| ================== Yarn Size Explanation ================== Usually the yarns available to weavers are labeled with the size as well as the weight. Ads will say 3 pound cones of 8/2, etc. By knowing the yarn is an 8/2 you can calculate how much yarn is in a pound using the info below. This is some info on yarn sizing I have posted before: The numbers represent the size of the yarn and the number of plies. For yarns of cotton and linen, in the USA, the size is given first, followed by the number of plies. The British system places the ply number first followed by the size. Different fibers have different numbering systems. The size number is an indicator of the yards per pound for that particular fiber. Number 1 cotton, for example, has 840 yards per pound. The yardage per pound increases as the size number increases. Consequently, a number 5 cotton will have 5 times the yardage per pound as a number 1 cotton. To calculate the yardage multiply 5 x 840. The answer is 4200; therefore a number 5 cotton contains 4200 yards per pound. A 5/2 yarn is two strands of number 5 cotton plied together. Due to plying the quantity of fiber in one yard has now increased; consequently the yardage per pound will decrease. To figure the yardage, multiply the size number by 840 as above, and divide by the number of plies. 5 x 840 = 4200. 4200 divided by 2 = 2400. The 5/2 cotton contains 2400 yards per pound. Since the original measurement is done on a single strand of yarn, and plying takes away some of that length, estimate about 5% loss due to plying. In the end, the 5/2 cotton yarn will have about 2280 yards per pound. Worsted wools are measured on an entirely different system. Worsteds are usually measured at 560 yards per pound for a one-count yarn. The method of figuring the plies is the same as the cotton system, but in worsteds, the ply number is first and the size second. A single strand of number one worsted carries 560 yards per pound. A number 5 then would have 2800 yards per pound. A 2 ply number 5 would contain 1400 yards per pound and when the 5% loss is calculated would ultimately contain 1330 yards per pound and carry a label of 2/5. Linen can use yet another system of measurement. The count system is based on size called a lea. One lea is the size of a yarn spun to 300 yards from 1 pound of linen flax. A 10-lea linen would have 3,000 yards per pound etc. Linens are numbered as cottons, with the yarn size first and the ply number second. There is a fourth system, not really widely used anymore in the handweaving world, but useful to know about - The Tex system. It is more the standard in Scandinavia. TEX refers to the number of grams per 1000 meters of any yarn. TEX numbers vary with the kind and weight of yarns, but the 1000 meter number remains consistent. Thick yarns will require more grams per 1000 meters than thin. Single ply yarns require less. TEX 680 would mean that particular yarn requires 680 grams to = 1000 meters of yarn. TEX 350 x 2 would indicate a 2 ply yarn. Warp requirements can be calculated using the following equation: L = length in meters W = width in centimeters S = number of threads/centimeter TEX = TEX number L x W x S x TEX _____________ = TOTAL number of grams used for warp 1000 meters Example: 4.5 m x 150 cm x 4 threads/cm x TEX 620 = 1674 grams or 1.7 Kilo necessary for warp. More information on yarn sizes is available in the following books: The Weaver's Book, by Harriet Tidball, The Weaving, Spinning, and Dyeing Book, by Rachel Brown, The Art of Weaving, by Else Regensteiner, Linen Hand Spinning and Weaving, by Patricia Baines and The Key to Weaving, by Mary E. Black. Su Butler :-) |
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| (The yardage per pound increases as the size number increases) |