Types of Yarns

TYPES OF YARNS USED IN
KNITTING
TYPES OF YARNS
• The major types of yarns used in knitting are:
(1) Cotton
(2) Wool
(3) Nylon
(4) Polyester
(5) Acrylic
• The minor types of yarns used in knitting are:
(1) Viscose rayon
(2) Acetate rayon
(3) Spandex
COTTON
 It is the most used yarn for knitting.
 It is soft and comfortable next to skin.
 It readily absorbs perspiration and carries it
away from the body.
 It is also good conductor of heat.
 Its strength increases about 25% when wet.
 This is very significant as garments are
subjected to very severe strains during
laundering.
COTTON
 Cotton fabrics are easy to sew and the seams
hold tight.
 It has little elasticity and tendency to wrinkle.
 It lacks resiliency and shrinks considerably when
wet.
 It absorbs water well but does not dry very
quickly.
 It has a good affinity for almost all types of dyes
and retains dyes better if cotton is used.
mercerized
COTTON
 Cotton yarns used for knitting are either

carded or combed but preferably combed
cotton yarns are used.
 It is because the combed yarns are stronger,
less hairy and more uniform and more
lustrous in appearance which are the desired
properties of yarns in knitting.
WOOL
 Wool was the foremost (first of all) used

natural fibre in knitting industry.
 Even today, sweaters and other outer
garments including men’s suitings are
knitted with woollen or worsted yarns.
 Woollen yarns are commonly used in hand-
knitting all over the world.
WOOL
 Woollen yarns are obtained from short staple
fibres while worsteds are obtained from
uniformly selected long fibres and as such the
worsted yarns are stronger.
 Woollen yarns are only carded while worsted
yarns are carded and combed.
 Low twist is given to woollen yarns while high
twist is given to the worsted yarns.
 Worsted yarns are therefore harder, finer and
less hairy than woollen yarns.
WOOL
• Wool fibre can be easily dyed and the dyeing of
wool knitted garments is economical.
• Wool can be handled with less difficulty.
• Knitted fabric from wool presents a more
uniform structure.
• As it is highly resilient, the fabric are very lofty
and the wrinkle-resisting properties are good.
• It has high absorbency but weakest in strength
and has shrinkage control problems.
NYLON
 Main properties of nylon are its light weight,
high strength, excellent draping quality, good
abrasion resistance, quick drying property and
dimensional stability in laundering.
 The most important property of nylon is its heat
setting to the shape and size which would
remain life-long, unless the fibre is exposed to a
very high temperature.
POLYESTER
 It is a fibre with very high tensile strength, high
resistance to chemicals and abrasion, excellent
durability, high degree of resilience,
satisfactory drapability and least absorbency.
 It provides a high degree of shape-retention
and wrinkle-resistance to knitted fabric.
 It is the most dimensionally stable fibre of all
the manmade fibres.
ACRYLIC
 Acrylic yarn has high bulk and fabrics knitted
from it give a warm, wool like handle.
 Outerwear knitted garments from acrylics have
an extreme lightness, warmth and softness.
 It has the least propensity to pilling.
 Acrylic fibre is weaker than most of the natural
fibres except wool.
 It has an average abrasion resistance and low
stretchability.
ACRYLIC
 It has good resilience and will not wrinkle

easily.
 It does not conduct heat rapidly and hence
the fabrics are warm.
 Acrylic can be blended with cotton, wool,
viscose, acetate and nylon to get the desired
characteristic properties.
VISCOSE RAYON
 Viscose rayon is weaker than cotton, silk or linen
but stronger than wool.
 Though it is a weaker fibre, it produces fairly
durable, economical and serviceable fabric.
 High-tenacity viscose possesses lightness with
strength.
 It has greater elasticity than cotton but less
than wool.
VISCOSE RAYON
 It lacks resilience and creases readily.

 The combination of heat conductivity and
high absorbency of viscose rayon makes it
suitable for summer-wear fabrics.
 It is mainly used in blends.
ACETATE RAYON
 It is weaker than any rayon and has poor

abrasion resistance.
 Fabric made form acetate has good drape.
 It is neither good conductor of heat nor
good absorbent of moisture.
 It is blended with other fibres like viscose and
wool for reducing the price.
SPANDEX
 It is an elastomeric fibre having rubber-like
properties.
 They can be stretched from 5 to 7 times their
original length and they have 100% recovery
properties.
 Fabrics are not entirely made up of spandex
fibres.
 Used in combination with other fibres to
improve the recovery properties of the fabric.
 It has great flexibility and good resilience.

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Types of Yarns

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TYPES OF YARNS USED IN

 Cotton yarns used for knitting are either

 Wool was the foremost (first of all) used

 It has good resilience and will not wrinkle

 It lacks resilience and creases readily.

 It is weaker than any rayon and has poor

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