Home
Yarn Sizes and Substitution Chart
The following info was compiled
by
Esther Bozak and originally posted to the
KnitList. It comes from several books (notably Homespun,
Handknit and Knitting in the Old Way):
Yarn Type |
Typical Gauge |
Wraps/Inch |
Yards/Pound* |
Recommended
Needle Size |
Ultrafine
(Lace or Baby Weight) |
8+/inch
32+/10cm |
18
or more |
2600 |
00 - 2
2 - 3mm |
Fine
(Fingering Weight) |
6-8/inch
24-32/10cm |
16 |
1900-2400 |
2 - 4
3 - 3.75mm |
Medium
(Sport Weight) |
5-6/inch
20-24/10cm |
14 |
1200-1800 |
4 - 6
3.75 - 4.5 mm |
Heavy
(Worsted Weight) |
4-5/inch
16-20/10cm |
12 |
900-1200 |
7 - 9
5 - 6mm |
Bulky |
3-4/inch
12-16/10cm |
10 |
600-800 |
10 - 10 1/2
6.5 - 7.5mm |
Very Bulky |
2-3/inch
8-12/10cm |
8 or
fewer |
400-500 |
13 - 15
9 - 10mm |
* An approximately equivalent
Meters/Kilogram amount can be obtained by multiplying the Yards/Pound
value by 2
You can knit two strands of
a yarn together, too. Obviously swatching will give you the exact gauge
of the doubled yarn, but you can approximate the gauge using a tip from
Ann Cannon-Brown (Elann Fibre Company.)
Her "rule
of thumb" is to multiply the single-strand gauge by .72 to get the
approximate gauge for what the yarn would knit up with as 2 strands. For
example, one strand of fingering yarn has a typical gauge of 28 sts/4"
(10 cm); 28 x .72 = approx. 20; so, two strands of fingering wt. yarn
would knit to an approximate gauge of 20 sts/4" (10 cm), which falls
within the range of gauges for typical worsted wt. yarns. Therefore, 2
strands of fingering wt. yarn could be substituted for one strand of
worsted wt. yarn.
Copyright
1995,1996 by
Esther Bozak. This document may be freely shared and distributed
in any medium so long as it remains information. fully intact and no
profit is made from its distribution or use and provided appropriate
credit is given for the source of this information
|