The Papa
yarn substitutes · what to use when you cannot get the one the pattern says

This is a starting point, not a promise.Knit a swatch before you commit the whole sweater.

Substitutes for Adorn Yarns Silky Merino DK 8ply

weight
dk
thickness
230 m per 100 g
put-up
50 g
fibre
90% Merino, 10% Silk
in Australia
listed by 1 Australian shop we track

closest first

dk · 230 m/100g · 50g · 100% Merino
  • nothing we can measure would feel different
dk · 220 m/100g · 50g · 100% Merino
  • nothing we can measure would feel different
dk · 240 m/100g · 50g · 68% Merino, 32% Cotton
  • nothing we can measure would feel different
dk · 230 m/100g · 50g · 50% Merino, 50% Cotton
  • cooler
  • less springy -- it will grow and not bounce back
dk · 225 m/100g · 100g · 100% Merino
  • sold in 100g put-ups, not 50g -- check how many balls the pattern needs
dk · 250 m/100g · 50g · 100% Merino
  • thinner: 250 m/100g against 230 -- expect a 9% difference in yardage needed
dk · 250 m/100g · 50g · 100% Merino
  • thinner: 250 m/100g against 230 -- expect a 9% difference in yardage needed
dk · 224 m/100g · 50g · 85% Bluefaced Leicester, 15% Silk
  • drapier, hanging softer
  • more hard-wearing
  • shinier
dk · 224 m/100g · 50g · 85% Bluefaced Leicester, 15% Silk
  • drapier, hanging softer
  • more hard-wearing
  • shinier
dk · 224 m/100g · 50g · 85% Bluefaced Leicester, 15% Silk
  • drapier, hanging softer
  • more hard-wearing
  • shinier
dk · 224 m/100g · 50g · 85% Bluefaced Leicester, 15% Silk
  • drapier, hanging softer
  • more hard-wearing
  • shinier
dk · 224 m/100g · 50g · 85% Bluefaced Leicester, 15% Silk
  • drapier, hanging softer
  • more hard-wearing
  • shinier

how this was worked out

Thickness comes from metreage per 100 g, which is a measurement. Fibre behaviour - warmth, halo, springiness, drape - is scored per fibre and blended by proportion, so a merino and a Bluefaced Leicester read as near neighbours while a merino and a cotton do not, even at the same gauge. Where a record is thin, the match is discounted rather than quietly flattered, and the gap is named above.

Yardage is always rounded up. If we ever sell you the yarn and the number is short, the extra skein is on us, from your dye lot.