UK equivalent of US yarns?

#1

Hello, I’m very new here so not sure proportion of UK/US members, but hoping someone might be able to help!

I keep finding US patterns that I want to knit up, and so far have been randomly substituting yarns I can’t get in the UK for completely different yarns… and often changing needle size etc too.

I’d really like to try and knit up a pattern true to the pattern - if you know what I mean! But don’t know enough about wools to know how to find the equivalent yarn in the UK to the US version.

In particular I want to knit a sweater in TLC cotton plus (hopefully in the Kiwi colour) but can’t get it in the UK and postage from the states is going to cost… does anyone know what I could use as an alternative?

I also want to know about Lion Brand Wool Ease Chunky - is that similar to Rowan Big Wool?

Grateful to anyone who can help! :??

#2

Lion barnd is thinner then Rowan Big wool and heavier then “little Big Wool”

it runs 1 meter per gram.

#3

Hi

I know what you mean about seeing US knitting patterns and then trying to find if the yarn is available over here and if not, what can you use instead and what is the equivalent weight!!!:eyes::shrug::help:

I’ve found it useful when comparing yarns to look at the recommended needle size - that gives you a rough idea of which weight you’ll need.

Hope the links below help a bit. Sirdar seem to be going more into the heavier weight yarns - Texere Yarns in Yorkshire, also have a good range.

http://www.yarnstandards.com/weight.html

http://www.sirdar.co.uk/yarns/fashion/Tweedie_Chunky_F046

http://www.texere.co.uk/yarns.php?category=4

Good Hunting

All the Best
Ellie
http://www.countonknit.com

#4

TLC Cotton Plus is a “braided” (cabled?) cotton blend -51% cotton, 49% acrylic. It is labeled as worsted weight, with 20 stiches and 25 rows to 10 cm on a 5mm needle. It comes in 100 gram balls, but there is no yardage/meters listed on the label. It is made by Coats & Clark, and I’m pretty sure it is available in Canada, but I don’t know about the U.K. The cotton content would make it heavy and expensive to ship.

Hope this helps! I just bought some in a pale blue.

#5

You can sign up for Ravelry and there you can see the same project knitted by different people with different yarns, it really helps me to see what yarns you can use for the same pattern. You can always rely on gauge given for a certain yarn and look for another yarn close enough. About the TLC - I think Rowan All Seasons Cotton is similar, perhaps a bit heavier. And many UK stores have great deals (Cucumberpatch on ebay, Jannette’s Rare Yarns). As one that knitted a cotton sweater - take into consideration it will be heavy! The mix with acrylic gives it a bit more stretch, but it still is heavy.
HTH

#6

I do the Ravelry thing too :slight_smile:

#7

Thank you all for your helpful tips and links and giving me a direction to go in! I have just received my invite for ravelry so I will also go check that out (I anticipate being there for a while - I’ve heard it’s a bit like Pandora’s box!). I think the heaviness of the cotton is what is needed for this jumper, as its a sort of slouchy/batwing/80’s style affair and I think the weight will help it’s hang.
Thanks again! :thumbsup:

#8

I love Yarndex.com for figuring out equivalents and conversions. So, if your TLC cotton plus is a bulky weight yarn, you can do and figure out how many stitches per inch and then search for yarns with the same guage.

#9

Your can buy Lion brand from this UK site. I have had excellent service service from them.
http://www.banyantreeyarns.com/all-lion-brand-yarns-63-c.asp

#10

Since joining ravelry i’ve had less difficulty substituting yarns but its still frustrating.

You are not alone!

Good luck
xxx