Are You In a Yarn Rut?
Are you in a rut with your yarn choices? Do you often, if not always, choose a certain type and certain colors?
Are you someone who adores knitting with fingering weight speckled yarns? Or are more rustic yarns the ones you reach for? How about preferring only the softest of the soft?
Woolfolk is the softest of the soft and light as down!
Do you love working with worsted weight because it knits up faster than DK, Sport, or Fingering? Have you ever used fingering to make a lovely, drapey, lightweight cowl? It’s worth considering!
We’d like to encourage you to knit your next project with a yarn that is different from what you usually use. So many possibilities can drive your decision………
Speckled and Variegated. Can you tell which is which?
Color
Solid: the same exact color throughout
Semi-solid: the yarn has places that are lighter than the color being dyed due to the fact that the yarn absorbs the dye unevenly
Tonal: almost like semi-solid but gray or black are added to the main color adding areas of darker color in addition to lighter
Speckled: there are random speckles of one or more colors throughout
Gradients/Ombres: yarn with smooth transitions of color from one to the next
Variegated: these yarns have two or more colors that are dispersed throughout the yarn in different amounts depending on the designer’s whims.
Weight and corresponding needle size
Lace: US 000 - 1
Fingering/sock: US 1-3
Sport: US 3-5
DK: US 5-7
Worsted: US 7-9
Chunky/Bulky: US 9-11
Keep in mind that this information is only a general guideline. Lace weight projects are often knit with much larger needles to create the designs and add the drape desired. Worsted weight mittens might be knit on smaller needles to create more warmth from a tight fabric. A sturdy, rustic yarn might be knit on larger needles to add drape. As with most things in knitting, there are no hard and fast rules.
These yarns have no ‘flop factor’. From left to right: Hudson+West Forge, North Light Fibers Water Street, The Farmer’s Daughter Soka’pii.
Yarn feel
Where is your garment or accessory going to be worn? Directly against skin or on top of a piece of clothing? What kind of wear will it get? Would you like mittens to wear on a walk or will they be getting rough use?
Beautifully soft yarn won’t hold up against much wear and tear but would be perfect to keep your neck or head warm! A more ‘toothy’ yarn, one that is less delicate, would make a great outer sweater or hard-wearing pair of mittens.
These yarns have differing amounts of ‘flop factor’. From left to right: Quince & Co Owl, The Fibre Co Cumbria, Green Mountain Spinnery Mountain Mohair
Flop factor
If you’re going to make a project that calls for drape or soft folds, such as a shawl or soft cowl, you want a yarn with what we call ‘flop’. If you hold it on its end, it will flop over and won’t stand up straight. The amount of flop indicates how much drape it will have.
We’d like to send you on a search of your stash or the shop to see what you can find out about yarn! Find something for your next project that is not your usual choice; you might quite like it!
Note: This is a blog post from 2020. I published it again because I will be at Stitches West in Sacramento this week. I think it's always interesting to take a look at what yarn we like to use and why! There are two yarns pictured that we no longer carry, Cumbria and Water Street.
Happy Knitting,
