This 185-yd put-up has been discontinued, but the same lovely yarn is now available in 400 yd skeins as SMerF 4000.

• 100% Superwash Merino
• 2 skeins makes a pair of socks (women’s sz 9.5, 7” cuff, ribbed)
• Naturally dyed

There are a lot of superwash merino bases to choose from, how’s a girl to decide which to dye? Well, for this yarn, I went for maximum squooshiness. Yes, that’s a technical term. I wanted a superwash base that was lively and a joy to knit with, so I chose Louet North America’s Gems. Plus, LNA was started by a natural dyer, so it just seemed fitting. They source their yarn from South Africa, where merino sheep have been bred to have fewer folds of skin and be bigger overall, so that they provide good meat as well as fine fiber.

It may seem the biggest of all oxymorons to have a natural dyer carry a line of superwash wool. Superwash is a chemically intensive process that’s not performed in the United States due to EPA regulations. But there’s a time and a place for technology, and I believe this is one of them. You’ve worked way too hard on that pair of socks, gloves, scarf, or whatever to have a friend felt your gift. And it’s not just your friend that you have to worry about, it’s their well-meaning but clueless loved one who is “helping out” by doing a load of laundry…