Welcome to this week’s exciting posts on KNITmuch, where I’ll be exploring Red Heart Baby Hugs Medium – a premium soft acrylic that is easy to care for, and comfortable to wear.
Baby Hugs holds the OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 certification, which means it has been tested for over 300 harmful chemicals and has been certified as safe for babies and toddlers to wear against their sensitive skin, according to Oeko-Tex Standard 100 Class I.
Easy to care for is a must for me when it comes to knitwear for children, and for blankets and afghans. In my household, afghans are constantly used, inside and out, and by the cat. As a result, they’re frequently laundered in the washing machine and dryer – no muss, no fuss.
The care instructions recommend machine wash warm, gentle cycle. Tumble dry on low, do not bleach, and do not iron.
Baby Hugs Medium comes in a wide variety of colors; 26 in all including both solids and variegated.
Baby Hugs Medium Premium Acrylic Yarn comes in 26 different colors, both solid and variegated
One thing to note when selecting yarn for a project; the variegated colors have less yardage than the solid colors. A 4oz [113g] variegated ball contains 208yds [190m], where as a 4.5oz [127g] ball of a solid color yields 247yds [225m]. Depending on your project, you may need an extra ball of the variegated.
The recommended needle size is US 9 [5.5mm] to achieve a gauge of 16 stitches and 22 rows over 4” [10cm]. Tomorrow, I’ll put this to the test.
The projects I’ve selected for this week may surprise you, given that spring is finally here. I decided to get a head start on my Christmas gift knitting so I’ve chosen the Cable Sweater Dress pattern, but want to do it in red and white. Not just any white, but a fluffy sparkly white. For this, I’ve chosen Red Heart An Italian Story Luce.
Red Heart An Italian Story Luce, a fluffy white yarn with sparkly sequins
The composition of this yarn is 46% Nylon, 28% Acrylic, 20% Mohair, and 6% Polyester, with a gauge of 19 S and 24 R over 4” [10cm] using a US 6 [4mm] needle. Due to the mohair and sequin components, the laundry requirements for this yarn are hand wash and lay flat to dry.
This means that it needs some gauge or stitch adjustments to make it work with the Baby Hugs, but that’s for tomorrow.
My other projects for the week include the Knit Roll Brim Hat, and a cowl to match. For these items, I’ll be using a combination of solid and variegated colors to create a unique effect. I love making hats and cowls for gifts, as they are easy and quick to make, and they always seem well received. Let’s face it, kids, teens, and adults go through a lot of hats in a season, and you can never hat too many hats.
Join me tomorrow, I’ll knit some swatches, tackle the gauge difference with the two yarns, and then proceed with the projects for the remainder of the week.
This is part 1 of 5 in this series.
Go to part 2: Knitting with Baby Hugs Medium – the Swatch Challenge
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