Good Morning All. I hope you're keeping well and enjoying the lovely sunshine. I love the warmer weather as it means I can work outside and hopefully brown up my milky white legs and arms.
This week I've bee hooking with DMC's new yarn - Natura XL so I thought I'd share my thoughts just in case you'd seen this yarn and wondered what it's like to work with.
Please note - this isn't a sponsored post, or something I've been asked to do - it's just my own thoughts.
I first came across Natura XL at a recent Trade Show where I was invited to the launch of this new yarn. I was really excited as I've used DMC's Natura Just Cotton and Woolly (Merino) yarns in my crochet book and they've become some of my favourite yarns. At the show I received a little goodie bag with a couple of balls of Natura XL, a couple of free patterns, knitting needles and crochet hook (the one in the photo below). We spent a fun hour hooking up and knitting some quick projects and it was great to meet some of the magazine Editors that I work with and have never met. It was also lovely to meet Cara from DMC and speak in person.
Then by coincidence, I was recently asked to work up a crochet commission using Natura XL and when the yarn support arrived from DMC I was delighted with the bright, summery colours. They remind me of packet of refreshers - one of my favourite childhood sweets.
I used my free 7mm DMC crochet hook which I have to say was perfect. It's bamboo and has a cute little painted end, and the yarn didn't stick to the hook as the hook has a slight sheen. I shall definitely be buying more of these hooks, as I struggle with metal hooks - in fact I have to wear a fingerless mitten if I'm using a metal hook as they cause me a lot of pain.
Here are some facts about Natura XL Just Cotton:
Fibre content: 100% Cotton
Ball Weight: 100g
Yardage: 75m/82yds
Recommended Hook Size: 6-7mm
Recommended Knitting Needle Size: 8-9mm
Care: 30 degree wash/dry cleanable/low iron/do not tumble dry
Tension:17 sts and 12 rows in stocking stitch on 8mm needles
Price: approx. £4.49
My Review:
I found Natura XL easy to work with for both knitting and crochet. The yarn is made from 10 strands of yarn and each of the 10 strands are made from 2 twisted strands - so that's 20 strands in total. These are twisted together quite tightly to create one chunky strand and I didn't experience any splitting of the yarn. It has a matt finish and provides great stitch definition. It comes in a wide range of colours including vibrant shades and more subtle tones.
It produces quite a heavy fabric but would be great for accessories, such as bags, scarves and mittens and I would love to make some cushions or a floor rug. Because it's a chunky yarn, projects grow really quickly and each of the coasters I made took only 15 minutes each. I used a free pattern which you can find here (and I stopped after Round 3):
Free pattern for crochet coaster
In terms of quantities required for projects - I'm making a pair of small wrist warmers with just one ball; a decent sized neck cowl would take approx. 2 balls and a medium sixed bag would take around 6 balls, whereas a floor rug may take around 10 balls, So you can spend as much or as little as you like and still make something lovely.
Natura XL Just Cotton is a yarn I'm looking forward to using more often and I already have some great ideas for some stylish creations.
If you've used it too I'd love to hear your thoughts and see your projects.
Thanks for reading and happy crafting, Lynne x
