Frequently Asked Questions

For crochet, the published standard is 5.5 to 6.5mm (I-9 to K-10.5), though most worsted labels suggest 5mm for a denser fabric. For knitting, 4.5 to 5.5mm (US 7 to 9), with US 8 the usual starting point. Full tables on the hook size chart and needle size chart.

Category 4 in the standard yarn weight system - the most common yarn weight and what most patterns assume. It knits at 16 to 20 stitches over 4 inches. The yarn weight chart has all eight categories.

It depends on size, weight and stitch, which is why one number is never right - a blanket is anywhere from 1,000 to 4,500 yards. Work out the finished area, measure yards per square inch from your own swatch, multiply, and add 10 to 15 percent. The method is in how much yarn do I need.

Crochet is easier to learn, faster, and easier to undo, and it uses more yarn for the same area. Knitting makes a stretchier, thinner, more drapey fabric that suits fitted garments. The full comparison is in knitting vs crochet.

No. It is the right answer for blankets, baby items and anything machine washed constantly, because it is cheap, washable and dryable. It is the wrong answer for anything fitted, because it has almost no springback. Acrylic vs wool works it through.

Because of fiber diameter, not allergy. Textile research puts the prickle threshold at roughly 30 micrometers - coarser fibers do not bend against skin and press into it instead. Fine merino at 11.5 to 22 microns sits well under that line. See best non-itchy yarn for sweaters.

Wool treated so its surface scales cannot lock together, which prevents felting and makes it machine washable. The trade is reduced springback and growth when blocked. See superwash vs non-superwash.

Yes, with five checks in order: weight category, gauge on a swatch you actually make, total yardage (not skein count), fiber behavior, and care requirements. The full method is in how to substitute yarn.

Usually a mismatch between hook head shape and yarn twist. A tapered hook head grabs the whole strand where an in-line one can slip between plies, and a more tightly-plied yarn splits less. See best hook for acrylic yarn.

Almost everyone starts tight. Go up a hook or needle size rather than trying to relax - the size change fixes it immediately, and your tension loosens on its own with practice.

A dishcloth or a coaster. One ball, one evening, and it gets used - unlike a scarf, which is 60 inches of the same thing and usually gets abandoned. See yarn crafts for beginners.

For wool, it genuinely transforms the fabric - stitches even out, lace opens, shaping sets. For acrylic it does very little, because acrylic cannot be wet blocked. See best blocking mats.

The fabric is too loose, so loops of pile work out of the surface. Use the hook size the yarn label publishes rather than a larger one, work firmly, and keep the stitch simple. See best hook for chenille yarn.

Usually not. Most sets start at US 4 (3.5mm) because the join cannot be made reliably smaller, and sock yarn wants 2.25 to 3.25mm. See best circular needles for socks.

Acrylic is a plastic, so fibers shed from it are microplastic fibers. Published washing studies measured large numbers of fibers released per wash from synthetic apparel fabric - none of them tested hand knits. See does acrylic yarn shed microplastics.

No, and we say so on every page. Units we claim to have tested: zero. We compile manufacturers' published specifications, compute sizing from the published craft standard, and track live prices with a visible date. The full method is on how we pick.

Because you can check them. Every specification links to its source, every calculation shows its working, and every price carries a date. A testing claim asks you to take someone's word for it; this gives you the means to verify ours.

Affiliate commission, at no extra cost to you. We participate in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, and a disclosure appears above the first affiliate link on every page that carries one. Full detail on the affiliate disclosure page.

No. Picks are made from published specifications before any affiliate link is built, and we routinely rank a cheaper product above a more expensive one. Every roundup also carries at least one product we would not buy.

Because we have no test results to base a rating on and no customers to review us. A rating we invented would be a fabricated claim, and we would rather have no ratings than false ones.

Prices come from a live data layer with a last-checked date. If the data is more than 48 hours old the price disappears and the button falls back to "Check price on Amazon", because a stale number is worse than none.

Sawyer V., positioned honestly as an enthusiast rather than an expert - no certifications, no test lab, no claimed tenure. More on the about page.

Usually because it is retailer-exclusive - sold only through the store that owns the brand and unavailable on the general market. We only recommend what can actually be bought, and we name that limitation on the pages where it bites.

Email us through the contact page with the page and what is wrong - a link to the correct source makes it much faster. We check it against the source and fix it, and the page's last-updated date changes.