Merry Christmas!

It has been a really hectic week at work, and I hardly had time to knit except for these two little swatches... Coming back from our recent gathering, I found not just one but two yarn in my stash that will fit the bill for the gorgeous Smock Coat in my new Debbie Bliss Simply Baby book. First, we have a 20/80 Cotton Cashmere yarn bought in China. This yarn is actually made up of 16 extremely fine yarns that were hand-plied together... and would require extra care when knitting. The swatch is silky soft with a subtle sheen, and consistent-looking stitches that made all seems worthwhile. The standard DK gauge is also exactly the same as the DB Cotton Cashmere originally called for.

An alternative choice would be a pure worsted cotton yarn, also from China. Unlike the Cotton Cashmere, the firmer spin of this makes it easy to knit on auto pilot without having to worry about snags, extra twists, or slipped stitches. The swatch is spongy, a little thicker, and the suede-like texture shows a richer color. Gauge is more worsted than DK at 19-20sts per 4 inches but we can do some adjustments... So which one do you think is better; the refined cashmere cotton or the classic pure cotton?

Got to go out for lunch now and just before I sign off, I wish you all a great holiday and very merry Christmas!