Thursday, March 30, 2006
Not all worsted are the same!
Everyone knows that! One yarn can be called worsted, but it doesn't mean that it's the same as the next worsted weight yarn! Well, I didn't think about that when I purchased the yarn for baby aran pullover. I got all the baby stuff. I was going to start with the Origami, but my #6 needles were busy with the afghan squares. So the pullover it was. I started making a swatch to check the gauge. 28 sts and 38 rows to 4" with seed st was what it called for, but I am getting 21 sts! ARRGGH I can't go down one size on the needles. They are #4 now. Smaller needles would make the fabric too stiff I am afraid. Looking at the yarn label, it says 17 st 23 rows to 4" on size #8. That's not going to work. I already know that it's thicker than most other worsted weight I've worked with. Do I try looking for something that's 20 st to 4"? Maybe something even lighter? Most labels show gauge in stockinette. How do I know what it is for seed st? Does seed st fabric have more stitches per inch than stockinette? Any insights? Anyone?
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3 comments:
No insight :( I don't even know what worsted means! What kind of knitter am I?
Sometimes I've had to ask someone else to check my gauge, especially in seed st because I have difficulty in counting and telling the sts apart.
Yes, most labels do have the gauge done in st st.
I think seed st takes more yarn than st st...I found a reference online that says garter st takes more than st st. Thinking that switching between p and k sts would add a bit of yarn between sts is part of my reasoning.
if you're supposed to get 28 sts to 4"...according to yarnstandards.com/weight.html that number of sts is a Sock, Fingering or Baby yarn.
of course, I don't know the pattern you're using. It seems like the worsted weight yarn is too heavy.
Gerald, thanks for the link to yarnstandards.com! I am convinced that there's a mistake in the book. The symbol of the Medium Weight Yarn really threw me off. I think I'll just have to go with the gauge to find the yarn. It's unfortunate that there's no errata on VogueKnitting.com for Baby Knits 2. Can you do an aran sweater with fingering weight?
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