Craft Smart Value Yarn Review – Softness, Quality and More!

Hi guys! This week I thought I would switch things up by posting my first yarn review: Craft Smart Value Solids Yarn. Now I know what you might be thinking: “Craft Smart? How low can you go?”. Trust me, I get it. When I first started crocheting 5 years ago, I had no idea what yarn to buy; I just bought yarn based on colour, without taking the different textures and weights into consideration. One of my first yarn purchases included a red skein of Craft Smart Yarn. It rubbed my finger raw, so I decided to never waste money on Craft Smart yarn again.

Flash forward 5 years. While browsing through Michaels, I saw a beautiful mauve yarn. I didn’t even realize it was Craft Smart Yarn until I saw the red and white label. The yarn looked much softer than I remembered, so I reached my hand out to test my theory. Surprise! The yarn was pretty soft, and not too fuzzy/pill-y.

So, I picked up some Mauve and Blush coloured yarn to try it out. Below, you will find my thoughts on this yarn!

Let’s get to the review!

This review evaluates the softness, drape, accessibility, bang for your buck (cost), colour options, frogging difficulty, finding the yarn tail difficulty, and everything else you need to know to make an informed purchase!

If you have sworn off this yarn, like I did 5 years ago, this review might make you change your mind.

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A bit about Craft Smart Value Yarn:

• Worsted/Aran Weight Medium 4 yarn
• 100% acrylic yarn
• $3.99 CAD or $3.49 USD per skein
• 354 yds/ 324 m in each skein
• 27 Colours Available

Is this the Yarn for Me?

Craft Smart Value yarn is an economy yarn, which basically means that it is budget-friendly. For this reason, this is an ideal yarn for beginner level crocheters and knitters – it’s a cheap acrylic yarn that they can practice on, before venturing out to more expensive yarns – or fiber artists on a budget. I fall into the fiber artists on a budget category, so I am always on the lookout for a good quality economy yarn to use in my crochet projects. Yarn prices can add up quickly, so if you love to crochet, and do it often, economy yarn is a good option to have.

Accessibility: Where Can I Buy this Yarn?

Craft Smart Value Yarn is only sold in Michaels stores. Since Michaels is based in both the United States and Canada, this yarn is only accessible to North American crocheters. Michaels does not offer currently offer international shipping.

Craft Smart Value Yarn: Michaels Canada
Craft Smart Value Yarn: Michaels U.S.

Is this Yarn a Good Bang for your Buck?

Each skein of Craft Smart Value yarn has 354 yards or 324 meters, and costs $3.99 CAD/$3.49 USD before tax. So, yes! One skein of this yarn goes a long way, and is a great bang for your buck. With just 1 skein of yarn, you can make a scarf, hat, mittens, wall hanging, and more. Large projects, like sweaters and blankets ,will also be cheaper because you will not need to buy as many skeins to reach the required yardage. You could easily make a baby blanket with 4 or 5 skeins of yarn, and a full size blanket with 7 or 8 skeins.

Softness, Thickness, and Drape

Craft Smart Value has clearly rebranded and changed yarn suppliers because their yarn is noticeably softer and less fuzzy. I examined two different colours, Blush and Mauve, using a 6.5mm crochet hook. Working a small moss stitch square (8 rounds), I noticed that the thickness and softness vary between the two colours. This variation could be due to the colour of the dye and how it reacts with the yarn base.

As you can see below, the Blush coloured yarn has great drape and stitch definition, looks soft, and has a nice sheen to it. However, the Mauve yarn is thicker, less soft, and lacks a sheen.

• Blush Softness (6.5/10) – similar to Bernat Premium yarn in thickness and softness.
• Mauve Softness (5/10) – similar to Caron One Pound yarn in thickness, but a tad softer and less fuzzy.

Due to the variation in thickness between the colours, the Mauve square was 0.5″ wider and longer than the Blush square. This is a major downside when crocheting with multiple colours in one project because the difference in thickness could affect the size of the project and make it look wonky.

An Easy Fix: I would recommend shopping for the yarn in person, (for your first purchase) so you can feel each skein and see the differences in the colours.

Colour Options Have Improved!

When this yarn first came on the market, it featured a lot of neon and bright colours, which is typical for an economy yarn. Now, Craft Smart Value includes trendier colours, like blush, mauve, terracotta, and honey yarn. I am not going to lie guys, this is a major improvement in my books because it shows that this company is trying to reach different levels of crocheters.

Here are a few colours that I’ve been drawn to:

• Blush (a peachy/pink that is hard to come by – it’s really pretty)
• Mauve (the camera does not do it justice, but it’s a really nice shade of warm, purple mauve. It is my favourite shade of mauve that I have seen so far. I am always on the hunt for mauve!)
• Clay (a terracotta colour that is very similar to the I Love This Yarn Solids in Terra Cotta)
• Curry (this colour looks much better in person; it’s a bit darker than Vanna’s Choice in Honey)
• Raspberry (I love purple, and this colour is a bit brighter than I Love This Yarn Solids in Mixed Berry)

The Right Crochet Hook for this Yarn

A 5.5mm crochet hook is recommended on the yarn label, but I find that a 6.5mm hook is perfect, especially if you crochet tightly. The 6.5mm worked great with the Blush yarn, which was a bit thinner than the Mauve. If you are working with the thicker Craft Smart Value yarn, you can even try a 7.0mm crochet hook. Play around with hook sizes until you find the look and drape you prefer.

How Easy it to Frog with this Yarn?

Frogging is the process of ripping out stitches and rows because you made a mistake or the piece is not turning out how you would have liked. If you need to frog, your stitches come apart easily and do not stick to one another. This means that you won’t damage the yarn if you have to rip out some stitches/rows.

How Hard is it to Find the Yarn Tails?

Every skein of yarn comes with 2 tails – one in the center of the skein, and one tucked into the top. Below, you can see a picture of where the center tail is, in both the Mauve and Blush skeins. The yarn tails are very easy to find, so you can easily crochet with the center strand. There are also no snags or tangles when you pull from the center!

If you are new to crochet, and wondering why you would crochet with the center strand, it is because the ball of yarn will not move around as you crochet. It just makes pulling the yarn so much easier.

What Projects Would Work Well with This Yarn?

Craft Smart Value is an acrylic yarn, so you can basically use it to crochet anything. I think it would be great for making blankets (very budget-friendly), Amigurimi, pillows, wall hangings, hats, scarves, shawls, mittens, and even sweaters. The softer colours, like the blush, have great drape, so they would be perfect for garments or accessories.

Here are a few projects to give you ideas:

• Burst of Sunshine Pillow
• That 70’s Pillow
• Hip Granny Pocket Shawl
• Bellame Baby Blanket
• For the Love of Texture Afghan

Check out some more fun and budget-friendly crochet patterns on the blog.

Overall Opinion of Craft Smart Value Yarn

Overall, Craft Smart Value yarn is a good quality economy yarn that is easy on the budget. I have 7 skeins of blush that I am hoping to use in my next blanket design (whatever that will be). My one suggestion is to see and feel the yarn in person, for your first purchase. During this first trip to Michaels, you can figure out what colours you like, and which colours have similar thickness (you can tell just by looking and feeling the yarn). This way you will not be disappointed after your purchase!

I hope this review helps you make an informed decision on whether or not this yarn is for you. If you love economy yarn, I think you will be pleasantly surprised with the new and improved Craft Smart Value yarn. I know I am.

Have an amazing day!

Love, Dayna