Wednesday's Child - More About Yarn

After talking with my friend Bev on Friday, I realized she still needed answers. We made arrangements for me to drive over to her house so I could help her as best I know how. I packed lots of yarn into my great big pink craft organizer on wheels, stuffed a garbage bag full of yarn, jumped into the car and away I went. I parked my car and Bev met me at the door, as if she had been watching for me. Although not actually wringing her hands in despair, she appeared to be slightly anxious. After sitting on the couch with her I found out why. Bev is fairly new to crochet and was confused and had a lot of questions. Here are some of them.

The label on any skein of yarn gives a lot of information on how to use it, including washing instructions, the best hook used with it, and the yarn size or weight.

Question 1: Which yarn is best to use? 

My answer is this: Use what you like and are comfortable with. Experiment with different yarns to see how it looks or feels. Different textures of yarn make things interesting. The yarns that can be bought from the craft stores and from places like Wal-Mart tend to be standardized. Red Heart and other large yarn makers use standards for color rather than different dye lots. You can be assured of getting the same color and quality every time. The yarns you purchase from the local yarn shop are different. A lot of their yarns are hand dyed and/or imported and are not typically labeled, so enough yarn with the same dye lot needs to be bought in order to finish a project. 

A US Standards Chart

Question 2: What do mean when you talk about the “number” of the yarn? 

The label which holds the yarn also gives a lot of information. When you look at the label, you will find a number on it of 1- 6. The number on the label tells you what size, or thickness, the yarn is. Knowing the weight of the yarn helps to determine the outcome of the work. For instance, if you want to crochet a pair of wool socks, the number one wool yarn would probably work best. It is commonly called fingering yarn, is a superfine yarn, and best used for socks and baby items, or things that need to be lightweight and comfortable. The larger the number, the heavier the yarn.

Here you can see different types of yarns and their thicknesses.

These are both #5 yarns, but you can see that there's a difference in the thickness due to what they're made from.

Question 3: What hook should I use? 

Use the hook that best works with your yarn. The hook size determines the outcome of your work. A larger hook makes it bigger and a smaller hook makes it smaller. The European standard is different from the US standard. US hooks used to go by letter only, but now include the millimeters (mm), too. Some older hooks, like Grandmom’s, didn’t even have a letter or number. When the pattern calls for a gauge, the hook you use could make the difference in whether a garment fits or not.

Using a gauge to measure a crochet hook. (Hint: This gauge can also be used to measure knitting needles.)

Question 4: How do I use a measuring gauge? A lot of times, the pattern will call for a 4”x4” test square. This is an important step when size matters, such as an article of clothing. The measuring gauge helps to determine how many stitches per inch is needed, and you can use a larger or smaller hook as needed to accomplish the specified stitch per inch. The measuring gauge can also be used to size crochet hooks and knitting needles. The gauge has measured holes to pass a hook or needle of the same size through. The holes are labeled by letters and millimeters (mm). This could be useful when you are using European pattern standards and your grandmom's hand-me-down hook.

Using the gauge to measure a 4"x4" swatch.

We sat on her couch with a nice beginner’s pattern and bags of yarn to choose from. The pattern called for an N size hook and a bulky #6 yarn. The garbage bag contained everything from crochet thread (which is a #0 by the way) to the chunkier, bulkier #6 yarns. She was able to see differences in the different wool yarns (3-4), finer baby yarns (#1-3), the heavier chenille yarns (#5-6) and everything in between. The pink rolling organizer held every hook I’ve ever owned from numbered steel hooks to large lettered aluminum hooks, all the way to a couple of plastic P and Q sized hooks.

The label for a #6 yarn.

We measured crochet hooks and knitting needles using the gauge. We studied and compared all the yarns and chose which color to use and then gauged her stitches. We laughed, took pictures and had fun. Our afternoon was filled with crochet and friendship.

Before I took my leave, I imparted one last tip to her: Whenever you’re in a yarn or craft store and you’re not sure what you need, it doesn’t cost anything to ask questions and most clerks are happy to help.