Yes, You Can Use Cotton Yarn for Charity Knitting
The two things you MUST knit with cotton yarn
Cotton yarn is a vegetable fiber which consists of 'unicellular' hairs that are attached to the cotton plant seed. Its normal color ranges from a light to a dark cream, and its chemical composition is almost pure cellulose. Garments that have been machine-knit with cotton yarn are strong, comfortable and cool to wear - making cotton yarn an ideal choice for summer.
COTTON YARN - PROS AND CONS
Cotton yarn isn't usually the best choice for charity knitters, however, for a couple of reasons. For one thing, cotton yarn is often quite expensive. But more importantly, cotton yarn stretches and doesn't always hold its shape very well.
But cotton yarn IS ideal for a few charity projects that WOULDN'T be suitable knit in any other yarn.
Because it is perfect for summer, if you are knitting garments for charity, especially for children, cotton yarn is the perfect choice. It is much more durable than acrylic yarn for any clothing. And children definitely need durable clothing!
COTTON YARN DISHCLOTHS
Another thing that needs to be knit with cotton yarn is dishcloths - and they are probably the number one item that knitters knit for charity in North America. Whether you are donating them directly to a charitable organization, or selling them to raise funds for your charity of choice, knitted cotton yarn dishcloths are the classic knitted charity item.
Cotton yarn dishcloths are popular with charity knitters for a few reasons:
- they are REALLY easy to make
- they are portable, so they easily slip into a bag or purse to knit when traveling
- cotton yarn comes in many (dyed) colors
- they are inexpensive to make, but a very popular bazaar sale item, so they sell fast
To make a cotton yarn dishcloth, use a small-diameter needle, and cast on only three stitches. Using the knit stitch throughout, increase by one stitch at the beginning of each row until a side of the dishcloth (NOT the stitches on the needle) measures 8". Then you begin to decrease by one stitch each row until you are back to 3 stitches on the needle. Cast off, and voila! You have a cotton yarn dishcloth, either for yourself, to donate to a charity, or to sell to raise funds for a charity.