Knit Picks Andes del Campo

Knit Picks Andes del Campo is described on the Knit Picks site as being "rustic," and I couldn't agree more. This weighty wool (slightly heavier than medium or worsted weight) would be the perfect thing for knitting a sweater to wear on a hike in the woods in the fall, or any other time when casual style is in order.

• Content: 100 percent Highland wool
• Yarn weight: aran/heavy worsted
• Gauge: ball band says 4-4.5 stitches on size 7-9 US needles (4.5-5.5 mm); I got 15 stitches and 21 rows per 4 inches (3.75 stitches and 5.25 rows per inch) on size 8 US (5 mm) needles
• Yardage: 164 yards per 100 gram ball
• Color availability: 12 heathered colors
• Color used in swatch: Sunset Heather
• Care instructions: hand wash, dry flat

When I was knitting this swatch I was trying out some new knitting needles that I got for Christmas. The needles were really pointy and rather sharp, but Andes del Campo responded nicely, not producing an exceptional amount of splitting.

This two-ply yarn is nice and lofty, springy on the needles and soft in the swatch. At first glance the colors appear to be rather solid, if tonal, but on further inspection you'll see deeper and more varied coloration. Mine is basically rust-colored but also has threads of blue and yellow running through it, which makes the yarn a lot more interesting than it would be otherwise.

This tweedy effect lends to the rusticness of the yarn, as does the fact that the stitches do not come out perfectly even. They're still crisp enough that you can knit cables and other textured stitches with this yarn, but they aren't completely perfect little soldiers, and that's fine.

This yarn curled substantially in Stockinette Stitch on the needles, but most of it came out after a wash and pressing out the excess water with a washcloth. The little bit of curl that's left would be cute in a project with rolled hems (there's that casual feel again!).

The yarn feels just a little crinkly in the skein but after a little soak it's perfectly soft and cozy and shouldn't give anyone any itching problems.

I almost can't get past the thought of using Knit Picks Andes del Campo for sweaters. That's actually the perfect use for it. It would be great for a plain Stockinette or simple stitch patterned sweater, but it would be equally great for a sweater with a simple cable up the front.

I guess you could also knit up a matching scarf and hat set in this pretty yarn, once you get your sweater done.

The color range in this yarn is pretty natural and harmonious, so you could also use this yarn for colorwork projects if you wanted to.

Because of the tweedy effect of the yarn, I'll bet you could felt this yarn, too, and the finished project would still look pretty interesting.

Knit Picks Andes del Campo is a really pretty yarn that is sure to become a go-to basic for a lot of knitters. The weight of the yarn will mean that projects will knit up pretty fast, as will the ease of knitting.

I know I want to make a sweater out of this yarn, and I know a lot of other people will, too. As of this writing the yarn retailed at $6.99 for 164 yards, which means for a basic sweater in a 40-inch circumference you'd need about 7 balls, making a sweater almost $50, which is not too bad considering you can pay that much for a sweater off the rack of much less quality, and you don't get the fun of knitting it.

Smaller-scale projects like hats, mittens and scarves would also be great in this yarn, and after knitting something small you might just convince yourself you want to spend more time with this yarn. I know just swatching it made me feel that way!