New Yarn: Purl Soho’s Cotton Pure
Our new Cotton Pure yarn is pure, natural beauty. One hundred percent unmercerized cotton, Cotton Pure is wonderfully soft and unadulterated, simple and stunning.
“Unmercerized” means that this cotton is untreated, and instead of the shiny surface of mercerized cottons, it has a cushy, matte depth.
Happy at 5 or 6 stitches to the inch, Cotton Pure is a very versatile sport or light worsted weight. Knit or crocheted up, we love this yarn for baby clothes, warm-weather accessories, fall sweaters, soft blankets, and beautiful housewares.
Unmercerized cotton is especially absorbent and well-suited for washcloths, dish and hand towels, and so we started off our Cotton Pure adventures with these lovely Close Knit Washcloths, a pretty little project that brings a special touch to everyday habits!
And perhaps we have saved the best thing about Cotton Pure for last: its incredible palette of 43 colors! Together, these gorgeous colors feel like hay fields and stonewalls, pale skies and ripe orchards. From subtle neutrals like Bucket Gray and Silver Fern to the floral pops of Red Nectar and Peach Blossom, Cotton Pure’s colors are as natural as the yarn itself.
To browse our whole collection of Cotton Pure skeins, just click here.
We are thrilled to welcome our first cotton yarn to the Purl Soho family. We hope you love it as much as we do!
Are the cones available? If so how much are they?
Hello Dorothy,
Thanks for writing in! The cones are not available, but the skeins are!
-Adam
ARGH! I just promised myself NO MORE YARN until I use up some of my stash and now this appears???
Oh the temptation!
If I were to use these on a cricket loom, how many ends per inch would you suggest?
– Collette
Hi Collette,
I’m so happy you’re excited about the yarn! The colors alone are so great! We done any weaving with this yarn yet but I would guess the the cotton would be best at 10 EPI. I hope this helps. Let us know how it goes!
-Adam
I didn’t notice a listing of the yardage. How many yards per skein?
Hi Jenn,
Thanks for writing in! There are 262 yards per skein. All the info for the yarn can be found under the product details tab in the Shop section of the site. I hope this helps!
-Adam
Bummer about the cones. Weavers would love it.
I’m hoping to make some baby clothes/blankets…would the items then be machine-washable? Should I expect shrinkage? Thanks!
Hello Dot,
Thank you for the question. The cotton is machine washable on the cold cycle and you can tumble dry on low/no heat. We haven’t experienced any shrinkage with this yarn but when washed, cotton tends to tighten up and then get looser with wear as the day goes on. Thanks again for writing in!
-Adam
I have to say, it is torture to us weavers to show those lovely cones and then not offer them for sale. I hope you decide to offer them in the future.
Hi Weavers,
We’re so sorry to torture you! When we received our sample yardage on the large cones we were really inspired by them and have already been discussing if it would be feasible to stock the yarn that way as well as the skeins, so it’s great to hear that there is interest out there for them! We’ll start investigating the idea a bit more… so not a promise but perhaps it could be something we offer next spring. Thanks so much for your thoughts! –Joelle
I also am interested in the cones. I knit MANY baby, child and adult afghans for charity with cotton and do NOT like weaving in ends! I love the easy care of cotton, few allergic reactions if any to it and that the older it gets, the softer it gets. Please do consider offering the cones. I VERY MUCH would like to try unmercerized Pima cotton yarn.
Hi Marily,
Thanks for writing in! We’ve been hearing a lot about people wanting the cones and so it might be a possibility for the future. Stay tuned!
-Adam
How many yards per skein?
Hi Penny,
Thanks for writing us! There are 262 yards per skein. All the info for this yarn can be found under the product details tab on the Shop side of the website. I hope this helps!
-Adam
GORGEOUS… do you have any patterns to offer as well? the washcloths and or??
Hi Ronnee,
Thanks for writing us! I’m so glad you like the yarn! The colors are gorgeous and there are so many to choose from. So far we only have the washcloths pattern, but stay tuned for more. If you’d like to do another pattern in this yarn, the weight is similar to Mulberry Merino or Flax Down. Any patterns using that yarn should give you a similar gauge. Happy knitting!
-Adam
I’m with Dorothy, Amy, and Linda – keeping fingers crossed you’ll make those cones available sometime soon. Preferably before we’re all back into the woolies.
Though this “new” cotton sounds wonderful to knit with, it is very disappointing to learn that you aren’t actually carrying the cotton in cones. Not to mention, the skeins are a sport weight, but the cones look much lighter, like maybe lace/fingering weight. I’m in agreement with others, if you aren’t selling the cones, then why have them on your web site?
Hi Sheri,
Thank you for writing in. I think the cotton on cones is a great idea, but unfortunately for the time being we are only carrying the skeins. The cone yarn in the photo is exactly the same as the yarn on the skein. No thinner, no thicker! We thought it would be a nice touch to have the yarn on cones for the photo. Now that we see how people are reacting to the cones, we’ll keep this in mind for the future. Thanks for the comment and stay tuned!
-Adam
I can’t find any information about the yardage for this new yarn. Please update and reply. Thank you.
Hi Barbara,
Each skein of Cotton Pure is 262 yards. I hope this helps! Thanks for writing in and for your interest in the yarn!
Kristy
Would socks in this hold their shape?
Hi Zana,
Thanks for writing in! I am not 100% sure if cotton socks will hold their shape in this yarn since I’ve never tried but I do have some advice for you if you’d like to give it a go! You’ll definitely want to strand a nylon thread throughout the whole project in order to restrict the yarn from stretching too much. This will also protect against holes in high friction areas. You’ll also want to knit the sock rather tightly to further avoid any stretching. Do a test sock and let us know what you think!!
Good luck and happy knitting!
-Adam
Yes! Cotton yarn! I’m very happy! Looks perfect for knitting up a blanket. Doesn’t look like it would pill very much either (on the picture anyway), unlike a lot of other cotton yarns. Would have been better organic but… it’s a start!
I like the lovely wash clothes, do you you have other patterns you could recommend for this yarn?
Hi Ramona,
Thanks for the kind words! This yarn is gorgeous and a treat to work with. I suggest you look at the Spring Striped Shirt or the Top Down Turtleneck Cardigan. Both projects would look lovely in this yarn!
-Adam
I am a machine knitter as well as a hand knitter. Would love to be able to buy this yarn on cones also. The color palette is wonderfully natural, but also very sophisticated ……..
Hi Katherine,
Thank you for your kind comment! I am also a machine knitter and have used all of our yarns wound in a center pull cake. This works quite well and I often will use the outside or the inside of the ball depending on how tight it is wound. We will, however, keep your request in mind for the future!
Thanks again!
-Adam
Love your yarns, your patterns, & your Soho store — though I’m no longer living in the city. This new yarn is beautiful, and I’m thinking of making washcloths or small hand towels as gifts. But just looking up the difference between mercerized & unmercerized cotton yarn, I read that unmercerized cotton doesn’t hold dye as well & isn’t durable — but is more absorbent.
What would you advise for washcloths or towels?
Thank you! -Patty
Hi Patty,
Thank you for that nice comment! I’m intrigued by what you’ve said about mercerized and unmercerized cotton. Our cotton is unmercerized and to me it seems very absorbent. As for the dye running, we haven’t had any problems with that yet. I’d use the Cotton Pure as a kitchen or bathroom washcloth. I also think it would make a really nice hand towel! Thanks again for writing in and have fun knitting the Cotton Pure!
-Adam
I would love this yarn on cones to use on my knitting machine.
Got excited when I saw the cones, hope you can offer them in future.
Do you have other patterns that work with this yarn?
Ramona
Hi Ramona,
Thanks for writing us! This yarn works with any DK weight pattern. I suggest you look at the Striped Spring Shirt and the Top Down Turtleneck Cardigan. These would make great additions to anyone’s closet and can be worn throughout the year.
Best,
Adam
Lovely yarn and pattern! I need to get through what’s currently on my needles so I can order some Cotton Pure and make these!
Just curious: is this stitch also known as ‘Chinese waves’?
Hi Carina,
Good eye! You are close but this is actually not Chinese waves. Chinese waves stitch offsets the slip stitch by one so the slips are not stacked like in these washcloths. However, you should totally do Chinese waves washcloths! I think they’d be very cool!
Best,
Adam
I bought many beautiful colors. My question is, do you have more project examples that I can look at? I saw the few, but I’m looking for more….
thank you.
Martha
Hello Martha,
I’m so glad you like the yarn! Right now we only have a few patterns but there are more to come in the near future! Stay tuned!
Best,
Adam
I have also read that nonmercerized cotton does not hold up as well as mercerized. that it grows also. I definitely need this clarified before making clothes for my future ggc. thanx.
Hi Marilyn,
Thank you for writing in! All cotton grows, whether mercerized or not. I think that it mainly depends on the yarn and brand. Judging for your in-house samples, our cotton doesn’t grow too much if knit tightly. I always recommend knitting cotton tightly so that if it grows, it won’t grow too much. I hope this helps you out!
Good luck and happy knitting!
-Adam
I’ve been swatching with a skein of Cotton Pure in Black Sand. Beautiful, as I had expected. I was leaning toward a cap or some washcloths. Looks like I’ll be doing both.
Hi Greg,
Thank you so much for your kind words! We are so glad that you are loving our new Cotton Pure!
Happy knitting!
Cassy
This yarn looks beautiful but I have a question. The cost for the yarn is $14.50 per skein but the three skein bundle is $45.00. Why is it more expensive to buy a bundle than it would be to buy them individually?
Hi Colette,
Thanks for informing us of this! We took care of it right away and the price should be fixed! Thanks and sorry about this inconvenience!
-Adam
I’m a machine and hand knitter. Would really like to have this yarn available on cones. Colors are terrific.
Nan
Hello Nan,
Thank you for this suggestion! I hear you and I will certainly pass this idea along.
Happy Knitting,
-Marilla
Also interested in cones!
I have 2 skeins of Cotton Pure in the Stream Blue. I would like to make some type of scarf or wrap. Do you have any patterns that would work well with this yarn? Thanks!
Hi Ellen,
Thanks for writing in! We do have a cowl that uses 2 skeins of Cotton Pure in 2 different colors, the Two Color Cotton Cowl. You could also make our Dovetail Scarf using the small needles that we used for Mulberry Merino. Additionally, here are all of the patterns that we have using our Cotton Pure: https://www.purlsoho.com/create/tag/purl-sohos-cotton-pure/
I hope that this helps!
Cassy
I’d like to know where the cotton is grown and where the yarn is milled. Also some info on construction e.g. how many plies, s or z twist. Actually it would be helpful to have this for all yarns on the website. Thanks, Sarah.
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for reaching out! The fiber for our Cotton Pure yarn is sourced in Peru and spun in Italy, and although I’m not sure which direction the twist runs, it is constructed of 20 plies. At present we do not have the resources to add this information to all of our yarn listings, but we are always happy to provide any information we can and will keep your suggestion in mind for the future! I hope that helps!
Best,
Julianna
I only see 5 colors of the Cotton Pure, what is the.link to see all these wonderful colors?
Hi Brandi,
Thanks for reaching out! We will be releasing a new version of Cotton Pure that uses 100% organic cotton later this spring, but in the meantime, our stock has dwindled and we do only have a few colors left that are nearly sold out. Keep an eye out for a newsletter with the new and improved version soon!
Best,
Julianna
Thanks Julianna!
I will definitely keep my eyes open for the new stock!
Thanks!