A plyed yarn has different properties to a single and the number of plys changes the shape of the yarn which can affect how it looks when knitted up, but the details are another whole blog post! It matters because its confusing not to know if a yarn described as 4 ply is made up of 4 plys, is fingering weight, or both! The most accurate way to describe a yarn's thickness is wraps per inch WPI and this can easily be measured using a thick knitting needle or similar and a ruler or tape measure.
Wrap the yarn snugly but not too tightly around your needle, making sure the strands lie next to each other but aren't too squashed. Measure 1" and count how many times the yarn is wrapped in that inch.
This is the WPI for that yarn. Different weights of yarn generally fall into the following ranges of WPI:. This gives a very accurate measure of yarn thickness for most yarns. The only difficulties are with fluffier yarns where it is difficult to wrap them closely enough to get an accurate WPI measurement.
I am going to try and update all the listing on the website to give the wpi of our yarns and their structure, although that will be ongoing as it takes time to go through all the existing products.
We use the term "sock yarn" to mean a blend of yarn that includes nylon for the purpose of making the finished product durable. Makes a lightweight sock.
Jumper Weight A British term for a lightweight yarn to be knit on a size U. This is a weight often specified for stranded Fair Isle sweaters. Sport Yarn This yarn knits to about 6 stitches per inch and uses a U. DK or Double Knitting This is a term that originated in Britain and is used by all types of manufacturers.
It refers to a yarn size very close to a sport weight, but slightly heavier. Worsted Weight This is what is often considered ordinary knitting yarn. The gauge is roughly 5 stitches per inch on a size 7 or 8 needle. Worsted weight is the size of yarn most commonly used for afghans. We sell a lot of worsted weight yarn. Aran Weight A British designation that means a worsted or heavy worsted weight yarn. Chunky Yarns These yarns are thicker than worsted and knit to a gauge of Bulky Yarns These yarns are larger yet than aran or chunky.
They are worked on large needles with a US size of 11 or greater. There are lots of fun patterns using these large yarns. There's no such thing as a one-ply yarn. Technically, that's called a singles yarn. The singles are plied to create yarns of different thicknesses, but there's no longer any consistency as to the yarn's weight based on the number of plies.
A four-ply yarn can be bulky or medium weight, while singles can be super thin or super bulky, or anything in between for that matter. The old definitions of yarn weight as being a particular ply are disappearing in favor of the Craft Yarn Council of America's Standard Yarn Weight System.
This system makes it possible for people from anywhere in the world to understand how thick or thin a strand of yarn is because the system is based on numbers. The system uses a scale from one to six, with one being the finest yarn, also known as superfine, and six—super bulky—being the biggest. Should you see knitting instructions that call for a particular ply of yarn, however, these rules generally apply, based on the standards in the UK:.
These terms both refer to the thickness of your yarn strand. Traditionally ply described the number of threads used to make up the yarn strand. So if you unwound the end of a 4 ply strand you would have 4 threads, and there would be 8 threads in and 8 ply yarn. Ply is a term used often in NZ and Australia. This is where weight comes in. Modern manufacturing processes permit yarn to be made using differing techniques and fibres, resulting in different thicknesses with many or few threads to a strand.
For a superfine garment, in stocking stitch you would use a 2. Lace can be knit on almost any size needle and give a truly wonderful finish.
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