The first bear from the Melanie Falick book, I knitted I used Reynolds Lopi yarn. It is a not so stretchy wool yarn. The bear turned out great but I found it a little hard to work with. After that I used some wonderful Lambs Pride bulky yarn... it is so easy to work with, very stretchy and so soft. It felts really nicely. For a while that was my yarn of choice. Then I switched back to the Reynolds Lopi yarn. Even though the Reynolds Lopi isn't as soft and stretchy.. it really holds up well to use. Some of the bears I knitted get incredible use.. and the softer yarns ball up faster. The worst yarn was the Lions Brand Fishermans wool.. it balls up terribly. If I think the stuffed toy will get a lot of use then I pick the Lopi, if I think it will end up on a shelf sitting somewhere.. then I go for a softer one. I find that if I felt the Lopi a little it softens up some..
Just some of the things I have learned about yarns.
