In todays world, this isnt your grandmothers knitting needles, yarn, or local yarn shops. Our world is online yarn stores, knitters blogs and eco-friendly yarn. The variety of yarn is staggering and we're not just talking color. Just walk into your local yarn establishment and gaze among the aisles, it is a maze of yarn. Its not as easy, however as simply picking out your favorite color either. If following a pattern, there are specifications to adhere to if the project is to look anything like the magazine cover picked up at the local yarn boutique. The first thing a pattern will reference when choosing yarn is its gauge, or weight. This is a swatch of knitted stitches and rows that constitute the length and width needed for a pattern. Beginners tend to disregard this and go for an exciting looking yarn and wonder why they can get their needles to work magic. As any of your local yarn enthusiasts will tell you, it will make the difference in your sweater fitting as intended or not at all. The weight of yarn ranges from lace to bulky. As you would guess, the lace weight is a lighter, finer type of yarn and bulky is a heavier, thicker yarn. The medium weight yarn is called worsted weight and is the most widely sold as it can be used for a variety of things. Its the easiest to find as well in major chain stores, online or any local yarn shop.
