It will help a lot in future project planning. I guess I thought it referred to the ply, like 4-ply. You might be able to get a good sense for what the project would look like in your chosen yarn or get inspiration for another yarn to use. It was a cotton-acrylic blend that was great for items that will get heavy use. Theyre lofty yarns, so they make lightweight, absorbent fabrics, Elsa Hallowell says, which feel cooler when its warm and very cozy when its cold. www.wool-clothing.com, Content: 100% pure virgin wool Put-Up: 170yd [155 m]/1 3/4 oz [50 g] Construction: 2-ply Care: Handwash gently in lukewarm water Recommended Gauge: 24 sts = 4 (10cm) on sizes 35 (3.253.75mm) needles, Flywheel is a sportweight version of Harrisvilles well-loved Watershed. My thanks also. Thanks for explaining the difference, it's interesting to see those subtle contrasts between the stitching! When a yarn is spun from a pile of fibers into a string, its turned a little bit as its stretched out to make a tubular shape. The yarn surface is brighter and cleaner. The photos were such a vivid illustration of the difference between these two types of drafting and their results for your knitting. If its too tight (that is, more stitches per inch than it should have), try going up a needle size. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. The difference between worsted-spun and woolen-spun yarns lies in how the fiber is handled before the actual spinning. This carded wool from the initial fiber preparation is prepared further in a worsted-style through combing. August 2022 5 sts / inch on size US 7. The difference between these two is not as clear at first glance. US 6 - 8 or 4 - 5mm. January 2023 This video of a Navajo Weaver has long been a favourite of mine. How a yarn looks also depends on (did you read my last article?) Thank you! ). An extreme example is angora or mohair. As a result, generally they will pill more easily and develop holes sooner. Because filaments wrap the worsted core, the yarn is noticeably less uneven and has fewer defects than worsted yarns. You can write a comment on the yarns Ravelry page suggesting that drafting info be added. If you are unsure or curious about the outcome of a particular stitch pattern, swatch it. I have been looking for something to help determine how best to substitute yarn. The Merino and Corriedale wool is gathered from Midwestern farms right here in the United States. So the semi-worsted spinning gets you more yardage since the yarn is less . Interesting point I would like to know that too! So at my LYS how can I tell from the label on the yarn? This video is a brief overview of some different spinning techniques I've learned to spin worsted or woolen yarn and how that affects the outcome of your yar. In the woolen system, the fibers are carded and then spun It affects the processing efficiency as well as the quality of the product.This presentation has focused on wool spinning particularly woolen & worsted spinning process. Thanks for the clear and concise approach I get it now! Woollen Yarn Woollen yarn is spun using a short staple fiber prepared by handcarding and rolled into rolags. Woolen yarns are generally the least expensive industrial yarns to make. Ah, you're right, thank you! November 2016 This was the clearest explanation regarding the what, why, and how of woolen vs. worsted spun I have come across. So far, all the colors have been created by dyeing the fiber in 16 vibrant solids, then blending them, two or . Woolen-spun yarns have a matte finish with a soft halo and lend themselves well to extra-warm projects that wont weigh you downperfect for camping trips! But just to make things tricky, it's entirely possible for a yarn to be both woollen and worsted, generally when a previously spun woollen yarn is re-spun using the worsted technique, creating a so-called semi-woollen or semi-worsted yarn. On the other hand, worsted yarn is spun by combing fibers. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. This article is so well written and I love how you explain how the type of yarn will effect the finished product. They are also stronger, more durable, and less prone to pilling. They are the same weight and have the same number of plies. These two spinning techniques are also the basic, standardized methods employed in commercial yarn production though, as noted in Knitting in the Old Way by Priscilla A. Gibson-Roberts and Deborah Robson, more and more spinning mills today follow a hand spinning approach to commercial spinning, adapting processing and spinning techniques to enhance the natural characteristics of a particular fiber or to achieve a yarn well-suited for specific kinds of knitted fabric. After steaming, which allows the fibers to relax into their newly twisted state, the singles of twisted yarn are then loaded on a twisting frame to be plied together both Shelter and Loft are comprised of two singles gently twisted together to create a two-ply yarn.>. Our most popular workhorse yarn is the Heritage two-ply, but if you want even more wear, the Tuffy is an 80/20 blend of wool and nylon. Heritage comes in forty-five colors of the rainbow, including plenty of neutrals and heathers. August 2020 These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Both types require different fiber preparation on spinning techniques. May 2015 March 2014 But if the pattern calls for yarn from an indie dyer or one of the smaller manufacturers, it can be pretty hit or miss (I just checked for several of my favorites that I've used in designs this year, and nothing). Great article, thank you. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". November 2019 There are two basic ways of drafting fiber by hand or by machine: worsted draft or woolen draft. Semi-worsted at a similar wpi got me 83 yds/1.1 oz. Thank for for such a coherent explanation (and the pretty swatches really help too)! She wrote the book Yarnitecture: A Knitters Guide to Spinning: Building Exactly the Yarn You Want so she could use all of the fiber words. July 2018 Using the ruler, measure how many times the yarn wraps around the item in the span of one inch. Required fields are marked *. Want to try out some wonderful wool yarns? https://garmentmerchendising.com/category/fiber/. The project aims to restore the hydropower installation to produce clean energy from the waterway that runs under the mill. Thedoffer, a large cylinder at the delivery end of the carder, then relays the batt into acondenser, which splits the batt into several thin, untwisted strands calledropingorslivers(sly-vers). I made a sweater that is just too heavy and was hoping to be able to make it in a lighter weight yarn. The distinctions between these has been a mystery to me until now. Worsted is a high-quality type of wool yarn. Many commercial yarns are spun in this way, particularly sock yarns. This approach makes for a lofty, lightweight yarn that traps warmth. Thats because yarn weight is one of the key elements that affects the gauge of your knitting. This was a grat posting. Other linen yarns are wet spun linen and dry spun linen. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The fibers in stitches knit from woolen-spun yarn seem to literally bloom into the space theyre given. Select an optionAlabamaAlaskaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutDelawareDistrict Of ColumbiaFloridaGeorgiaHawaiiIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMaineMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVermontVirginiaWashingtonWest VirginiaWisconsinWyomingArmed Forces (AA)Armed Forces (AE)Armed Forces (AP). Shop Talk I was moving too quickly on that one, clearly. Can you spot the other difference? Well, the differences between woolens and worsted begin at the carding stage. November 2018 . March 2019 That pushes us in to the worsted end of the spectrum. We consider it one of the finest worsted weight yarns out there. Well it's all a matter of different fibre preparations, and different spinning techniques. I hope you found time to explore your stash, and perhaps enhance it with yarns of different breeds. February 2021 They may not be able to get to yours quickly, or even at all. Wuthering Heights Tom Hardy is the yarn that ran out when you were an inch from the finish. Then you compare that to the ratio of another yarn with a similar fiber content. March 2021 In my spinning past, I've spun from locks, from picked fiber 'clouds' , from bats, had also tried a badly produced rolag or two and gave up ~~ but mostly all the years I've spun its been from roving, sliver, and combed top. That, in turn, means youll have more trouble knitting a garment that will fit you right. Thats especially true if youre knitting a small, close-fitting garment like a sock or mitt. To produce our heathered colors, the scoured fleece is then dyed in a range of intensely saturated base solids, which are then blended together during the spinning process using percentages of the base colors unique to each colorway. This will save me a lot of headache as well as trial and error. And I also now understand my past failures a little better haha! The carder opens up the fiber and blends it evenly, resulting in a thin cloud- or web-like sheet commonly known as abatt. May 2014 popular colorways Coal 12 stashed 19 projects Fig 4 projects 4 projects 3 stashed 3 projects 50 projects Snowbound 7 stashed 16 projects Any suggestions? The two main types of yarns are spun yarn and filament yarn. Many people ask us about the process and the type of yarn we produce. That meant the hat could be knit at a much looser gauge than I would normally use for a fingering + lace combo. That's how I learned to do yarn substitutions, too, and it was a hard and frustrating process. They also tend to have better stitch definition than single-ply yarns do. That turning gives the yarn some stability. There is a great site called yarnsub which compares most if not all of these elements and suggests alternatives. It does however produce a lot of waste fibres (though those can still be carded for a more textured yarn). May 2017 They are also warmer because of the airiness. Fabrics created with worsted spun yarns, on the other hand, will generally have better drape, smoothness, and stitch definition. Have you ever pet a puppy in that super soft spot at the base of its ears? Our Barrett Wool Co. Wisconsin Woolen Spun Yarns are about as close to homespun as we can get. The indie Dyer might know how their base is spun if one is buying direct but maybe a LYS owner might not. Fascinating! Theres also Wuthering Heights Tom Hardy, just saying. I did not know this was the difference in certain types of yarn. Voila! As such, for our woolen-spun yarns, the strands of roping are simply loaded on a spinning frame, where they are concurrently drafted, twisted, and wound onto bobbins to become singles for plying. I think Ill need to read it over a few times to really get it, because there is so much information. Here, we take a closer look at some of the industrys top woolen-spun yarns. Think in terms of shopping at a fiber show. August 2018 Your email address will not be published. September 2016 Rudy Amann was mentored in handspinning by Priscilla Gibson-Roberts. Then repeat the gauge swatching process. Original Yarns Copyright2023Golden Peak Media. 2.22 yds UK Sherry 100% Spun Silk Fabric Luxury Suiting 9 oz Apricot 80" BTP . This is the type of information that makes a knitter more knowledgable about our purchases. Understand that some designers are buried in messages. February 2019 Now I also know the difference when spinning too. There are other ways to make woolen spun but this is the classic method. I have saved this post as I will go over it again and again. Does it make that much difference to your gauge? If youre making socks or colorwork, though, or working on a project that requires clear stitch definition, you should pay extra attention to how your yarn is spun. Durability, warmth and weight. September 2017 Flywheel is light and airy and lends itself well to both lace projects and warm, cozy sweaters. Instead of carding the fibres they're combed. Worsted yarns are smooth and dense, they tend to drape well and be much more lustrous. On Instagram, just type #ProfiteroleHat into the search bar, and check out the other versions people have posted. Wonderful study! October 2018 I wonder if it is related to the tendancy of woollen-spuns to bloom? The Vs of stockinette are sharp, the bumps of moss are plump and clear and the holes in the lace are wide open. Now, Cotton-Ease was a perfectly good yarn (its since been discontinued, alas). This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". One of the most basic attributes of a yarn is woolen or worsted spun. Note: We will specifically explain the commercial woolen- and worsted-spinning methods employed by the mills we work with. Getting a yarn thats labeled with the same weight as the previous yarn is only part of the challenge, though. Put up refers to what sort of shape/size bundle the yarn is in. Eg: gabardine. Going to send people to this. The difference between worsted-spun and woolen-spun yarns lies in how the fiber is handled before the actual spinning. Perhaps youve got a fiber allergy and need to switch to a yarn that wont irritate your skin. For many projects, it wont make much of a difference if youre switching yarn construction. So good! You won't want to put . Woolen spun yarn is known to be light as air, durable, warm and lofty. You'll also want to identify whether the suggested yarn in the pattern is woolen spun or worsted spun. Now I can shop for yarn with a little more knowledge. This blooming also has the effect of softening and blending the appearance of your stitches rather like moss growing on a forest floor, in the words of Clara Parkes. August 2019 Thank you so very much for the enlightening article and all the examples. It might be worth sacrificing a bit of cable definition to get a lighter, cozier feeling sweater. Thank you so much for sharing. The woolen singles were a little thicker and less consistent, so this isn't surprising. October 2020 Lets use the Profiterole Hat for an example again. now I understand, thank youu. March 2016 August 2016 On the other hand, dont feel bad if you just want an easy knit without too much thinking involved. The best ways to get in touch with me are by messaging me on Ravelry or by sending an email to abeeinthebonnet (at) gmail (dot) com. September 2014 Learn how your comment data is processed. On Ravelry, you can go to the (Ravelry link) Projects tab on the pattern page to see other versions of the hat knit by other people. It isn't just a question of being one or the other though, there is a continuum of spinning structures with true worsted on one end, true woolen on the far opposite and lots of semi-worsted and semi-woolen yarns in between. Thanks! January 2020 Heres why: when the fibers in the yarn irregular in length and nestled together in every which way are soaked in water during the blocking process, they get the chance to relax, and then they readjust and mingle with each other even more as they dry, creating a solid and cohesive piece of fabric.