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When you decide to knit a project, do you buy the exact yarn called for in the pattern? Do you dive into your stash? Or do you head to your local yarn store to touch and feel and pick something that seems like it ought to work? Have you ever been disappointed with your yarn substitutions?
Not all yarns are the same—differences in plies, texture, fiber content, yardage, and more all make yarn substitution tricky. Using the Amplitude Pullover by Julia Farwell-Clay as a starting point, this guide explores how to choose yarns that will work with your pattern plus things to think about as you evaluate your swatch so you can navigate yarn substitution with confidence!
The Amplitude Pullover is the perfect sweater-weather knit. Photo by Gale Zucker
Start with the Pattern
[PAYWALL]Begin by gathering details about the recommended yarn, such as weight, yardage, fiber content, and gauge. One skein of the Amplitude Pullover’s recommended yarn, Wooldreamers La Rinconada—a 100% organic Spanish Merino wool—weighs 3.5 ounces (100 grams) and has 252 yards (230 meters). The gauge called for in the pattern is 19 stitches and 26 rounds to make a 4-inch swatch, or 4.75 stitches/inch and 6.5 rows/inch.
Gather as much information about the yarn as you can before you go in search of another yarn.
Understand Grist & Gauge
Grist is a simple measurement that tells you a lot about your yarn, and it’s the secret ingredient that makes every yarn unique. To find the grist, you’ll take a look at the label: How many yards are there per pound (ypp)?
With 252 yards in a 3.5-ounce skein, Wooldreamers La Rinconada has 72 yards per ounce and 1,152 yards per pound.
252/3.5 = 72 yards per ounce
72 x 16 = 1,152 yards per pound
Once you have the ypp, you can look for something close to that. As it happened, all the yarns I chose were between 950 and 1,000 ypp. These comparisons work best with yarns that are spun from similar fibers—wool and wool blends in these examples.
Once you’ve honed in on grist, look at the yarn labels’ recommended gauge and needle sizes—are they in the range of what’s called for in the pattern? Even though these vary wildly, they can give you some valuable insights. If the recommendations are very far from the pattern’s gauge, you might skip that yarn. If they’re close, you might select the yarn for swatching.
Grist and gauge are two factors that can help you find success in yarn substitution.
Swatch Smart
Your swatch needs to be knitted with the same needles, the same yarn, and in the same way as your final project. The Amplitude Pullover is knitted in the round, so all of my swatches were in the round. I used bamboo needles for my swatches, so those are the needles I’ll need to use for the sweater—especially if I’m making any adjustments based on my gauge swatch.
Critically, your swatch also needs to be washed and fully dried before you take any measurements. You’d be amazed at how different the gauge measurements can be between a swatch just off the needles and one that’s been washed and dried!
Check Stitch Gauge
Stitch gauge affects the width of your garment. For example, I’ve chosen the 48-inch size of the Amplitude Pullover. At the recommended 4.75 stitches/inch, that’s 228 stitches at the chest and hip.
At a looser gauge of 4 stitches/inch, the same chest and hip measurements would become 57 inches. That’s a lot of extra ease! If my gauge was that loose, I might try going down a needle size (or more).
If I had a much tighter gauge of 6 stitches/inch, the finished chest and hip measurements would be only 37 inches—much, much tighter! In that case, I might try going up a needle size.
These are extreme examples, but what about when your gauge is close, but not exact? All my swatches were a quarter of an inch bigger or smaller than the recommended stitch gauge, which multiplies to a 2.4-inch difference in the finished garment. This is where I take a look at my body measurements, the pattern’s recommended ease, and my own fit preferences. If I'm happy with the expected result, it’s time to cast on. But this is also a good time to check the sizes next to my preferred size and see what those final measurements would be at my gauge. Sometimes going up or down a sweater size does the trick, too.
Stitch gauge affects the width of your garment.
Check Row Gauge
Row gauge influences the length of your garment, and is especially important in yoke/armhole depth. To pick an example that’s consistent across all sizes in the Amplitude Pullover, the sleeve length from underarm to cuff is 13 inches. At the recommended gauge of 6.5 rows/inch, that’s 84 rows.
At a looser gauge of 5.5 row/inch, the same 84 rows would make a sleeve that’s 15.25 inches, and at a tighter gauge of 7.5 rows/inch, that’s only 11.25 inches. Depending on your own body measurements and fit preferences, either of those scenarios could be a lucky break or a disaster.
But, fortunately for us, the Amplitude Pullover has plenty of areas of plain knitting where it’s easy to simply add or omit rows to adjust for your row gauge.
Row gauge affects the length of your garment.
Evaluate Your Fabric
Getting gauge is all well and good, but how does your swatch feel? Does it feel like a sweater you’d like to wear? Is it loose and floppy or stiff as a board? Knitting a sweater is a big investment in time and yarn, so make sure you like what your swatch is telling you!
Let’s take a look at each of my swatches to see what we can learn.
Affordable Option: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes
Wool of the Andes is an affordable yarn that comes in a stunning array of colors. It’s conveniently packaged in center-pull balls, so you don’t need a swift or ball winder—you can just start knitting!
The Yarn: 100% Peruvian Highland wool. Knit Picks sent me three colors to swatch with—Burdock Heather, Seaweed, and Aloe Heather.
Tasting Notes: This wool yarn is soft and bouncy, with just a touch of toothiness—perfect for stranded colorwork. With four plies, it has just the right amount of stitch definition for stranded colorwork, cables, and more. I loved how the heathered shades played off each other, but if you prefer bolder colors, Knit Picks also offers this yarn in plenty of solid colors.
My Gauge: 5 stitches/inch; 5.5 rows/inch.
Yardage: 110 yards/50 grams.
At my chosen size, I need 1,260 yards of the main color and 252 of each contrasting color. If I use Wool of the Andes, I’d need to buy 12 balls of the main color and 3 balls each of the contrasting colors.
Available Near You Option: Queensland Collection Kathmandu Aran
I often find yarn from Queensland Collection at yarn shops. It’s a lovely yarn at a nice price point, and it comes in a wide range of colors.
The Yarn: This yarn is an 85/10/5 blend of extrafine Merino wool, silk, and cashmere. Knitting Fever, Inc. sent me Tropical Teal, Strawberry, and Brick Red for my swatch.
Tasting Notes: With Aran in the name, I expected this yarn to be much too heavy for the Amplitude Pullover, but my swatch was in the range of the other worsted-weight yarns I sampled. The two-ply yarn wasn’t as bouncy as some of the other yarns I sampled, but it was pleasant to work with and had nice stitch definition in the colorwork. This yarn is fabulously soft, with a hint of shine from the silk.
My Gauge: 4.5 stitches/inch; 6 rows/inch.
Yardage: 208 yards/100 grams.
At my chosen size, I need 1,260 yards of the main color and 252 of each contrasting color. If I use Kathmandu Aran, I’d need six skeins of the main color and 1.2 skeins each of the contrast colors. I’d probably buy two of each contrast color, just to be safe, or buy three skeins of one color and knit the Amplitude Pullover as a two-color design.
Amazing Option: Bare Naked Wools Targhee Tango
Sourced from one farm in Montana, this breed-specific yarn retains its sheepy character. It’s wonderfully soft and cozy. You can select a skein-winding option if you don’t want to wind your own balls.
The Yarn: Targhee Tango is a two-ply worsted weight yarn, spun in the US from 100% Targhee wool. It comes in a range of natural undyed colors. Bare Naked Wools sent me Finnish (white), Nuevo (light gray), and Argentine (dark gray) for my swatch.
Tasting Notes: When I opened the package, there was a light sheepy aroma that made me think of sweeping Montana vistas dotted with sheep. There was also just a little bit of vegetable matter, which tells me that the fiber was very gently processed—a good thing, in my book! Both the sheepy aroma and vegetable matter disappeared after one gentle wash. The final fabric of the swatch feels velvety soft. The two grays are very close to each other, and I might consider choosing only one for a bold look to the Amplitude Pullover.
My Gauge: 4.5 stitches/inch; 6.5 rows/inch.
Yardage: 250 yards/115 grams.
At my chosen size, I need 1,260 yards of the main color and 252 of each contrasting color. If I use Targhee Tango, I’d need five skeins of the main color and one skein each of the contrasting colors—although I might choose just one contrasting color and buy two skeins of it for a two-color design.
Awful Option: Mystery Superwash
The yarn wasn’t awful at all—I loved working with it! But after washing, the fabric became stretchy and floppy. It just wasn’t a great fit for a sweater, for me.
The Yarn: A 100% superwash wool. I wouldn’t knit this sweater with this yarn. But I would totally use it for something else! To protect the innocent, I won’t name names.
Tasting Notes: This yarn was bouncy and squishy and pleasant to knit with. I’d call the yarn a heavy worsted weight. It was a little bit difficult to keep the stranded colorwork even, and the washed swatch felt loose and floppy.
Now that I’ve finished swatching, I’m stumped—three of these yarns would make an absolutely gorgeous Amplitude Pullover. Which would you choose?
— Pamela
Cast on Today!
The Amplitude Pullover graced the cover of Farm & Fiber Knits Fall 2025! Subscribers can find the digital pattern, the Fall 2025 issue, and many more patterns in the Farm & Fiber Knits Library.
