[Nfb-krafters-korner] Question about worsted weight yarn

[Barb Roland]

Minh, as Cathy stated, there does not seem to be  standardization when it comes to worsted weight yarn, I did read somewhere that when they measure the yarn thickness, they include what is called a halo. 
To describe that halo, lets use fun fur yarn as an example, fun fur is considered a 5 weight yarn, however when you feel it the thread feel very thin and has these small fibers that extend out from it, these fibers are what is called the halo. So when they measure the thickness of this yarn, they include that halo. Oh, unlike fun fur, that halo is not alway easy to feel or see.

It is very frustrating to order yarn online that your not familiar with only to find out it doesn’t feel like the size weight you expected, I have several such skeins in my stash that I ordered for a specific project, only to find it smaller that what I wanted, grrrr.
 I have found Red Heart Soft and Caron Simply Soft to fit in the above “thin” worsted weight category. These I have set aside to use on my smaller gauge looms or use 2 strands on my large gauge.
Barb
On Apr 19, 2014, at 12:38 AM, Cathy <flowersandherbs at gmail.com> wrote:

> Minh,
> 
> We had a terrific teacher last year who taught a number of yarn classes for us. one of the things
> that she mentioned was that worsted weight yarn is not always a set thickness. There is no exact
> width like there is say for beading thread or macramé cord.  However, 
> I usually check to see what sized needle or crochet hook are recommended for the yarn, because this
> gives an indication of how thick the yarn is. 
> It is a pain in the neck that worsted weight yarn is not standardized in the US. in Britain, there
> are more options for yarn weights and these are the various weights that are all our different
> worsted weights. 
> 
> My advice, touch before purchasing if you can, or read reviews of the yarn online, or ask here
> about any yarn you are thinking of purchasing. I usually try yarns that friends have recommended
> that they like.
> 
> Cathy F
> 
> 
> 
> 
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