worsted spun vs woolen spun worsted spun vs woolen spun

I won't give you all the details, but before finishing there was already a significant difference in diameter; the worsted (dark) measured as 17 WPI, while the woolen (light) measured as 12 WPI. If you ever created your own cord or unwound a hank of yarn, then that's the exact same process. Note: Notice how the individual plies of Loft, Quarry, and Shelter (shown above, top to bottom) appear wispy and how the fibers in each single are oriented in every direction and nestled together in a disorderly manner. Taking the spinning seminar from Cecilia Quinn I learned the difference between worsted and woolen is in the way the fibers were treated and spun. March 2019 Its not just the beautiful dyeing. from Brown Sheep Company. Worsted Yarn. This post of part of my Spinning with a Purpose series, sharing swatches I've created for a. Thanks for sharing. Yeah, were talking that level of soft. Woolen drafted yarn gives a texture and an overall softness and visual motion to all the stitches, something I like, but occasionally I find some small stitch repeat patterns get lost with woolen yarns. Folks wait their turn to enter the booth and shop in a controlled way. Woolen yarn is dense and is often made from the shorter strands of a sheep's fleece. 2.22 yds UK Sherry 100% Spun Silk Fabric Luxury Suiting 9 oz Apricot 80" BTP . 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. Worsted spun yarns are used in preparation of suits, dresses, crepes. Thank you for your thoughtful and careful drafting, and especially the photos! Very well spot on! Try to get your WPI to match as closely as possible to avoid that problem. Ill choose a woolen spun yarn. Miss Babs has an orderly line. Great article! Many commercial yarns are spun with the worsted style. Have you ever pet a puppy in that super soft spot at the base of its ears? If you substitute with a yarn that is drastically thicker or thinner than the recommended yarn, you wont be able to achieve the right gauge. The difference in these two yarns are mainly due to two factors; (1) the nature or class of wool used; and (2) the method of preparing and spinning the fibres into yarn. Worsted yarns are spun with all the fibers aligned, making a smooth and dense yarn with more sheen and drape. Does this happen with all yarns? It makes yarn that is smooth and dense. In fact, the answer may not even be the same every time. April 2017 Multiply that over the many inches of a knitted item, and well, you can see how subbing in a yarn with a WPI of 12 for a yarn with a WPI of 18 could be a bit of an issue. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. A drumcarder can also be used. Module 1 Review of the woollen and worsted production systems re-caps on the differences between worsted versus woollen yarn production, the early operations prior to spinning and their aims. Extremely helpful! If Im knitting a gansey to last more than a few years, and want fantastic, crisp stitch definition, Ill choose a worsted spun yarn. worsted-spun. Some have a naturally rougher surface. Thank for for such a coherent explanation (and the pretty swatches really help too)! Gauge: 5.5 sts / inch on US 6. Think in terms of shopping at a fiber show. If either of these fibers is in your yarn, no matter how worsted and smooth it is spunit will become a fuzzy yarn. I have been knitting for almost 50 years and have never understood what worsted yarn was all about. The unique 12-ply construction means that garments drape beautifully and afghans and warm weather accessories have a cushiony soft bounce. Woolen yarns are the equivalent of cotton carded yarns, and worsted yarns are the wool equivalent of combed cotton yarns, they get the extra process to make them higher quality. When it comes to choosing between a woolen-spun yarn and a worsted-spun yarn, there really is no right or wrong answer. The yarn on the left has multiple strands of yarn plied together, while the yarn on the right is a single ply of fiber. The worsted yarn spinner uses wool fibres which have been combed and are of a certain length, that is, about 2 inches or more. Great information! When youre choosing a substitute yarn, try to get one with a similar fiber content so your end result has the same fabric characteristics. Thank you!!! You won't want to put . Case in point, hobby lobbys I love this yarn and their soft secret are both worsted, but one is 4 ply and the other 3 ply. November 2019 October 2018 Worsted Weight: 250 Yards / 100 Grams. I hope you found time to explore your stash, and perhaps enhance it with yarns of different breeds. It will help a lot in future project planning. If you can use Ravelry, the project pages are very helpful. very smartly elaborated the article. Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. November 2015 If your allergy is very specific (e.g., you cant do wool, but you can do alpaca, or you cant handle linen but youre fine with cotton or bamboo), itll be easier to substitute than if your allergy is more broad (e.g., you cant do any animal fibers at all and have to use plant fibers, or vice versa). 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. Worsted wool is smoother than woolen, takes shine more easily, does not sag, holds a crease well, is lighter and less bulky, and wears longer than woolen. Pilling should not be conflated with the characteristic bloom of woolen spun yarns. Great article, thank you for this very detailed account , I learned so much ! 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). Maybe you have moral or ethical concerns about the recommended yarn company, or maybe you just dont like the recommended yarn, or maybe youve got another yarn you really like that youd rather use instead. Absolutely excellent article and the illustrations are superb and helpful. Worsted-spun yarns, on the other hand, are smoother and knit up into fabrics with greater drape and stitch definition. To measure WPI, take out a ruler and an item of uniform thickness that you can wrap your yarn around. August 2016 Combing the jumbled fibers aligns them in a parallel fashion and also removes shorter fibers for uniform length. The fibers in stitches knit from woolen-spun yarn seem to literally bloom into the space theyre given. December 2019 Drafting is the process of adding twist to fiber, and of course it has an effect on your knitting. Another essential characteristic of woolen-spun yarns, according to Respect the Spindle by Abby Franquemont, is that twist is allowed to play an active role in drafting the fiber drafting refers to when the fiber is pulled slightly to open up and lengthen the fiber structure before being twisted. Thank you so much for sharing. Note: Notice how the individual plies of Arbor and Vale (shown above, top to bottom) appear more compacted and how the fibers in each single are oriented in the same direction. Great article! Woolen yarns have variable fiber arrangement In woolen spun yarns the fibers are running in multiple directions, like a cloud. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". In colorwork, the edge that gives a worsted yarn great stitch definition also makes colors standapart, while woolen drafted yarns create softness and blur between colors. Take a look at the picture in this section. There are various form of long draw, some make more air filled yarns than others, but the one thing they have in common is that drafting backwards motion, allowing twist to enter the drafting zone. It seems that I am and have produced a woollen yarn. February 2014 How a yarn looks also depends on (did you read my last article?) Dye baths are created using a precise calibration of dye, temperature, and water flow to protect the lofty, softness of the wool and to ensure the colors are repeatable with every new dye lot. I feel I finally understand the difference. The way a yarn is spun - worsted vs. woolen - also determines how much fiber is used per yard. (using carded fibers). Carding, and the rolling in to a rolag creates a spiral of wool fibres wrapping round the tube. Worsted-spun yarns are dense and strong. October 2021 That turning gives the yarn some stability. Its important to know WPI because there is room for variation within each of the yarn weight categories. February 2023 Because the fibers are parallel, worsted spun yarns are denser and less airy than woolen spun. That meant the hat could be knit at a much looser gauge than I would normally use for a fingering + lace combo. This is what is meant by the gorgeous phenomenon of blooming. It's then spun with the twist entering the drafting zone in a long draw technique. The choice truly only depends on what you enjoy working with, what kind of fabric you want to achieve, how you plan on wearing the finished object, or all of the above. and now the skies are clear, the the clouds have drifted away, and the sun is shining! When worsted fiber is spun together after being combed, its yarn is strong and smooth. May 2020 AC Business Ventures LLC, DBA Nitro Knitters. . Because the yarn is smoother than woolen yarn, it will be less itchy when worn next to the skin, provided the fibers are not too coarse for comfort. Usually with terms like This is because the combed fibers, lacking air pockets, can more readily spin up into a compact, dense, and sturdy yarn. Worsted yarn = worsted prep + worsted spin Semi worsted = woolen prep + worsted spin Woolen = woolen prep + woolen spin Semi woolen = worsted prep + woolen spin Examples of worsted spinning would be short forward and short backward drafting. When I first started knitting, I bought a Debbie Bliss magazine that had this adorable, lightweight top for summer. Hours: Mon-Fri from 9am-4pm MT Many commercial yarns are spun in this way, particularly sock yarns. If you compare those to the recommended yarns details, youll have a better sense of whether the substitution will work. > >, Knitting on an Airplane and Other Travel Tips for Makers, Why You Shouldn't Buy a Knitter Yarn as a Gift, Reasons to Take Your WIP to a Sporting Event, A Free Bracelet Beading Pattern for Valentines Day. Rudy Amann was mentored in handspinning by Priscilla Gibson-Roberts. Ravelry has a searchable field for this info now, but unfortunately many yarnies/companies havent filled it in yet. Wuthering Heights Tom Hardy is the yarn that ran out when you were an inch from the finish. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Thank you! Both types require different fiber preparation on spinning techniques. PHONE: 1-208-452-4948 December 2018 Thank you, youre a great explainer. Now I know. To really make sure you stand the best chance of getting the right gauge, you need to check your new yarns put up and/or WPI. Combing was traditionally done on large heavy combs, and was done by men. Thanks for explaining the difference, it's interesting to see those subtle contrasts between the stitching! UFO to WIP: Can This Crochet or Knitting Project Be Saved? The fibers are carded, or brushed, in a single direction and then tightly spun together, resulting in a yarn that is smooth and has a consistent thickness. Yarn substitution is where you use a different yarn from the yarn recommended by the designer who wrote the pattern youre following. 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. There are other ways to make woolen spun but this is the classic method. Probably both because nothings ever simple ;). WPI stands for wraps per inch. Please confirm you want to block this member. Fine worsted wool is even seen in clothing for athletics. Your explanation is great, and reaffirms my decision to purchase your Yarnitecture book awhile back. If you end up having to make a major substitution, remember that plant fibers tend to be heavier than animal fibers. Thanks for clearing up my confusion over what I scored at the thrift shop today and helping provide some direction on what project might be right for it. the fiber(s) used. Worsted spun is smooth, while woolen spun is a little more rustic. February 2019 A beautifully written, lucid and illuminating lesson, and several fascinating aspects to the distinctions. This means it offers remarkable warmth and lightness and is adaptable in gauge, able to compress to a denser fabric on small needles or bloom to cohere as a gauzy fabric when worked on large needles. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. The rub rollernext turns the sliver into roving and adds a false twist. Chances are, from the end of your batt the fibres are being fed in to the yarn along the direction of the yarn, and not at 90 degrees. March 2015 Thank you for helping me understand these yarn differencesthis will help me understand why one yarn will make me swoon, and another yarn, totally different, really makes my knees weak. In tropical-weight worsteds, the use of tightly spun, straightened wool combined with a looser weave permits air to flow through the fabric. July 2021 BTW, I made a lovely airy lacy quite-warm shawl using reclaimed 100% cashmere of about cobweb weight, that I believe was woolen spun. Nature Spun Worsted. One method is not better or worse than the other just different. Is there a list? This definitely affects your choice for a project that will be steeked, but also for fair isle or intarsia colourwork where the woolen spun will fill in the gaps between stitches of different colours. Over at Into the Whirled, the people come from all directions into the booth in a hullabaloo of shopping, woolen style. So good! Classically speaking there are 2 types of yarn. Bonus points for great pictures to make everything visual and extra clear. May 2018 The pattern called for an expensive, fingering-weight, linen yarn. Yarn stashes are nice, but at some point, I become a yarn collector instead of a knitter if I never get projects done due to errors in purchases. They may not be able to get to yours quickly, or even at all. Todays topic is woolen and worsted drafted yarns. The parallel alignment and uniform length of fibers prepared in a worsted-style also means that less fiber ends stick out in the yarn, making the bloom much less pronounced in these yarns when compared to woolen-spun yarns. April 2022 If its too tight (that is, more stitches per inch than it should have), try going up a needle size. Be sure to use the stitch indicated in the pattern when it tells you how gauge was measured. July 2015 Jill, I am a newbie to crochet and knitting, so this information is wonderful! The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes. The weight makes it great for outerwear, and the texture and structure allow for beautiful felted work. They are also warmer because of the airiness. Combed worsted yarn is superior to carded woolen yarn in strength. On the other hand, the woolen fabrics hold creases and shape well and are more durable. Because of the density, a typical worsted yarn is thinner than a typical woolen yarn of the same ypp. 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. Hairs are aligned to be parallel, instead of being rolled up to perpendicular to the direction of the yarn. This is extra work youre asking them to undertake, and knitting patterns are already underpriced. The result of this woolen-style preparation and spinning is a yarn that retains the lofty, air-trapping qualities it had before spinning. There are all sorts of reasons you might want to use a yarn thats different from what the designer recommends. June 2020 That would be worsted-style shopping. September 2020 You've got the woolen spun vs worsted spun reversed. I am so excited to have found this article today. For example, a yarn labeled 2/fine (often known as fingering or sock weight) can have a WPI of anywhere from 12-18. Its more precise than the yarns weight category of fingering, DK, bulky, etc. I actually own a mini mill that creates semi-worsted yarns. So well illustrated and explained. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. The dead giveaway of the woolen-ness of Empire is the blip of fiber sticking out. And now for the tricky, but crucial, part of yarn substitution: making sure you hit gauge. October 2014 Ive got the same question as an earlier commenter one leg of my knit stitches is tighter than the other. So, and this is without seeing your yarn, your drafting, or the fibre, it's probably a lofty semi-worsted yarn. The type of yarns also depends on how they spun. Durability, warmth and weight. Brooklyn Tweeds Arbor (Targhee wool, worsted spun) and Shelter (Targhee/Columbia wool, woolen spun) are perfect examples. 3.5 oz ball / yards 245. knitting gauge: 5 stitches / inch on US 7. hand wash cold / lay flat to dry. You have made it so clear to me. You explained it so well. Ill jump right in with the big one. In the production of Quarry, which was inspired by unspun yarns, we skip the process of spinning the individual plies of yarn and instead nestle together three strands of roping drawn out to the right thickness, before gently twisting those strands together in a mock twist. yarns. It resulted in a hat that was light as a cloud but still structurally sound and very warm. Our BWC Wisconsin Woolen Spun yarns are two-ply in both the fingering and worsted weight and are available in 100 gram skeins. 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. The yarn surface is brighter and cleaner. Worsted spun is smooth, while woolen spun is a little more rustic. February 2018 What Ply is Worsted Weight Yarn? 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The name derives from Worstead, a village in the English county of . These are actually a scaled down version of the historical combs, but having handled a pair I can tell you that they're still seriously heavy to handle. It could be youve got a set yarn budget and the designer used an expensive yarn that would blow your budget wide open. I just started stranded colorwork and this with your swatches is a good resource. June 2016 However, you may visit Cookie Settings to provide controlled consent. Worsted noun. We consider it one of the finest worsted weight yarns out there. I ALWAYS substitute my yarns and I know now that my yearn choices are the reason I never seem happy with all my hard work. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". And I also now understand my past failures a little better haha! February 2015 They also tend to have less memory. If youre really comfortable with doing a lot of math, making adjustments on the fly, and pulling out your work if you decide you dont like how it works, then feel free to experiment with a yarn of a different gauge. Nature Spun Worsted is 100% US grown wool and it is spun and dyed in Mitchell, NE. Spun/plied 10:1. In this photo below you can see the 1ply Supreme (worsted) on the left has more of a halo whereas the 1ply Cobweb (woollen) on the right has better stitch definition - it almost feels like cotton although it is 100% wool. 4/9. Spin: Worsted or Woolen How a yarn is spun affects a yarn's weight and crimp. So the semi-worsted spinning gets you more yardage since the yarn is less . If Im knitting a Fair Isle sweater and want it to be warm and have colors that are little blurred at the edges to blend well with each other. One other point about worsted vs. semi-worsted. Customer accounts enabled in your Store Admin. Thank you for there explanation. I choose to support local and indie yarners and dont mind spending big $$ on yarn if I understand it will fit the intended project. Flywheel is light and airy and lends itself well to both lace projects and warm, cozy sweaters. The main differences between woolen and worsted spinning are the direction that the fibers are running in the yarn and the compactness of the resulting yarn. August 2020 Updated July 1, 2020. It is named after the small English village of Worstead, in the county of Norfolk and this village was a center for manufacturing in the twelfth century. Woolen and Worsted yarns. So what difference does it make, why bother to think about spinning technique and processing type before spinning? Copyright 2014-2023. The simple, pure honesty of her yarns, paired with a buttery softness and delicate texture, enchanted me. Worsted Spun requires a very different fibre preparation, and spinning technique. The primary reason for this is that the wool yarn normally used for these fabrics was produced using a special "worsted" spinning technique that better aligns the fibers. The terms roping and sliver are often used interchangeably. 5 sts / inch on size US 7. At the roping stage, the fibers are of irregular lengths, jumbled and nestled together in every which way. It was a cotton-acrylic blend that was great for items that will get heavy use. Woolen yarns are good for products like tweeds, while worsted yarns are best for smooth fine gaberdines. December 2015 Today, Im talking about the last one. This is a more subtle detail, but depending on the type of project youre making, it can be significant. Worsted is about both how you spin and how you (or your supplier) prep. Worsted spun yarns are smoother and have better stitch definition to make your cables and textured stitches pop. The woolen singles were a little thicker and less consistent, so this isn't surprising. Worsted weight yarn is a 10 ply yarn. (Theres a method to this madness, we promise!). Youll also want to identify whether the suggested yarn in the pattern is woolen spun or worsted spun. Block it the same way you plan to block the finished knit item, and set it somewhere safe to dry. You can write a comment on the yarns Ravelry page suggesting that drafting info be added. Wool fabrics can be classified by their production technology the worsted and woolen one. When dyed the same color, woolen and worsted drafted yarns wont look the same. Thank you so very much for the enlightening article and all the examples. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. As modern spinners we can now get some much smaller and lighter combs, but combing is still a real physical workout. Beautiful fibre you'll love to work with. December 2013 Maurice Brassard Cotton Computer Color Numbers. It had a lacy yoke, short sleeves, and a bit of swing at the hem. To check your gauge, cast on 5-10 stitches more than what the pattern says will give you 4. You can read more about the ranges of WPI for each yarn weight on the Craft Yarn Councils website. Woolen and worsted are two different classifications of wool fabrics and yarn. Wrap your yarn firmly, but not tightly, around the item for at least a few inches, and then set it down next to the ruler. An extreme example is angora or mohair. Perhaps youve got a fiber allergy and need to switch to a yarn that wont irritate your skin. Heres a thread on Ravelry discussing it: https://www.ravelry.com/discuss/techniques/3930171/1-25, Really impressed by the author. Finally, more processed, worsted spun yarns don't aggravate my eczema . 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). What is Worsted Wool? This can get a bit tricky if youre substituting because you have a fiber allergy.