Yarn Detective
What Spinners Think About When We Think About Yarn
I often get asked by knitters how I spin a yarn for a particular project.
If you aren’t or don’t hope to be a spinner, this may seem like an arduous process. Let me assure you it brings spinners so much joy. You can see it in my picture above.
I think about the project I want to spin and knit. This is exactly the same process as when I’m looking for a yarn substitution for a project. You likely do the same.
What type of yarn does the project need to be wonderful? Does it need drape or elasticity? Softness or strong stitch definition? Does it need to be durable or will it be for something special that won’t get much wear and tear? Are there special stitch patterns or colorwork to be emphasized? Does it need to be extra soft? Washable?
First, I start with fiber. I decide if I want a commercial fiber or from a fleece. Which sheep breed do I want—because each has particular properties that form the backbone of a yarn.
Looking at the fibers above you can probably guess that each one would make a different type of yarn. For example, Merino (third from left) is super soft, elastic, and not always durable. Mohair (far right) is not as soft as Merino, very drapey, and so durable that it’s replacing nylon in some sock yarns.
Next, I decide on the type of spin: worsted for a smooth, dense, durable yarn with great stitch definition or woolen for a lofty, warm, sometimes fuzzy yarn with soft stitch definition.
On the left is a worsted yarn. The fibers are compressed and smoothed while spinning. On the right is a woolen yarn. The fibers are allowed to gather air while spinning with no smoothing or compression.
They would both make great sweaters, but they would behave quite differently, beyond their obvious gauge difference.
Because I can prepare my fiber to be woolen or worsted before I spin it—combed top is a worsted fiber preparation and there are a variety of woolen preparations from carded roving to batts—I can mix-and-match to get a range of yarns to choose from. These samples are from the same fiber that has been prepared and spun in different combinations.
The type of ply and the amount of ply twist are next.
Here are single-ply, 2-ply, and 3-ply yarns knit in the same stitch patterns.
A single-ply yarn gives very soft stitch definition, and isn’t particularly durable, depending on the fiber and spin used.
A 2-ply yarn is more durable and is wonderful for lace patterns.
A 3-ply yarn is the most durable and is fantastic for stitch definition and texture patterns.
Not one of these is wrong for any pattern, but they each have a particular look you get to choose when you spin your own yarn.
No matter how many plies are used, ply twist is important because of biasing.
Adding some extra twist to a yarn can make it more durable and help with stitch definition, but if too much is added your knitting will lean.
Above is a 3-ply yarn with a lot of extra twist in the ply. It would be durable enough to never pill and the stitch definition is fab, but the lean in the fabric will not go away, no matter how severely you block it.
Making a yarn is all about finding the right balance between what you want and your choices from the vast menu of spinning possibilities.
Sampling—making a small amount of yarn and swatching with it—is the part of spinning a yarn that causes some spinners to nope-out.
Knitters who don’t like to swatch are already twitching. Spinners can sample multiple times for a single project. Non-swatching knitters now need to lie down with a cold compress on their forehead.
I sample to make sure that the yarn I imagined for a project is the one I’m getting with a particular spin. I swatch to make sure that a yarn works for a project or a stitch pattern in the way I imagined it.
If I make a sample and don’t like it, I identify what’s not quite right, decide the adjustments to make to the yarn, and spin and knit another sample. I repeat this until I am happy with my result.
The photo above shows different samples I made with a fiber blend that was difficult for me to spin. It took me trying four different ways to spin the fiber before I was happy enough to knit a test swatch.
Part of sampling is measuring the yarn. I like to know more about a yarn than the wraps per inch (wpi). I measure and record all of the elements that would allow me to repeat this yarn if I want to.
I also measure the all-important grist. It will tell you how heavy a project will be. For spinners, grist tells us how much fiber we need to make a particular yarn for a particular project.
I’ll leave you by barely touching on one of my favorite aspects of spinning yarn: color.
As spinners we can manipulate color any number of ways. An example: if you were handed a painted braid, could you choose between spinning it to be stripes or spinning it to be tweed?
As you can see, there is a phrase that spinners use more than any other when asked a question: “it depends.”
There are many different ways to make a yarn. You can adjust the construction through fiber, preparation, spin, and ply so I need more information about what is important to you before I can answer your question.
I ask a lot of questions when asked about subbing with a commercial yarn too, because I want you to be happy with your finished project and because I am incredibly nosy.
All the other fun stuff we’re up to is on the MDK home page here.
SO interesting. I loved spinning when I tried it, but long-term, it was too hard on my (formerly injured) hands. But, I still think hand spun yarn is just the most magical thing. Thank you for all the information.
Such a clear statement on what I think of too as a spinner.
Thanks
Wow, very interesting, but I am so very happy to have someone else do all that thinking and planning so I can just go to my LYS and buy the lovely yarns!!
Just what I needed to read this morning! I am sitting in the middle of moving boxes and piles of “stay, go, or throw” items as I pack up and prepare to leave my beloved farm. The next phase of my life will be like making a new yarn. So many options! By spinning, swatching and taking notes, I will find what works and makes me happy in this next adventure.
Loved the info. As a new spinners, I now knoww there is a science to spinning the exact yarn. Love your book!
Please explain wpi and grist and why they matter to knitters. Thank you.
Hi Sarah,
Here’s Jillian’s post about grist:
https://www.moderndailyknitting.com/community/grist-secret-measurement-substituting-yarn/
Not sure she’s written specifically about wpi on MDK but that could always be coming down the pike. I think of wpi quite literally as a measure of the thickness of the yarn, by counting how many wraps you get per inch.
I tried spinning many years ago, inspired by fairy tales , esp. The Princess and the Goblin, with a magical great-great-grandmother who gives Irene a ring attached to an invisible thread to guide her home. Spinning was a mystical experience for me. Your article is fascinating and re- awakens wonder and appreciation for this ancient art .
Remember the tale where the princess had to spin nettles to make cloaks for her 3 brothers who had been turned into swans? As a child, I never understood what this was about. Maybe something magical. As a spinner, I would love to process some nettles someday, also magical.
Fascinating…I will never look at wool the same way again. I have a new appreciation for swatching as well. Thanks for the informative article.
Fun thing is, if you’re not picky, you can enjoy spinning. Make a yarn. Knit with it. Have a finished project. And let that be good enough .
Then enjoy Jillian’s expertise and wonderful explanations!!
Sorry, that’s in response to Irene’s comment (following).
It’s a fascinating topic. Thanks for this. But it gives me a headache just reading about it. My grandmother was a spinner and I used to want to learn but I think it would take me more years than I have to even begin scratching the surface of spinning knowledge.
Fascinating, but I am happy to leave the spinning to those it brings joy to! Thanks for another excellent article.
OMG!!! on! That but about 3-ply and twist— it’s not me, not my needles, it’s the YARN! There are some commercial yarns that don’t torque sideways like that, but I get that column thingy——. Mind blown! Thank you! And that tweedy at the bottom…SWOON!
Your methods of teaching are so clear and always so very helpful as I continue on my spinning journey! After your visit with our Spinning Guild this March, I have employed the method you taught to combine two different colors as I spin – loving this way to create! And your post today has me actually contemplating the dreaded swatching – after I put away the cold compress on my forehead!!! Thank you for this!
You have me wondering…if you ended up with too much twist in a variegated yarn would it work to make that yarn into a scarf with “accidental” diagonal stripes? Maybe my question shows how much I am Not a spinner
Wonderful piece. Thank you!
I just finished the book What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami. He used the title with permission from the author of What We Talk About When We Talk About Love since Murakami’s title is inspired by Raymond Carver’s title. Your article title reminded me of that. It’s interesting timing that your article came out a day after I finished the Murakami book. I always enjoy your articles, they really make me think that I need to consider more when spinning. I am at the point where I need to pay more attention to what will I do with what I have spun.
Master class!
So much helpful info here for a spinner-wannabe. Thanks, Jillian!
Super article! Makes me want to get back into spinning again (I was a beginner spinner 40 years ago but a busy life got in the way). Love beautiful yarns and knitting them into beautiful garments.
As always, I learn so much through your writing. I never realized how much was involved with spinning, Thanks!
This could be (and has been) the subject of VOLUMES, and I am so impressed with the precision of Jillian’s summary, how quickly she sums up her years of spinners’ experience. Bravo.
When I spin yarn for a particular person I think about them while I’m doing it. I do it also when I’m knitting for them. I send them happy thoughts and say little prayers for them.
I try to commit your info to memory (though I’m not a spinner) since commercial yarn doesn’t come w/warnings or best use ideas. I bought one of those soft merino yarns that turned out to be very delicate, used it in a vest in stockinette stitch, pilled terribly from the first wear, very depressing. I have lots more, too expensive to trash so I’m marling it w/a kid mohair/silk yarn (more expense) in seed stitch for a sweater, fingers crossed. Hoping the mohair prevents or hides the merino’s pilling tendencies & along with the silk & seed stitch will strengthen it. Before this purchase I used the same merino in a 2C Brioche shawl w/an intricate pattern & it seemed perfectly fine, very luxurious, I loved it, but a gift so don’t know how it held up. Not a yarn I’ll ever buy again.
Just wondering how many times, in our circles, Jillian Moreno is called Jillian Merino…
When I started knitting, back in 2002, I spent a year only knitting garter stitch before branching out and learning All The Things. I’ve been spinning for about ten years, and I confess that I’m still in my garter stitch scarf phase: I spin one yarn. I’ve gotten much better at it over the years – my yarn is a bit finer, my ply is more even, the end result is more balanced. But still the same yarn.
I’ve taken a few classes and learned some other techniques, but I keep coming back to my comfort spin. So if anyone is interested in spinning but finds this too intimidating? It’s OK to figure out the kind of spin that makes you happy and just …do it.
Fascinating! Thank you for sharing.
What are those tools in the photo with the scale?