Questions and Answers: Yarn Weight & Gauge

I began crocheting at the age of 12 and made afghans, hats, scarves, accessories, and decorations. During that time, not once did I worry about, or check to see if I was using the correct yarn weight for the pattern. 

I went shopping. I squished the yarn. I liked it. I bought it. I made the pattern printed on the underside of the label.

Most of the time, it was the pattern I liked, and purchased the yarn only because the label just happened to be wrapped around that particular brand. Color was important to me, so I chose what I liked, but always in that recommended yarn line. I paid attention to two things - the amount of yarn needed to complete the pattern, and the hook size.

It wasn't until 2004, when I opened an Etsy shop which sold crocheted slippers, hats, and cute little accessories, that I realized I should pay attention to something else on the pattern and the label.

swatch using single crochet

I received an order for a hat, in a color the pattern's recommended yarn did not carry. I went to my local big box craft store, found the color the customer requested in another yarn brand, and completed the hat. 

Guess what? The hat was not the same size as the original. Not even close! I was perplexed.

Why? Because I didn't know about yarn weight. I didn't know to crochet a swatch with the new yarn to obtain the correct gauge - heck, I didn't even know what gauge was!

 

Crochet cowl using the recommended fingering weight yarn.

At this point, I knew something was wrong and started researching all of the reasons why the second hat was larger than the first. What I found produced one of those "ah ha" moments we all love! 

My yarns turned out to be two different weights! The pattern called for a DK, or double knitting, weight. The yarn I "picked up" in the requested color was a worsted weight. 

DK, double knitting, yarn

As usual, I have spent far too much time surfing the web and reading articles for this blog post...so many resources are available to us! I have included just a few to make it easier for those of you who are just starting out or want a refresher:

• Craft Yarn Council, with offices in Texas and council members from all over the globe, is a good overall fiber resource. Their site has a ton of information and a good explanation of yarn weights, along with recommended needle/hook sizes. You can check that out HERE. 

• The Spruce Crafts website also has a lot of information for the novice and even the advanced fiber enthusiast here.

• The Martha Stewart website has a comprehensive article about yarn weight, gauge, various types of fiber AND care instructions for those fibers HERE. 

Swatch according to your pattern instructions. 

After the hat size snafu, I learned I could have used those two different yarn weights to successfully crochet that hat. This is where yarn gauge comes into play.

According to Craftsy, gauge is the measurement of the size of your stitches. It is made up of two parts: stitches and rows. In order to obtain gauge, you must measure both the width and the height of your stitches as described here and here. 

Gauge is used for both knit and crochet patterns. It is not a waste of time! And I have learned, over and over, the importance of this crucial step.

So for those just starting out, do yourself a favor - learn about yarn weight and gauge. 

I'm so grateful the customer loved those hats, despite my obvious bumble!

Kelli

NOTE: I've learned from some of my hand dyed yarn customers that many are fairly new to knit and crochet. Keeping this in mind, I sat down and made a list of terms and basic ideas I wish I had known when I was 12.  As more come to mind, I will research and write about them, in the hopes of saving you time, money, frustration and yes, embarrassment.  I am by no means an expert, I learn as much by researching and writing these posts as you learn by reading them! Happy creating!