panda yarns - frequently asked questions

Can I put my knitting down in the middle of a row? Always try to finish your current row before putting your knitting down. It’s easy to forget what your next stitch should be or for stitches to fall off your needles.

My needles are old and bent; can I still use them? Damaged or bent needles are the main cause of uneven knitting. Discard and replace damaged needles if you can. If you haven’t used plastic needles for a while, dip them in warm water for 10 to 15 minuets, this will hydrate them and stops them breaking.

What does Ply mean? Ply originally referred to the number of strands twisted together to make the finished yarn. – So a greater number of strands meant a thicker yarn. Today, yarns are made in a variety of ways, so ply is not so relevant, e.g. Cleckheaton Gusto 10 is made from one thick strand, but if you untwist a piece of Machinewash 5 Ply, it is made up from 6 strands. So modern knitting yarns use ply as a description for tension and thickness, e.g. 4, 8 and 12 Ply.

If I make a mistake can I unwind and re-use the yarn? Yes, but sometimes especially with natural fibre yarn, reused yarn will take on a crinkled or crimped appearance. If this happens you can lightly steam or rinse the yarn (if washable). Simply wind the yarn around a large book or chair back (20cm or greater in size), then lightly steam with an iron (do not press or touch the yarn with the iron). If rinsing, just dunk in warm water, squeeze out excess water and dry flat on a clean towel. Let the yarn rest until dry and it should be ready for knitting. Fancy yarns can be difficult to un pick, but if patient this can be achieved. Re-ball the yarn after unpicking and re- knit.

KNITTING FROM MULTICOLOURED YARNS - Why does the pattern say to work from 2 balls? When yarns have variations in texture or colour, working from 2 balls (2 rows from one ball, then 2 rows from the other ball) reduces unwanted regularities, e.g. colour in printed yarn and thick and thin textures. Work 2 rows from first ball, then 2 rows from second ball, carrying yarn loosely along edges of work and taking care to turn the work in the same direction at the end of each row.

Can I change yarns from pattern to pattern? It’s highly irresponsible for a retailer to recommend the use of a yarn not specified by the publication and or pattern. The problem – Patterns are written to a tension. Width = number of stitches to a measurement, Length = number of rows to a measurement. Both of these must match for the garment

I have found a knot in my ball of yarn what should I do? Due to the process of yarn spinning and balling knots do occur. We at Panda do not expect to see more than one knot to any ball. Never knit a knot into your row. Always unpick back to the beginning of the row, cut and join the yarn at the start of the row and continue knitting. This applies to starting a new ball as well.

If I’m a loose knitter should I go up or down a needle size? First check your tension for each and every project.You need your stitches to be smaller if you are loose, so go to a smaller needle. If you where a tight knitter your stitches are too small, so you need to go to a larger needle.

Can I use any 8Ply with an 8Ply pattern? Yes, but check your tension as a safeguard against incorrect garment sizes. Also the quantity of required balls for a project will vary as the meterage of different types of 8 Ply will differ. E.g. Country Naturals 8Ply meterage = 96 – Acrylic 8ply meterage = 100.

Should I use yarn from the outside or inside of the ball? It depends on the yarn – Many yarns can be knitted from either and some yarns will tangle and knot if worked from the inside. Some yarns will change tension when worked with or against the pile (the direction the fibres lie along the yarn). With textured or long pile yarn, it is important to knit from the same direction for the whole garment. Most patterns will have direction for this.

What is a dye lot? When yarn is spun, it is usually in a natural colour (natural fibres) or white (man made fibres), e.g. wool is cream. To dye this yarn into our various shades it goes into a huge metal vat, (like a huge pressure cooker). The amount of yarn that goes in depends on the size of the vat. At Australian Country Spinners, we have small medium & large vats. We sells lots of Black, Navy and White yarn, so these go into the large vats. Seasonal fashion colours like Lime or Orange sell less in quantity, so these go into a smaller vat. However if suddenly everyone wants lime green then we quickly do more small vat lots, or a large vat lot to meet the demand. All of the coloured yarn in each vat, dyed at the same time is issued a number; this is the dye lot number. Each new lot of yarn is issued a new dye lot number. This changing number is located on the ball band. e.g. Woolbale 50 shade 121 – dye lot 735406 Dyeing is like cooking a cake – with ingredients, where any slight variation will give a slightly different result e.g. Lime green recipe is Quantity Yellow Quantity Blue Quantity Water Heat Temperature Length of Time So many elements go in – and any slight variation results in a slight variation in the finished colour.

Should I knit a solid coloured garment using only one dye lot? Matching the dye lot number is very important especially in one colour knitting, any change of dye lot will be visible in the finished garment. A very important tip for your customers when they are at the cash register. Please recommend that they keep their ball bands until they have finished their project. If there is a problem with the dye lot, or yarn quality the help-line staff at Australian Country Spinners will ask for the yarn type, colour and dye lot. Our Laboratory can track back through every process of a dye lot. They keep a reference sample of every dye lot in case of quality issues. This is part of the Patons, Cleckheaton and Panda product support we offer to you and your customers.
Do I have to knit a tension square? We recommend that knitters always knit a tension square. Even expert knitters aren’t expert in knitting all yarns and can expect variance in tension from yarn to yarn. This will impact on the finished project.
What yarn should I use to sew up a garment? Generally you should use whatever yarn you have used to knit the garment. If you have knitted a fancy yarn and are finding it difficult to sew using it, use a plain yarn in a matching shade to sew up your garment.