Acrylic knitwear is unpopular for three reasons. First, its appearance looks somewhat flammable. Second, the texture is “spongy” as opposed to luxurious, soft and cashmere-esque. And third, it pills like crazy. 

I’ve been looking high and low for a Winter white, extra chunky-knit, cabled turtleneck pullover, and almost came home empty handed despite being prepared to spend a reasonable amount of money on the item. Almost all the styles were itchy and scratchy. Except, that is, for the ones with an acrylic-rich fibre content. I eventually found two extra chunky knit turtlenecks that look and feel great. The fibre content of the one is 45% nylon, 27% wool and 28% acrylic, while the fibre content of the other is 22% wool and 78% acrylic. My skin is relieved and I’m thrilled to be participating in the chunky cabled knitwear trend. I’ve worn both styles a few times already and am very pleased with the darlings. My cashmere knits are not pulling up their noses at their new acrylic-rich wardrobe mates.   

Of course, neither of these sweaters has been laundered yet, and they might pill after their first clean. But my hopes are high that they won’t because they are blended with fibres other than acrylic. I’ll keep you posted on how these chunky knits wear throughout the season. 

The undesirable attributes of acrylic knitwear are there, but I’m sticking up for acrylic-rich knitwear. When acrylic fibre is blended with fibres like wool, it creates a non-itchy, more affordable alternative.