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 Noro Silk Garden Sock

weight
sport
thickness
300 m per 100 g
put-up
100 g
fibre
40% Wool, 25% Silk, 25% Nylon, 10% Mohair
in Australia
listed by 1 Australian shop we track

closest first

sport · 300 m/100g · 100g · 70% Merino, 30% Linen
  • nothing we can measure would feel different
sport · 300 m/100g · 100g · 100% Cotton
  • cooler
  • less springy -- it will grow and not bounce back
  • more matte
sport · 300 m/100g · 100g · 100% Merino
  • warmer
  • springier
  • stiffer, holding its shape more
  • less hard-wearing
  • more matte
  • softer next to skin
sport · 300 m/100g · 100g · 100% Merino
  • warmer
  • springier
  • stiffer, holding its shape more
  • less hard-wearing
  • more matte
  • softer next to skin
sport · 300 m/100g · 50g · 50% Linen, 27% Alpaca, 18% Cotton, 5% Merino
  • less springy -- it will grow and not bounce back
  • drapier, hanging softer
  • sold in 50g put-ups, not 100g -- check how many balls the pattern needs
fingering · 330 m/100g · 100g · 100% Acrylic
  • thinner: 330 m/100g against 300 -- expect a 10% difference in yardage needed
  • more matte
sport · 300 m/100g · 200g · 50% Cotton, 30% Silk, 10% Viscose, 10% Nylon
  • cooler
  • less springy -- it will grow and not bounce back
  • sold in 200g put-ups, not 100g -- check how many balls the pattern needs
sport · 300 m/100g · 50g · 68% Alpaca, 32% Cotton
  • less springy -- it will grow and not bounce back
  • drapier, hanging softer
  • less hard-wearing
  • softer next to skin
  • sold in 50g put-ups, not 100g -- check how many balls the pattern needs
sport · 300 m/100g · 75g · 100% Merino
  • warmer
  • springier
  • stiffer, holding its shape more
  • less hard-wearing
  • more matte
  • softer next to skin
  • sold in 75g put-ups, not 100g -- check how many balls the pattern needs
sport · 300 m/100g · 50g · 80% Alpaca, 20% Merino
  • warmer
  • less hard-wearing
  • softer next to skin
  • sold in 50g put-ups, not 100g -- check how many balls the pattern needs
sport · 310 m/100g · 40g · 40% Merino, 30% Cotton, 30% Brushtail Possum
  • less hard-wearing
  • more matte
  • softer next to skin
  • sold in 40g put-ups, not 100g -- check how many balls the pattern needs
fingering · 350 m/100g · 100g · 60% Merino, 20% Silk, 20% Linen
  • thinner: 350 m/100g against 300 -- expect a 17% difference in yardage needed

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.