Stitches

can you use weaving yarn for knitting lightweight sweaters, lace and other items?

how does weaving yarn change the knitted item? i have found some beautiful weaving yarn online and the colors are beautiful. I imagine that the weaving yarn is thinner....? will this result in a badly knitted item?

Public Comments

1. It's spun differently, giving a harder yarn (the fibres go in a different direction). There shouldn't be a problem with knitted lace, but I'm not sure about garments - they might not be yielding enough.
2. The weaving yarns, or weft yarns are not spun harder or a different direction from knitting or crochet yarns. Since the industrial revolution yarns are standardized in direction of spin if they are machine spun. Warp yarns are definitly harder spun so will give a harsher finish. They are spun double so they will be strong enough to undergo the heavy tension some of us put them through when we are weaving. Some weaving yarns are definitely thinner than knitting yarns, but not always. You need to get samples of what you are looking at and see if the "hand" of the yarn is what you want to be working with. Note: I use a lot of knitting yarns for weaving, both warp and weft !!! Get some and play!! That is the only way you will be able to tell if it is something you want to use for nicer items.
3. I actually have knitted with every yarn imaginable. Even VERY stiff rugyarn. Some of the finest weaving yarns I combined to obtain some body. All it takes is to try no matter how crazy it may seem. Try to think out of the box and you will surprise yourself. At times I added crochet yarn (for Doilies) to add body or to prevent stretching. Just have FUN. Ingrid
4. Sigh, yes you can knit with weaving yarns. And, yes, some of them are thinner than lace weight yarn. And, oh, btw, the grist or diameter measurement and terms of weaving yarn is different than those of knitting yarn. 3/2 weight weaving yarn is the same as fingering (sock or baby weight yarn, or 10 weight perle cotton for tatting) 6/2, 8/2, and 10/2 in wool, cotton or chenille weaving yarns is lace weight. Silk weaving yarns have their own terms, but 22/20 silk is lace weight. All this said, weaving yarns have a finish on them to keep them smooth for the weaving process. You can wash it out either before or after the knitting. This can, especially for animal fiber yarns, cause them to *bloom*, which really is the technical term for it, or fluff up, so the knitting may not look as loose as you might think it will. For needle sizes the thinner weaving yarns will use 00 to size 3 needles (US), and 3/2's can use up to a US 5 or 6, depending on how open you want the lace to be. For best results knit up a sample and wash and block it to get an idea of how the final product will look.