Softening Acrylic Yarn Challenge - How to Soften Acrylic Yarn 

I contacted Coats & Clark (who make Red Heart Yarn). This is what they said about how to care for their Red Heart Super Saver Acrylic Yarn...here is what they told me. Here is the WHOLE story! Please read the whole post. Make a 5" x 5" swatch in the pattern stitch and needle/hook size you are going to do your project in. This will help you see if the finished product is what you want. They said to NEVER use liquid fabric softener because it will "coat the yarn and cause it to stretch". They said to use DRYER SHEET fabric softeners instead. They told me the BEST way to wash a GARMENT is to HAND WASH in COOL water - and if you wish - you can get the excess water out by putting it in the washers GENTLE SPIN CYCLE for a short time. DAMP BLOCK your item on a flat towel. NEVER STEAM BLOCK (with a steam iron) acrylic yarn for it can melt. Allow the garment to air dry. IF YOU WANT TO GET THE FINISHED ITEM SOFT.... Wash item in washer and dry per yarn label instructions on low or medium heat. It seems that you might want to use LIQUID fabric softener (or maybe hair conditioner?) in the rinse cycle. As stated above, they said that liquid fabric softener will coat the fibers and cause them to "stretch" - this might be something beneficial if you want this to happen. It could make the garment "floppy" and have more flow? I suggested that Coats & Clark put ALL of this information on their "Yarnspirations" website so that people know ALL of this! I have not been able to find any comprehensive directions on their website - so they need one.

I washed a completed blanket and used hair Conditioner in place of fabric softener on the handwash mode in the washer..I dried on air dry, then laid out to completely dry on a quilt... it was amazing and so soft!!! Thanks for your help...

I've been crocheting and knitting since i was 10, i never knew that a ball of acrylic yarn could be softened, all those scratchy yarns i said no to, i can use now. Tbank you for sharing

For my vinegar solutions, I do a 4:1 ratio, so every 4 cups of water is 1 cup of vinegar. And I let it soak for hours. And it drapes it beautifully! Maybe if you use fabric softener in the wash after the soak it'd work perfectly

I only ever use hair conditioner but have never rubbed the conditioner into the fabric. I have soaked projects together i have even left it up to 48 hours. I like it. I use it on all yarns. Don't use red heart super saver but maybe i will try because it is sooooo much more inexpensive then the yarns i currently use. I mostly only make wearables. Also, i never wash any project in a machine. I soak in conditioner, rinse well gently squeeze out water as best i can. Then i get a towel lay my garment on the towel and roll to get out more water. Then i lay out on a doubled giant towel block and dry. Keep flipping sometimes stretching to make garment looser. So far has worked out great. Some garments can take days to dry though. Big draw back.

I have found that if pre-washing yarn you should use pantyhose. It works fantastic and is still super porous and keeps the yarn together

Thank you for trying all these different methods, enjoyed watching. I use to avoid Super Saver but I just couldn't keep away from the Retro stripes and Neon Stripes. I was looking for a way to soften the yarn before I use it. I took the label off the skein put it in an old pantyhose leg tied a knot on each end so it was secure and then I put it inside a garment bag as a safeguard, washed it on warm with liquid fabric softener and then put in the dryer on low with fabric softener sheet just in the pantyhose and each skein stayed intact and was much softer.

This is so helpful! In a lot of ways I'm self taught when it comes to crochet and I've never heard of blocking a piece which has led to me never wearing mine. I will absolutely be doing this! Thank you!

Thank you for this video! The comments were also helpful!

Thank you for this video! Very helpful info!

I’ve started steam blocking my projects recently, glad to know that works well to soften it as well.

This was such a life saver!!!!!

loved this vid . soooo informative

I'll try and experiment by combining some of the methods to see what comes out. Thanks so much for sharing.

I’m doing all of the above I’ll first steam my garment, then I’ll just add the vinegar to the wash cycle in the washing machine, let it wash then lspin, then take the garment out, apply conditioner then place it back in the washer for the rinse cycle adding a bit of fabric softener, then dry the garment. I’ll let you know my results

Thank you! My daughter asked me, for the first time ever, to make her a blanket. I've been trying to figure out how to soften it for her. This is perfect!

Thank you for doing all the work. Very informative. The yarn I bought felt soft compared to red heart super saver at the store , but as I was crocheting 1/3 way in I noticed how it felt slightly rough. Too rough for a baby blanket to my liking. I will be finishing a baby blanket late tonight and the baby is tomorrow night, so you saved me a lot of time. Thank you 😊

This was very useful, thank you

The steamed swatch is so pretty. I was waiting for the whole video to see how it came out so beautifully. 😊

Thanks for the info and sharing. Have a great day!!!

This was exactly what I was looking for. Thank you very much for your testings. I will try the steam method first. I've never done that before so I will need to be extra careful not to melt it.

The texture on the steamed swatch seems flatter than on the others, and, I think it has stretched a little also!

Very informative. Thanks! I've been tossing finished items into the dryer on low heat with some wool dryer balls for about 20 minutes; that helps even out stitch tension and does some softening. Then I steam-block with my steam iron set on the "wool" setting to stop any curling. Haven't yet tried it with Red Heart SuperSaver, but based on how scratchy it is off the skein, I suspect one of the chemical methods (vinegar, fabric softener) would give better results.

This video was so helpful because I have a bunch of hats using the Red Heart Super Saver brand and I am worried it won't fit there head.

This was interesting. Never heard of the vinegar.

Have you tried a combination of ideas? Soaking in vinegar, conditioning it, then washing it with fabric softener?

could you use the vinegar solution then was with fabric softener for granny squares then block or does using both cause issues

hello I just wanted to know if I do the conditioner blocking method can I also do the steam blocking on the same piece to make it more secure ??

Great video, thank you. My wool scarf is 80% acrylic but 20% wool - which of these methods would be ok for this, do you think?

could you double up on methods? like do conditioner method and then steam block after?

A sock works good for a skien. Dress sock mabe better is what i was told.

Did you have a swatch just washing and drying without softener or anything? Just curious.

Weow I’m tryna make a baby beanie for my friends niece and I’m halfway down but it’s so stiff you can’t even fold it and I used a large crochet hook too

Just watched the video i can visually see the difference in the fabric using steam. The stitches aren't as raised the edges flat. As a novice Ill start with the bargain conditioner, I use vinegar instead of fabric softener in my machine. Hopefully, I will get the additional benefit 😊🎉❤

You throw out tangled yarn???

I use the antibacterial hand wash during lockdown and since as I have found it nit only softens the item, it also gives it a lovely smell as well. The one I used was the blue coloured one, I've also tried the pink one. Next will be the lavender one, particularly as lavender is a relaxing one. I soak the item in a few pumps of the handwash in warm water, leave for around 15 mins, then rinse in cool water till soap removed. I generally place it on the bath seat and use the shower head to rinse through. Then I use a white towel to wring dry or press out the excess water, then laying the item on the towel and let it air dry, if it's a big item. then I leave it hanging on the chair over a white towel as heater comes on overnight if needed a lot of drying. If needed blocking. It's fine the next day again left to air dry. I couldn't believe how sift my items became. So at least one good thing cane out if lockdown!

I just bought Red Heart Super Saver in Black and Charcoal and something has changed....It is coarser, thicker and not soft to the touch at all! This is all the yarn that I can find in the Bahamas! It is horrible. I will continue to make my blanket and wash it afterwards and hope that it will soften up! I am sooo annoyed and disappointed!

Good video but very wordy.