Friday, July 8, 2011

A New Blog for Crochet and Knitting Fans!

Hi everyone!  I am an online worker from the Philippines and am proud to be called a "granny" because of my love for crocheted 'granny squares' lol.

I've created this blog for those who - despite the onslaught of technology, media and a lot of other leisurely pursuits - still have the time to hold the hook or the knitting needle and bask in the relaxing effect of being able to create something out of those furry, fuzzy balls :)

I just came from Rosario, Pasig City this afternoon to buy some yarn  which are sold by the kilo at this place.  It was the 2nd time I bought from this location since my yarn stocks were running low specifically the black one.  I also got to learn about these stores online and I can say that I am happy to have found good quality thread at a fraction of the price they are sold in the malls or handicraft stores.

I forgot to get the name of the store I went to but this is the first leftmost store on the block which was selling yarn threads.  The yarn sellers can be reached after crossing the first overpass from the San Juan bridge, or the first bridge which the Rosario jeepney crosses.

The  bad thing about this is that it was raining when my son and I were there and I was currently busy picking out  my color preferences from the stocks available.  Because of this I remembered what I read somewhere online - to make INSTANT traffic in Manila, Philippines, just add water :)

It was disappointing not being able to find the black yarn which I badly needed since only 1 ball was available; the store owner who was very accommodating said that they have not been able to wind new balls for that specific color and someone else came ahead of us who was able to buy almost all the black yarn on their stocks for that day.  Anyway, just wanted to mention that the current prices at the store which I went to -
Acrylic yarn = 305 pesos per kilo
Regular Yarn = 270 pesos per kilo
Cotton Yarn/Thread = 170 pesos per kilo

The difference between the Acrylic and the Regular yarn is that the Acrylic has a thinner strand, usually 4 strands are needed to come up with the Regular yarn.  The Acrylic yarn also has a lot of available colors, but of course, this will require twice the amount of thread to be able to create your project.  On the other hand, the cotton yarn has heavier weight compared to the two, but is definitely cooler on the skin, and is more advisable to use for knit/crochet creations in the Philippines, especially those which will be worn and placed near the skin.

I have been able to knit/crochet a lot of projects during the past weeks due to the lull in my online tasks - just a way of being more productive and having more practice at stitching.  So far, I've been able to come up with some cute and practical creations which I will be posting in a bit.  Kudos to a lot of sites which have been great sources for my patterns.  I will also be posting their sites here in the coming weeks, just give me a bit more time and I will try to squeeze everything in okay?

In the meantime, here are images of my latest yarn purchases.



These are the cotton yarns I purchased which reached 1.2 kgs.  Below are the regular yarns I bought which reached half a kilo.


Here are my acrylic threads which reached 0.7 kgs.  Notice the bright colors.  The black thread is the only ball remaining.



As you can see, these threads are generic or unbranded, hence the low price, but when I asked the store owner, she said that they were from Manila Bay, I think I remember she said the brand is J&P Coats.

And here below is the Red Heart brand which I bought from Carolina's Lace in SM Megamall since, as I said, I badly needed the black yarn...


The price is a whopping P13 per pc.  Do the math... All the thread in this image totalled P234.  By now, I'm sure you can see the GLARING price difference.

You can expect to read more in the coming days...

3 comments:

  1. hi, what's the difference between the acrylic yarn and the regular yarn? Is the regular yarn made with different fiber?

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  2. Hi K-Ann. Yarn can be made from different fibers. It can be from animal fibers, plant fibers or synthetic sources. However, here in the Philippines, I think it's only acrylic yarn which is popular, apart from cotton thread (I say thread because it is the popular medium used for crochet pieces).

    When I asked the store owner what's the difference between acrylic yarn and the plain yarn that she was referring to, she could not give a direct answer. The best thing she could differentiate them with is that the acrylic yarn was wound as a ball with 2 thin strands, while the yarn came in 1 strand, and my best guess is that its weight is fingering 2 ply. However, with regards to feel on the skin, I think they are both acrylic/synthetic fibers.

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  3. That's what I was thinking too, that she was referring to the weight. The acrylic yarn is worsted weight and the regular yarn is fingering. Thanks for clarifying. I was hoping the regular yarn is cotton. Anyway, thanks for this post. Will try to go to Pasig when I visit Manila. Im from Mindanao.
    Thanks again!

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