Review: Bernat's Softee Chunky Yarn

Last winter, my mama came home with a bag full of Bernat's Softee Chunky yarn that she had bought for me because the colors reminded her of me. Each skein is a mixture of bright orange, bright pink, and bright red called Carnival. I love bright colors, my mama has called the colors I like gaudy many times. I just like to think I'm part crow - the bird, not the Native Americans, because they love bright shiny objects. I loved the yarn; not only is it bright enough for me, but it also is soft, which is another requirement of mine.

Bernat makes their Softee Chunky yarn from 100% acrylic. Each skein weighs 2.8 oz and has 134 yards of yarn. The yarn is soft and lightweight, in fact it feels fluffy. It is machine washable and dryable, which is another requirement of mine. Each label has a free pattern on the back; I got a couple different scarves. If you are interested in free crochet and knitting patterns, then go to their website www.bernat.com and register. Although they require you to register it is free to search and print out a copy for your own use. The website is easy to use.

There were eight or nine skeins in the bag and I immediately started working on an afghan. It is easy to crochet with this yarn and the afghan is so soft not to mention very pretty. Once I got all the yarn made up I realized I needed more, a lot more. So mama and I both went back to Wal-Mart where she found it for $1.78 a skein. To our disappointment there was none left. We checked back over and over again in the next few months. Mama finally was the one who spotted more of the Carnival Softee Chunky yarn and bought nine more skeins.

That's when I discovered I had put my crochet hook up and didn't remember which one I was using. I kept trying different sizes by crocheting a row or two. I lost count how many times I redid those same rows, but I finally find the right size. Or at least I thought I did. I got the extra yarn crocheted before I had the thought to fold the afghan in half. I nearly cried, because one end was at least six inches wider than the other. I sucked it up and unraveled the afghan and started over. This time I decided to make it wider. Wide enough to be a bedspread, because I really loved the way carnival colored Softee Chunky looked.

Well I ran out of yarn again. I was beginning to feel that this bedspread I was making was a dark hole for yarn. I went back to Wal-Mart yet again for more yarn, thinking that maybe lightweight yarn isn't the best thing to use. I bought six more skeins. If you are keeping up that makes a total of 24 skeins, which is a lot of yarn. I finally finished the bedspread and it looks wonderful.

Bottom line: I do recommend this yarn, but be aware you will probably need more of it than you think you will.