What To Do When Yarn Is Discontinued: Yarn Substitution

Hey there!

Let’s talk about what to do when you are working up a pattern and the listed yarn has been discontinued. If you have been working with fiber for a while, you know that yarn companies discontinue yarn lines and colorways. This can happen for a variety of reasons from material availability to changing trends. So what do you do when you need a yarn that is discontinued?

Yarn substitution is what comes next. It is handy to know how to substitute yarn in discontinuations or if you want to use a different yarn than the pattern calls for. In order to substitute yarn you have to know the details of the original yarn. The makeup of the original yarn is important because of how different fiber work up. The different fibers have different stretch and tension. For example, an acrylic can be a lot stiffer than a cotton. When looking at the pattern the designer should have put in all the yarn specs for this exact reason.

The yarn specs that you need to know:

1. The yarn weight

2. Fiber makeup

3. Length per skein

4. The weight of the skein

When looking for a suitable sub for a yarn it is important to match as many of the specs as you can. This will help is keeping the project looking and feeling the same in terms of drape, stitch tightness (not by means of gauge or crochet tension), and the fiber holding its shape. As long as you have the yarn specs you can find a good sub that won’t change the overall feel of the project.

A useful tool is a website that will help with yarn subs. On yarnsub.com it helps you find subs based on the brand or fiber content.

I hope this was helpful! Happy hooking and crafting!!