I finally took the plunge and ordered the above from
kyarns.com in the USA. Not much over a week later (if that) and I have the wonderful plunder in my hands. And boy I wish we could do away with all that international shipping charges and import duty!
I had looked and looked and just couldn't find the colours of Koigu in the UK that I wanted, let alone at a decent price. At some point, I am going to sit down and work out just what it cost per skein from the USA vs from the UK, including the shipping. I want to see if what I suspect is true, and it's more expensive per skein in the UK even accounting for the import duty and shipping. But regardless - ooh, this is lovely yarn.
From first glance, I've spotted a little flaw in one skein where it looks like one of the plys has come apart - there's a couple of knots my fingertips found too but I suspect this is just the bit that holds the skein together - certainly hope so!
The colours are really lovely, not as vibrant as I was expecting perhaps for the majority, but the blues I added as a 6th skein (having read so many people saying they needed a 6th to make the edging/fringe/finish the last row or two) are certainly packing a punch and absolutely gorgeous.
The Lorna's Laces - well. I am astounded, frankly. The colour transitions and blendings are just lovely. The yarn itself is uniform, absolutely wonderful to the touch - smooth, soft, and I can't wait till my feet are wrapped in it (it's destined for socks). It says 'superwash' wool and nylon - I'm puzzled as to what superwash wool is, so if anyone can explain that to a Brit, that'd be good. I'm thinking it might mean it's not going to felt (this is good) - I do like to wash my socks (even my handknitted, though so far these are all man-made fibre, not wool) in my machine, but if I have to do them by hand then so be it, I have quite a few more handwash-only items on the to-knit list, including a kiri shawl in kidsilk spray that's just made it onto the needles to be started ;-)
Very impressed with the comms from KYarns too - quick replies to my emails concerning the shipping internationally etc.
Now I just need to get the Kiri shawl finished so I can start on the Koigu stash. Although if I use it up, I just
know I'm going to want to order more, and my poor finances really can't run to that right now ;-)
Oh, and shipping to the UK (for the pattern, 6 skeins of Koigu, 2 skeins of Lorna's Laces - er - sockweight LOL) ran to around 16 US Dollars. I did find it hard to gauge how much it might be (they put a standard charge on when you order for international shipping, then weigh and charge the actual cost which is often lower) so I thought that might help others who are wibbling about ordering from the UK. Customs charged about 12.50 UK Pounds for the import duty.