I feel so much more warm and cozy in my Wool Sweaters since I stopped wearing cotton sweater pullovers in the winter. I found this by learning to knit wool sweaters. So there!

Glad I am wearing a cashmere sweater while watching this. Paired with handknitted wool socks and cotton overalls for these winter northern California days.

Thank you, Clara! I'm currently wearing a merino/silk blend turtleneck under a (handknit) merino/cashmere blend pullover and I'm quite toasty! Keep bringing facts to the table.

Thank you, Clara for this video - I just discovered your channel. MORE Videos please - you are full of information and you present your material so well. I recently discovered (a couple of years ago @63 yrs of age) that I CAN wear WOOL. All these years I thought it was too scratchy on my sensitive skin. But since I have moved back to Alaska and also discovered thrifting I have been having a ball finding cashmere, merino and some wool that I can wear .And these sweaters have been so soft and cozy up here in the sub zero temperatures. I used to depend on cotton, rayon and some blends to keep me warm in the winter, but now the cotton and rayon do not hold the same appeal September to April up here. Some of my sweaters are mens merino sweaters that I have shrunk down to a smaller and thicker size. I would love to watch some videos on the proper way to shrink a wool or cashmere sweater -no pressure.

My partner and I do some winter camping down in near Biloxi, MS. There have been a few years where the temperatures can get down into the 20's. We are from MI, so we know the value of wool. The rest of the campers are mostly from FL, and several of them would literally throw EVERY stitch of clothing they had and burrow underneath to keep warm. We had flannel sheets, a wool/silk comforter and a second wool blanket on top and we were quite comfortable.

LOL, of course, cotton is cheaper! Cotton also has more pesticides and fertilizers, and we all have read that book! The writer needs to spend a few days outside in a cotton sweater.

Clara, that is a fabulous short! Thanks for getting the facts out!

Thank you so much! Perhaps the WSJ should be asking you to write any further articles regarding knitting/ fiber! Just a thought. Or, at least the ‘journalists’ could have interviewed you as a reliable source! Might be too much common sense!

Clara, these shorts are great! Thanks for sharing!

Great video, Clara!

I used to hike and backpack a lot. In winter, wearing cotton next to your skin can be deadly. It holds moisture on your skin. So when you sweat, it holds it. I once spilled cocoa on my wool undershirt It was only about 45°f so I thought it would be OK. I only had about 5 mi. to get back to the car. About 2 mi in, I was damp. 2.5 mi, I was wet. Legs shaking from heavy load going mostly uphill. Stopped to rest. In just a few seconds, I felt cold, which I expected. But as I sat, I started shivering. Uncontrollably. I knew I was in real trouble & could not stop the rest of the way. If the cotton was on an outer layer (but beneath the windbreaker) I'd have been ok. I never made that mistake again.

Oh, the shame! I am currently wearing a cotton sweater - probably from Target. It was a Christmas gift from my mom many years ago. I live in CA and work in an office, so freezing to death is not my top concern. I always wear another shirt under this sweater because I find that it rubs my elbows raw. Kind of does even with the extra shirt. When I am working outside I wear wool, and I wear wool in my office during summer due to over air conditioning. Every wool sweater or knitting article I've read in a major daily newspaper always has a comment from someone who finds wool too scratchy, but in my my experience sweaters made from cotton, flax, and other plant based fibers irritate the heck out of me. They just rub me the wrong way. There isn't anything soft or cozy about them.

I love wool but it itches my skin so I wear cotton.