand out as the go to for sustainable Chunky yarns.
I’m very impressed with how strong it is, making a very practical and durable yarn, both important properties to the eco-minded maker. Not sure why hand wash is on the care label, perhaps to reduce risk of fluffiness.
Eco Yarn Score: 8/10
A score based on the yarn itself and it’s eco-friendliness.
This is a fantastic yarn to work with that also feels good on your conscience. It is brilliant to see used plastic bottles reinvented in this way. But, there are 2 negatives that can’t be ignored, it’s still plastic, so we have to lose a point for that and we need more colours!
I hope you’ve found this a helpful review. Please share/pin etc to help others find it. Have you tried it? Will you be giving it a go? Please let me know, and tell me what you make, I’d love to hear how you get on.
For more eco yarn reviews, see the page Yarn Reviews.
For more of my patterns see the page: Crochet Patterns
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