Are you one of those who find knitting to be an extremely relaxing hobby? Some may go as far as to say that they find knitting to be a therapeutic activity that lets you enjoy the results for a long time, and your crafts can even make for excellent gifts. For instance, with the best yarn for scarves from this article, you will ensure optimal warmth, comfort, and softness to your end product.
When shopping for knitting supplies, it can be quite hard for beginners to come across a suitable product. To help you make an informed decision regarding which yarn to purchase, we have compiled a list of the most popular yarns highly recommended by professional knitters. We carefully considered some important factors like the yarn’s material that directly translates to comfort and warmth. The length and weight of yarn help you determine what size of a scarf you can make with it. It’s also crucial to take into account the number of skeins, so you know how much yarn to buy.
More features: machine washable, soft and durable
These high-quality Jumbo yarns are made from 100% acrylic material and come in a single skein. They are available in 33 different color options, giving you a wider range to choose from. Each of these solid colors can be used for scarves, or you can knit a creative multi-colored one using a mix of colors.
You can get 4 excellent shades of wildflower, blacklight, Pretty & Pink, and Icelandic in the mixed color yarns. One skein is 482 yards long and weighs a mere 10 oz. Thus, you can knit 2 whole light scarves with a single skein.
What we liked: You can easily clean the end product in a washing machine at a warm temperature without losing its color or softness. The soft acrylic material will give it an exquisite feel. Also, this is an extremely durable yarn, making your scarves last long. The jumbo yarn is twice the size of normal skeins.
What could be better: The only downside of this yarn is that it has only 4 multi-color options.
More features: machine washable and dryable, and works up quickly for fast knit and crochet projects
This is yet another option that is available either as 100% acrylic yarn or tweeds made from 94% acrylic and 6% rayon. These yarns come in perhaps the widest range of colors, with up to 40+ colors to choose from, making this brand a knitting enthusiast’s heaven. Also, the names of the colors are fun and creative. Each set comes with one skein of 64 yards and features #3 weight. It is best for fast knitting and crochet projects.
What we liked: The wide color range allows you to choose from both vibrant and light, subtle shades. It can be machine washed and tumble dried in a machine as well, making it easy to clean and user-friendly.
What could be better: The only thing that can make this yarn even better is durability. You must be extra careful with the clothes you make.
More features: machine washable and dryable, versatile worsted weight yarn
The Lily Sugar’ n Cream Cotton Cone Yarn is a 100% pure cotton yarn that has some excellent qualities, such as an absorbent nature and a soft feel that make it one of the best materials to knit scarves. It comes in a single cone skein, with 706 yards of yarn in one roll. Next, this gauge 4 worsted weight yarn weighs 14 oz. It is available in 19 amazing shades, with both solid and mixed color options that you can pick from.
What we liked: This yarn comes in a great quantity that is sufficient for knitting a complete scarf. Also, this cotton yarn is user-friendly and can be easily machine washed and dried. This versatile pick can be suitable for knitting not only scarves but also several other things like hats, sweaters, and gloves.
What could be better: The color durability is not specified for buyers, leaving them to wonder whether their crafts will fade over multiple washes.
More features: soft cotton feel, machine washable and dryable
The Bernat Maker Home Dec Yarn is made from a combination of 72% cotton and 28% nylon. But you will not be able to tell this excellent material apart from wool! These number 5 gauge yarns have a chunky and bulky weight with 8.8oz per skein, suitable for 13 sts and 17 rows with 8 mm knitting needle.
You will receive a single skein with 317 yards of yarn, and you can choose from 16 amazing colors. The combined materials make these yarns soft and comfy, allowing you to create different clothes suitable for the winter months.
What we liked: These yarns are extremely versatile and suitable for not only knitting scarves and sweaters but also for making other home décor accessories! You can easily wash them in a washing machine and dryer because the colors remain bright and intact after wash.
What could be better: These yarns only come in solid colors. One thing that could have been included in these yarns is multi or mixed color options for allowing more creativity.
More features: sustainable, environmentally-friendly, 90-day full refund period
This is perhaps the softest yarn you will find, with its 100% authentic baby alpaca wool material, which makes for extremely warm scarves. This yarn comes in a set of three skeins with duplicate colors. On top of that, you can choose between 25 different colors.
Each yarn has a total of 366 yards of thread, which makes a total of 1098 yards of yarn in the complete set. The gauge 3 yarn weighs 5.28oz and comes with a full refund policy valid till after 90 days of purchase.
What we liked: It is an eco-friendly and sustainable product that is easily biodegradable, making you a conscious and responsible buyer. Another quality of this product is that the alpaca wool is acquired through cruelty-free ways, ensuring the safety of these animals. The natural wool provides excellent thermal protection and feels incredibly soft on the skin.
What could be better: One con of this product is that a set has duplicate colors instead of assorted ones, requiring you to buy multiple sets if you want more colors
More features: soft, great for various crochet techniques, machine washable
The Red Heart Unforgettable Yarn is made from 100% acrylic material, making it an extremely versatile product, which allows you to use several crochet techniques and needles for knitting. The pure acrylic material also makes it comfortable and soft.
These yarns come in a single skein of delicate gauge 4 that weighs 3.5oz. You can choose from 9 amazing and unique mixed color shades. The length of each yarn is 279 yards.
What we liked: It has unique mixed color combinations that serve just to every knitter’s creative side. It is also user-friendly, and you can put it in a washing machine if needed.
What could be better: The only thing that some customers didn’t like was the tangling of this yarn. Thus, while doing your project, you must be precise to avoid any mistakes.
More features: versatile, machine washable, soft and resilient
This yarn is made from 100% merino wool, which is a soft, delicate, and extremely cozy material that is perfect for keeping you warm in the winters. Each skein is 120 yards long, and a bulky number 5 gauge yarn weighs 3,5oz. You can choose skeins from a range of 14 colors, including a bright vibrant solids and light pastels! The high-quality colors are long-lasting and don’t fade easily.
What we liked: These versatile yarns are a winter essential for knitters who like to make warm and soft woolen scarves, sweaters, matching gloves, and hats! The delicate woolen yarn and crafts made from this yarn can easily be hand-washed and air-dried.
What could be better: One con of this otherwise exquisite yarn is that you cannot wash it in the machine without damaging the material or color.
More features: easy to work with, super soft, long hair
These baby soft and comfortable 100% polyester fur yarns are suitable for knitting, crocheting, and weaving, making them a crafty person’s holy grail. Each set comes as a pair of 35-yard long skeins of fur yarn, and each chunky yarn skein weighs 1.76 oz. These yarns come in 19 color options, with both solid and mixed colors. The super soft and long hair doesn’t tangle easily and gives plenty of room to work with.
What we liked: These cruelty-free faux fur yarns are a fur lover’s dream because they can offer a soft feel and luxury look. The texture of this yarn makes it easy to work with using all kinds of needles and knits.
What could be better: One thing that could have made these yarns even better is a longer skein because you need roughly 4 of these yarn skeins to knit a sweater.
More features: super soft and warm, rich colors, 12-ply, machine washable and dryable
This yarn is made from 80% acrylic and 20% wool, making for an extremely soft and warm thread. This set of three skeins is perfect for knitting everything, ranging from scarves and sweaters to mittens, socks, and hats that will keep you snug throughout the cold season!
These yarns come in sets with 5 colors to pick from. Each yarn skein is 108 yards long, providing for a lot of material to work with. The number 5 gauge weighs 3 oz per yarn.
What we liked: The rich colors of these yarns make the end product look extremely classy. Also, the soft and warm material is perfect for knitting mittens and sweaters for babies who have delicate skin. These yarns are made in Turkey with 12-ply, and they can be easily machine washed and tumble dried.
What could be better: One downside of this yarn is that it can be difficult to work with for beginners because of the texture.
More features: excellent for beginners, includes 2 crochet hooks, 2 weaving needles, 7 E-books
These yarns are made from 100% acrylic material, making them not just soft to the touch but also durable. This is an extremely useful kit for knitting, especially for beginners. It includes 8 skeins of yarn with bright and vibrant colors, two weaving needles, 7 E-books for easy and creative ways to knit different kinds of scarves, and two crochet hooks.
Each yarn is 65 yards long, with a total of 525 yards of yarn in the complete set. The #4 weight makes these yarns extremely easy to handle.
What we liked: The complete beginner’s knitting set includes all the basic knitting supplies, making for special and meaningful gifts. They can be machine washed before and after knitting, and the bright colors of these yarns don’t fade easily even after several washes!
What could be better: The single downside of these yarns is that they are not suitable for bleaching and ironing.
It can be difficult to pick out the best yarn, especially when you have an ocean of colorful options calling out to you. It is not just what a yarn looks like, but also several other factors that make a yarn stand out from other low-quality options. Beginners may find most yarns similar and not know which one to get.
It is crucial to understand exactly which features to focus on. In order to help you make an informed decision and save you from the long trial and error period, we have composed a detailed buying guide for the best yarn for scarves.
When buying yarn for scarves, you have to consider the type of material you pick. This is because the materials determine some important things like the ease of knitting, the types of knits best suitable with certain materials, and how it feels on the skin when it comes to the comfort, softness, and warmth of your end product.
To pick the best yarn for scarves, you need to consider several other features as well, such as the length of the skein, how many skeins there are in the package, the colors available, user-friendliness, ease of use, and durability.
Considering the material of the yarn is of utmost importance because it determines most of the qualities you look for in a scarf. You can knit scarves from several types of yarns, but the best ones remain acrylic, wool, and cotton. Acrylic yarns are excellent for beginners because they don’t split easily, keeping your knit intact as you work. Also, this type of material is synthetic, so it is cheaper compared to other materials but yet soft and comfortable. The Red Heart Unforgettable Yarn is a great example here.
Cotton is a skin-friendly material that makes breathable scarves. It is also an inexpensive option, but it is not the easiest to handle, so it is less suitable for beginners.
A popular material for scarves is wool because it makes the warmest, softest, and most comfortable moisture wicking scarves that feel like a cloud wrapped around you.
Unfortunately, wool can be irritating to those with certain allergies and is generally considered a pricey option.
Usually, you will require more than a single skein for knitting a scarf, or even a pair of gloves, or a hat. A skein is a roll of yarn, and every skein can have different amounts of yarn, depending on the manufacturer. Some brands sell single skeins, while others sell pairs, sets of 3, 5, or even 8 skeins, such as seen with the Mira Handcrafts Acrylic Yarn, with either duplicate colors or assorted ones.
Sets of 2 or 3 skeins of yarn come in duplicate colors, while sets of 5 and 8 skeins usually have an assortment of colors. Some skeins even have as much yarn as one might need for knitting a full-sized scarf, which is the case with the AndeanSun 100% Baby Alpaca Yarn.
The length of the yarn determines how much material you have to work with using a single skein. This also helps you determine how many skeins you need to knit a whole scarf or other items, like sweaters, gloves, socks, and hats.
Running out of yarn in the middle can prove extremely inconvenient, especially if you won’t be able to find the same color match quickly.
Therefore, it is important to know how much yarn you need and figure out how many skeins to buy before you start working on knitting a new scarf. Each skein from a different brand can vary in color and the length of yarn. A safe way to go is to look for brands that have bigger skeins or come in duplicate sets of 2 or 3 skeins, such as the Lion Brand Woolspun Acrylic & Wool Soft Yarn.
Yarns are divided into different weight categories that are also a yardstick for distinguishing between the different types of yarn. ‘Zero-weight’ category yarns are extremely fine, like lace, and as we go up the levels to 1, 2, and 3, the yarn remains fine and delicate but becomes thicker and chunkier by the number. Category 4 makes for medium-sized yarns that are roughly 8-10-ply, which are perfect for knitting lean scarves and thin sweaters.
For thicker scarves, you need bulky 12-14-ply yarn, which comes in categories 5 and 6. These 5 and 6 weight yarns are also great for crocheting and wide knits, such as seen with the Patons Classic Wool Roving Yarn. You can choose any of these categories depending on how heavy and thick you want your scarves to be in order to protect you from the cold weather.
The softness of yarn depends directly on the type of material it is made from. Most products on our list are soft and make for scarves that provide the ultimate comfort. The softest material for the yarn you can get is wool. Woolen scarves are not only soft but warm and cozy as well. Other materials like faux fur are also soft to the touch despite their synthetic nature.
Acrylic is a common material used for knitting scarves because it is inexpensive and easy to handle, but also has a soft and cozy feel to it. Cotton is perhaps the least soft yarn. Still, it is not harsh on the skin, and you can use it to knit a comfortable scarf.
The resilience of yarn means that it proves to be a durable and sturdy product that does not wear out easily.
Resilient materials include acrylic, cotton, and other mixed combination fabrics, like wool and acrylic, because they are washing machine friendly, can be tumble dried, and tend to retain their qualities even after several uses. Also, the tougher a yarn is, the more resilient it is.
Threads that belong to weight categories from 4-6, including the Red Heart Super Saver Jumbo, tend to be more bulky and thick. Therefore, they are more resilient, while others, such as gauge 0-3, are more delicate and may be easily damaged if not cared for properly.
This is an important feature to consider because it translates into the user-friendliness and quality of yarn. Machine-washable yarns are easy to clean because they are resilient and don’t lose their color, shape, or other properties like softness even after several washes. They are durable and easy to maintain because they don’t require delicate care, unlike those that need to be washed by hand. If you put the latter in the washing machine, they tend to lose their color and wear out quickly.
This feature helps you save time as well as determine how sturdy yarn is if it can withstand machine washing. But this does not mean that you can use harsh detergents or bleach.
The yarn price depends on some important features, including the material, length of yarn in a single skein, number of skeins in a set, and some unique features that may set one product apart from the others.
As for the first feature here, synthetic or manmade materials, like acrylic, are mass-produced, so they tend to be cheaper, such as seen with the Red Heart Unforgettable Yarn and Lion Brand Hometown Yarn that you can found at around $10. Other natural materials that come from animals, like wool yarns, are more expensive. For example, check the AndeanSun 100% Baby Alpaca Yarn, which costs about $30.
Cotton is also inexpensive, and the same we can say about some synthetic materials that mimic natural ones, such as NICEEC Super Soft Fur Yarn, which costs around $15.
As you can see, these options are quite affordable, and purchasing one won’t cost you an arm and a leg. Thus, getting one is comes down to your preference.
Another important feature to consider is the warmth certain fabrics provide. For maximum insulation, wool and acrylic yarns are best. Scarves made from other materials may fail to protect you from the harsh lash of winter winds.
You can rest assured that both the machine and hand-washable yarns on our list will retain their color and overall quality of the fabric as long as you follow the specific maintenance and care instructions. Most machine washable yarns are protected with fade-resistant dyes and manufactured to maintain resilience even after several washes.
We have compiled a list of some excellent options of yarn for scarves that you can choose from, and we swear by every single one of these products. Our editor’s choice, the Red Heart Super Saver Jumbo, is the best pick overall because it allows you to choose from 33 fade-resistant colors, comes in big skeins, and is machine washable.
Number two is the Mira Handcrafts Acrylic Yarn, which has some excellent qualities like an assortment of 8 skeins, a complete beginner’s knitting kit, and long-lasting colors at an affordable price.
Last but not least, we have the Lion Brand Hometown Yarn with a great color range. On top of that, its #3 weight is ideal for fast knitting.
Knitting can be relaxing as well as a useful hobby to take on. But it can also be challenging. Some people who enjoy knitting initially may give it up eventually due to technical things they failed to figure out early on. To avoid this, you need to get the best yarn for scarves to promise the results you desire and a fun experience!
