May 1st not only brought in a new month for me, but with the help of the post office I also received a free box of yarn. Lion Yarn generous gave me five skeins of yarn in exchange for a review on each.

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When I opened the box I was delighted to see a skein of Rewind (Marbles), Penelope (Zeus), Flikka (Grape Jelly) and last of all, two cakes of Mandala baby (Rainbow). The colors of the Mandala was so bright and beautiful I found them irresistible, so I started with them. This was also a special treat for me because ever since I saw the yarn being used by a novice crochet student, I knew I would one day work it into a colorful project.

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After looking at the colors for a few minutes I decided upon a new shawl to wear to church on this upcoming Mothers Day. After this long, very cold winter, I am looking forward to the hues of spring. I chose a pattern Double Hug Shawl from the Prayer Shawl crochet pattern book. Because the color ends and begins are pre-determined and beyond my control, I chose a simple granny square pattern.

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I discovered that I love this yarn, it is a #3 weight, which made it perfect for a spring shawl, and also for baby clothing or lighter afghans. The yarn was great to work with and has a nice drape.

Although Mandala yarn has a gradual transition of one color to another, there were a few noticeable spots of wrong color.

If you are looking to buy this yarn I would like to make one suggestion: One of the cakes I received started with purple the other with red. So make sure the one you buy is starting with the color that you desire for the beginning of the project you are crocheting.

Pro
Less ends to weave in
590 yards per cake of yarn which means that two were enough to finish a shawl.
It takes the stress out of matching colors.
Easy to work with.

Cons
Because you cannot not control where the color ends, you might be switching colors in the middle of a row.
I personally wished it had a brighter shade of yellow. The shade that was picked was more of a green yellow then a yellow.

I can easily recommend this yarn and am looking forward to using it again. I am thinking of trying it next possibly in a baby afghan.

Until next time keep those hooks flying.