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 Scheepjes Catona

weight
dk
thickness
250 m per 100 g
put-up
50 g
fibre
100% Mercerised Cotton
in Australia
listed by 1 Australian shop we track
Heads up. label says fingering (4 ply), metreage says dk (250.0 m/100g) We have gone with the measurement, because metreage is measured and a ply number is a word on a label. Check the band.

closest first

dk · 248 m/100g · 50g · 60% Bamboo, 40% Cotton
  • less hard-wearing
  • more matte
dk · 250 m/100g · 50g · 50% Linen, 50% Cotton
  • more matte
  • less soft next to skin
dk · 240 m/100g · 50g · 50% Linen, 36% Cotton, 14% Silk
  • more matte
sport · 266 m/100g · 50g · 100% Silk
  • drapier, hanging softer
  • softer next to skin
sport · 270 m/100g · 50g · 50% Linen, 24% Viscose, 23% Cotton, 3% Polyester
  • thinner: 270 m/100g against 250 -- expect a 8% difference in yardage needed
  • more matte
dk · 240 m/100g · 50g · 78% Cotton, 22% Silk
  • more matte
dk · 240 m/100g · 50g · 78% Cotton, 22% Silk
  • more matte
dk · 240 m/100g · 50g · 78% Cotton, 22% Silk
  • more matte
dk · 250 m/100g · 50g · 56% Alpaca, 44% Cotton
  • warmer
  • much fuzzier, with more halo
  • less hard-wearing
  • more matte
dk · 250 m/100g · 50g · 100% Cotton
  • more matte
dk · 250 m/100g · 50g · 100% Cotton
  • more matte
dk · 250 m/100g · 50g · 100% Cotton
  • more matte

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.