Corn is a ’sustainable’ fiber and is spun from the by-products of corn … the remainder of what is left over from ethanol … it not spun from corn silk. It has many of the same qualities as bamboo and is also excellent for chemo scarves and hats and baby items. Crystal Palace carries a corn sock yarn called Maizy that is combined with nylon elastic. It is my favorite sock yarn and feels much like cotton. It is machine washable and breathes rather nicely. Kollage carries two types of corn yarn. One is is called Corntastic and looks like a plyed mercerized cotton. The second is called Cornucopia and is milled into a narrow ribbon yarn.

Cashmere is a luxury fiber in both feel and price.  It comes from a kashmir goat. The microns (how many strands will fit in a prescribed space) is very high so the yarn is fine and very soft. “A little goes a long way” really applies to this yarn as the yardage is superb on cashmere. Traditionally, cashmere is used for sweaters, scarves and shawls. It should only be handwashed in cool water or dry cleaned. Look for tried and true distributors such as Classic Elite, Rowan and Annie Blatt.

Bamboo yarn and needles

Bamboo yarn is a soft fiber similar in qualities to cotton. In fact, it is often blended with cotton. It has no crimp or elasticity on its own. However, it is also milled with nylon (Crystal Palace Bamboozle) which gives it the same memory as wool. Use it for chemo hats and scarves, baby clothing and blankets, purses, socks, etc. It is machine washable and dryable.

 

Bamboo needles are also made from bamboo. There are several advantages to bamboo needles. They don’t slip out of the stitches like aluminum. They also do not pull the warmth out of your hands like metal needles so are easier on your hands for those marathon knit-ins or for arthritic hands. They come in size 0 – 17. The smaller sizes tend to warp and bend with use. 

Blends are two or more fibers combined into one yarn. Blends of yarn are infinitely numerous in combinations and qualities. Some blends are milled by combing the fibers together and then spinning. Some blends are achieved by plying one strand of one fiber with one strand of another (Crystal Palace’s Musique). Blends like Brown Sheep’s Lamb’s Pride of wool and mohair make excellent felting yarn. Sock yarns often have nylon blended into them so they will have memory which eliminates sagging and make them more durable. The skein sleeves on yarns sold in the USA must give the fiber content along with their percentages. Check them to see if the combinations will work in your project.

Alpaca yarn comes from a medium size camelid. The camelid family also includes llamas, camels, vicunas and guanacos. Most commercial yarns made from alpaca are sheared from the back. The hair from an aplaca has virtually no crimp (curls or waves)  which also means no elasticity making it a good choice for items that call for drape … stoles, shawls, afghans, coats, scarves, etc.  It is fairly warm and light. It also felts very fast in both wet and dry (needle felting) projects and is often found in batting sold to needle felters. As  shown on the right, it dyes beautifully.

Angora yarn is spun from the hair combed from live angora rabbits which is why it is fairly expensive and sold in smaller skeins. It is most practically used as trim in mittens, hats and scarves. Like apaca, it has no crimp so can be used in the same items as alpaca. Different breeds of angoras have varying degrees of loft or fuzziness … French or German rabbits having the highest or longest loft. The loft traps dead air space making it 8 times warmer than wool. If used in a felting project, angora’s loft will stand out from  plain wool.

Angora rabbits come in different colors ranging from white to black. Red, lilac, doe are all in between. A black angora rabbit will yield gray yarn with black tips. It is difficult to dye angora. Most colors are a little more muted than regular wool.

A is for apple, B is for boy, C is for cat except when you are talking yarn. Just like learning your ABC’s in school, there are some basics that we can all be reminded of when it comes to fibers and techniques. And just like the rest of the world, fibers and patterns are changing. Feel free to add notes or ask questions as we go through some yarn basics.

Have you ever found an old pattern in an estate sale or your grandma’s stash but the yarn is no longer in production? Or you found a free pattern, but the yarn called for is not available in your area? Yarns can be substituted with some extra effort and are usually well worth it.

First: Evaluate the content of the suggested yarn. Wool and some acrylics have some elasticity to them and are good for hats, sweaters with cuffs, socks… Natural fibers such as alpaca, silk and cashmere have little or no crimp in the individual fibers are better for project that need some drape – stoles, jackets, scarves… Sustainable fibers such as bamboo, corn and soy are milled with out any extra elasticity unless they have some elastic/nylon blended in to them. When substituting yarn for a felting project,the yarn must have felting properties. Suitable yarns are non superwash wool, mohair, alpaca etc. Blends can have 15-20% non feltable yarns. Unsuitable yarns are acrylics, nylon, polyamide, rayon, cotton, bamboo, corn, soy …

Second: Evaluate the weight of the yarn. Compare the ’stitches per inch’ in the pattern to the skein sleeve. They should be within 1 stitch per inch … If the pattern requires 5 st per inch the suggested gauge on the sleeve should read 6 – 4 stitches per inch. DK weight can transfer easily into worsted or sport. If possible, knit a swatch out of the substitute yarn to check for gauge and suitability of the stitch pattern to the yarn. If less stitches per inch are needed, use larger needles. If more stitches per inch are needed, use smaller needles.

Third: Evaluate the yardage. Most current yarns will have the yardage/meters on the skein sleeve. If the yarn is older, try checking out yarndex.com to check on the yardage of a specific brand or style. Some older yarns can be estimated … a 50 gr (1.75 ounces) ball of worsted weight acyrlic or wool is approximately 100 yards. A 100 gr (almost 4 ounces) skein of worsted weight acrylic or wool is approximately 200 yards. To transfer meters to yardage add 10% i.e. 100 meters equal 110 yards. On small items such as socks, close yardage is probably irrelevant. On larger items such as sweaters, afghans or stoles, you may want to buy an extra skein to insure no changes in dye lots. Extra yarn may also be needed for larger sizes.

Although these directions may seem a little daunting, there is help along the way. Local yarn shops are usually happy to make suggestions and help with the substitution. Knitting mentors may also advise in some pitfalls. And of course, if the project doesn’t work out, you can always add the yarn to your stash.