Determining Yarn Weights
Mister DomesticDescription
Yarn comes in different thicknesses or yarn weights. In this video, Mister Domestic shares tips for determining the weight of a yarn. He explores how to determine the wraps per inch for a yarn. With this information, the weight of the yarn will be known.
YARN WEIGHTS
There are eight standard yarn weights. They are:
- Lace
- Super Fine
- Fine
- Light
- Medium
- Bulky
- Super Bulky
- Jumbo
WRAPS PER INCH (WPI)
The wraps per inch of a yarn is determined by wrapping the yarn around a crochet hook and then measuring how many times it wrapped around that hook in a one-inch segment. Mister Domestic demonstrates this with a few different yarns from his yarn stash. He is using a US Size N/10mm hook. However, any size hook can be used – you can even use this technique with a knitting needle or pencil. Because you are wrapping the yarn around to measure an inch along the hook, the hook size actually doesn’t matter. The wraps per inch is calculated based on an inch along the length of the hook, so the width of the hook is irrelevant.
Wraps per inch and gauge are important tools for determining yarn weight and can help you figure out what type of yarn you have, even if the yarn label is missing.
Hi everyone, Matthew of Mister Domestic here to talk to all of you about determining the weight of your yarn. I know for myself, when I first started crocheting, I used the same weight yarn all the time because that's what I knew. I had my favorite hook, my favorite yarn, and that's what I went to because I got overwhelmed by all of the different sizes and uses. And I'm going to clear some stuff up for you. So there are seven different weights of yarn. I know, what, what? It starts with the smallest which is zero, which is lace, going all the way to six, which is super bulky. And once you've started crocheting for awhile you're going to have a lot of unmarked yarn. So what you need to do to determine what category the yarn fits into, which will then determine what size hook you need to use, is something called wraps per minute. And I'm going to do that with three different types of yarn to see if it matches up. I've got a thinner cotton one, I've got a 100% wool one, then I have something that I would deem super bulky but let's find out whether it is. So I have this thicker hook. I'm going to wrap it around here. And it's wraps per inch. You're going to, let me start with this thicker one so you can get an idea. So really, you are going to just wrap it like so to where there's no overlap. It's not on top of one another, it's not squinched, it's the natural tautness. You're not pulling on it. To find out what that wrap per minute is. And then you'll need a ruler to be able to measure it. So now that this is wrapped. Not pulling it, it's natural. Let me find what it is per inch. So here. That is one, two, three, four, five, six. Six, six wraps. So yes, this indeed is a super bulky yarn. Love it. You get some projects done really fast whenever you go with super bulky. But now that this one is done, let's see if this one matches. Let me wrap this one, the next one which is 100% wool and it's a roving yarn so it's not worsted. I'm going to wrap it in its natural state first and then bring it up. But not squinching it together, you want it to be natural. 'Cause you don't want to force anything into a thinner or thicker distance than it is. So now let me count it with one inch. So it's one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 10. So 10 would put this at the weight four which is a medium, and this is perfect. So this would actually work with my favorite which is a J six millimeter. And it matches up with what the yarn said. And this one, this one's a cotton yarn so let's see what's going on here. This one's definitely gonna have some more wraps to it. Right here, so gonna wrap it. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven. Once again when you're wrapping it, just make sure that you're not like squinching it, forcing it into a space that doesn't fit. It all wants to remain at its natural state because that's how you're gonna crochet. That looks like an inch so let me see. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 16, 17. 17 wraps per inch which would put it at around a sport weight or a two which is matching what this yarn calls for. So this is how you will determine what type of yarn you have if you don't know. And then you can also do this test to see if it's going to match up with what it says in the hook because there have been times when I've done the wraps per inch and it called for a different size hook than was listed on the packaging. So that might be a reason why something is too loose, too tight. Is that, just based on how you crochet, it might be a little different for you 'cause, you know, one person crochets then one person crochets. We all do it a little different. So I hope that this helped you to understanding the ins and outs of crocheting and yarn and I can't wait to see you in the next lesson. Keep it positive everyone. Mister Domestic out.
This was very helpful
Not to everyone: He says "wraps per minute" several times, but he means "wraps per inch." :)
Thank ever so much, Matthew! Living outside of the USA, our yarns do not declare themselves 'weighted' according to the USA system. When working with any USA pattern, I have always read or listened closely to the needle/hook size so as to obtain the about-correct yarn weight. Your tips and the delightful CheatSheet is greatly appreciated. Again, thank you!
Can someone explain to me how this works? Surely the diameter of the rod must play a part and where does the information come from for the number of wraps per inch? Only 6 yarn weights? What about the dedicated crochet yarns, no 3, no 5, no 10 or no 12?