Woolen, worsted, or somewhere in between? Which drafting method makes a soft yarn and which one makes a yarn that is hard-wearing? Drafting either woolen or worsted is the act of attenuating fiber so that twist can enter and make yarn. Drafting, along with twist and fiber, creates yarn. There can be no yarn without all three. How and where the twist gets into your fiber determines whether the draft is woolen or worsted.
Drafting is a fundamental technique that can make or break your yarn. The specific drafting technique you choose can make fiber warm and lofty or sleek and hard-wearing, or a little bit of each. But what exactly does drafting do? How does it work? How does it affect finished yarn? Drafting is the mediator between fiber and twist. How big do you want the singles that you’re spinning, and how much, if any, air do you want in it? What kind of yarn do you need for what you want to knit? Of course, there are other factors, such as fiber and preparation, to consider, but when all things are equal, draft is the spinning taskmaster. (Remember, we are talking about commercially prepared fibers only in this book. There is no talk of the one true worsted or the one true woolen yarn, hand-processed to the highest degree of perfection.)
The ultimate goal of drafting is a continuous flow, of finding the perfect wheel setup and the perfect balance between hands and feet to control the twist in the fiber of your choice to make a specific yarn. Most spinners’ default yarns are usually somewhere between woolen and worsted.
Twist is the energy that makes yarn. You, as the spinner, put it there, and you give it as much as you need with the fiber you have to make the yarn you want. You manipulate it in your draft, in your ply, and in your finish. Twist then shines in your knitting. Like anything full of energy (puppies, toddlers, or over-caffeinated coworkers), twist sometimes needs a firm hand to get it to cooperate. It’s easy to be intimated by twist or to be excited by twist. You risk not adding enough and having your yarn fall apart, or adding too much and ending up with something closer to wire than yarn.
To me, twist is magic. It’s what holds everything together, what makes yarn soft and strong at the same time, what makes yarn utterly unique. If you can understand and control twist, you can make any yarn. The balance between twist and drafting is exactly how to get twist to do what you want.
No matter which style of drafting is your go-to way to spin, worsted or woolen, they both have this sweet spot in common: the drafting triangle. Learn to recognize it, learn to love it, buy it gifts, and sing it sweet lullabies; this is where all of the drafting action happens and where your yarn decision is made. Do you let twist into the triangle or do you keep it out? That is the big difference between the two styles of drafting: woolen lets the twist in, and worsted doesn’t. There are several ways to do both styles of drafting, and of course, there are many, many opinions about all of them.
The drafting triangle
Worsted yarns are smooth, sleek, and strong. If your fiber has an inclination to be shiny, a worsted draft will make it luminous. Worsted yarns are dense and drapey, durable, and less prone to pilling than woolen yarns. Worsted-spun yarns are also less elastic and not as warm as woolen-spun yarns.
Worsted-style drafting is frequently the style that is taught to brand-new spinners, and for a very good reason: control. Not because it’s the best reason; there are no best reasons, just the best one for the yarn you are making. I never feel more in control of my yarn construction than when I draft worsted. This is the style of drafting that does not let twist into the draft triangle. New spinners learn what is called the “inchworm style” of worsted drafting — short forward pulls of fiber. The photos below show how it’s done.
Used to help you get started spinning or plying yarn, a leader is a length of multi-ply yarn that is attached with a lark’s head knot to the bobbin and threaded through the orifice. You attach the fleece or singles yarn to this leader when you start to spin or ply.
Notice that when drafting worsted-style, the twist enters the fiber after it has been drafted out but while it is still under tension. No matter how your fiber is prepared, this style of drafting will align the fibers as much as they can be aligned before locking it into yarn. Any air or loft in the fiber is removed. I think of worsted drafting as exhaling compared to woolen’s inhaling: two sides of the same coin.
Continue to repeat this action. As worsted drafting gets more comfortable, your hands get faster. Some spinners work a backward draft, in which the general idea and motions are the same: pinch, pull, slide, repeat, allowing no twist into the drafting triangle.
The best style of join for worsted drafting is a side join, in which you add just a few fibers at a time to keep from adding air and to keep the join smooth, not lumpy.
Fluff out the end of your top so that you have a couple of inches of thin fiber (a), then hold the fiber at a right angle to the yarn as you continue to spin and allow the fiber wisps to catch on (b). Once the fibers attach, continue to draft as before.
Corriedale top spun worsted. When knit, worsted yarns have excellent stitch definition. They make crisp cables and textural stitches, and they highlight the movement of lace stitches. When you plan to knit an heirloom project that can be worn and passed down for generations, look no further than a worsted yarn.
