Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Bamboo Yarn

It can be hard to find, but most specialty craft stores have at least one color, and you can always order it from Amazon.com or other online retailers.

Bernat seems to be the only brand around me, and they put out 8 different colors. All pastel I'm afraid, but when mixed together they can have some quite lovely effects.

The current colors are:

Wicker , Linen ,
Corn , Ginger ,
Water , Lotus ,
Rosehip , and Dill .

Pros:

Bamboo is a renewable resource. It can be harvested without killing the plant, and only takes a few months before the plant is ready to be harvested again.

The yarn is biodegradable when not mixed with unnatural fibers.

It is often dyed with natural dyes that are safer for the environment.

Bamboo fabric is naturally antibacterial.

Fabric made from bamboo is more breathable than cotton.

Bamboo has a wonderful luster.

Bamboo is strong and flexible, yet becomes softer than silk when spun into yarn.

Bamboo fabric is also more wrinkle-resistant than cotton.

Bamboo absorbs dye faster and more thoroughly than cotton.

Growing bamboo improves soil quality and helps rebuild eroded soil.

Cons:

Bamboo yarn loses strength when wet and can swell considerably in water.

Not all bamboo yarn has the same cohesiveness. Some brands split much more than others.

Bamboo garments must be hand-washed, so it isn't the best choice if you wash often, or dislike hand-washing.

Tips:

To get the most out of the anti-bacterial properties, look for yarn that is a minimum of 70% bamboo. 100% is of course best.

Use blunt-ended needles to cut down on the chance of splitting.

If you need the fabric to be strong, but only have fine yarn, knit with two strands held together instead of a single strand.

Did you know bamboo is actually a grass? It's also one of the fastest growing grasses. Bamboo can grow a yard or more every day. It also matures fast, at only 4 years old it's ready to be harvested. Bamboo doesn't need to be replanted because of the vast root network. Continually sprouting new shoots, it replants itself, and it even puts out 35% more oxygen than the equivalent amount of trees.