I have a elderly friend who does a lot of crocheting. She says there are different grades or quality of Red Heart yarns. She showed me an example--one bought from a quilt suppy place and the other from Walmart. Has anyone else noticed such as this? I saw the wrappers for both and they didn't look any different from one another. Any help on this? Thanks Cyd

I wasn't aware of that, but it's possible.

After a few years of not crocheting (I was quilting, of course), I decided to make some scarves for Christmas gifts, so off I went to Joann's, WalMart, and Micheals. I couldn't believe how the quality of yarn has gone down!! It was very hard to find soft yarns, even in the baby colors. Also, the prices were ridiculous.

All three stores carried Red Heart yarn. During my first shopping expedition, I bought Lion Brand and Red Heart skeins. The Lion Brand scarf wasn't bad -- fairly soft, at least wearable. The Red Heart scarf came out scratchy and stiff. And, although I used colors on the brighter side, the Red Heart colors seem to muddy out as I crocheted. I did try one more skein from another store, silly me, and the quality was about the same -- lousy!

Lesson learned. No more Red Heart. I found the Lion Brand and some of Vanna White's line to be satisfactory but still not up to the quality that I remember from years ago. I wonder if shops that specialize in yarns (there are still a few around) carry a better quality or, is this the state of affairs all over?

I used to crochet a lot and still have a huge stash of yarn. I don't remember ever buying Red Heart in a specialty yarn shop, only from Walmart, Michaels and JoAnn's. The quality of Red Heart has gone down while the price goes up. It is stiff and rough until you wash it - then it becomes limp and stretches horribly. I will still use it - for items around the house ... I won't use it for any special items that may become heirloom pieces. There are so many brands of yarn to choose from - different qualities for different items.

The only nice and really good yarn come from speciality stores and believe me with a huge price. The skeins are oh about 50 grams and come in at a whooping price of $10.25 so a lovely baby sweater is costing me oh about $65.00. OUCH

OUCH is an understatement! Guess you really have to love a hobby, now-a-days, to participate in it!

Red Heart is pretty much only good for afghans, I think. Not for babies either as it is fairly stiff until it gets washed and you must dry it flat and reshape it.

My friend is crazy for knitting socks. She pays about $22 for enough yarn to knit 1 pair of socks! It is super soft and self striped, but still!

I have only purchased Lion Brand Homespun on a regular basis for my afghans and such. I do have some Red Heart I purchased for an afghan for my sister because teh colors were so pretty, but afterwards I realized just how rough and unmanageable it is. So sad because years ago that is all I purchased for my projects.
I have not used Vanna's yarn yet, but I do like the feel of it and you can catch it on sale at JA's or HL's.
Some of the fufu yarns are fun but so expensive.
If I learn to knit, I will be using Alpaca yarn for socks and mittens as it is so warm, hypo-allergenic, and wicks away the moisture.
The quality of everything is going down hill because of wanting lower prices, quantity, and availability. We will reap what we have sown before we know it.