KNITmuch Issue 13

Knit Together
with Cynthia MacDougall
The Many Ways of Measuring Yarn
Photo by Mike Guilbault.
Cynthia MacDougall
Canadian Guild of Knitters
PO Box 20262
Barrie, Ontario L4M 6E9
705.722.6495
1.866.245.5648 (CGK-KNIT)
www.CGKnitters.ca
blog: cgknitters.blogspot.com
ravelry name: theloveofknit
6 KNITmuch | issue 13
A
beginning knitter recently
observed that the yarn for one
of her knitting patterns was
listed in yards and grams. She observed
that these are two different methods of
measurement and she asked me, “How
do you know if the weight the pattern
says will be enough to make a sweater?”
Both, yards (or meters) and grams (or
ounces) are systems of measurement.
Yards and meters are linear measures;
grams and ounces are measures of mass.
Used together, these two measures offer
clues about the third way to measure yarn:
thickness or grist. Grist is a broad enough
topic for another article, so, this article will
focus on linear and mass measurements.
So much about knitting is variable.
Yarn weight and yardage information
in patterns are usually estimated. A
difference in the tension, or gauge, will
impact the take-up of yarn, and affect
the amount of yarn needed to complete
the project. Adjustments for the wearer
– sleeve length, for example – may
require more or less yarn. Substituting
a different yarn than the one called for
by the pattern may change the amount
of yarn needed to complete a project.
Some of the information on ball bands
is estimated. In short, individual results
may vary.
Designers usually create patterns for one
size and make adjustments for other sizes
using a process called ‘grading.’ Unless the
knitter is making the size the designer
used to create the base size for the pattern,
both the grams and yardage of yarn given
in the pattern are estimates. Sometimes
a pattern will be test-knit in more than
one size, but, generally, the yarn amounts
are estimated by using mathematical
calculations based upon the amount of
yarn used to make the sample garment.
In most cases, the designer will overstate
the amount of yarn needed to make the
garment, to ensure the knitter has enough
yarn to finish the project. But, if a knitter’s
tension varies even as little as one-quarter
of a stitch over 4 inches/10cm, extra yarn
may be needed to finish the project.
Knowing the approximate yardage
of the yarn prescribed by the pattern
makes it easier to substitute yarn,
whether the substitution is due to
replacing a discontinued yarn or
one with a different fiber content.
Different fibers have different
masses. A pound of wool is larger
in mass than a pound of cotton
and 50 grams of wool has more
yardage than 50 grams of cotton in
most cases. So, if a pattern calls for 10
balls of a woollen yarn that has 200
meters per 50 gram ball the pattern
calls for a total of 2000 meters of
yarn. If the knitter wants to use a
cotton yarn that has 180 meters
per 50 gram ball, he or she can
deduce that two more balls of the
cotton yarn is needed to have at
least 2000 meters of yarn. (Ten
balls of the cotton yarn equals
1800 meters. Eleven balls has
1980 meters, which might be
enough to get by, but having
2160 meters on hand is better.)
Manufacturers are required
to cite the accurate weight of
the yarn. Yardage, however, is
optional, and when it is given,
it is usually estimated. Yardage
was rarely cited on ball bands
until the 1990s. Although it
is estimated, it is useful data,
nonetheless.