The Finer Things: Understanding Fingering-Weight Yarn
Fingering-weight yarn is the perfectly elegant choice when you want to knit a lovely lightweight fabric, whether earthy or refined, simple or intricate. Knitting up at 6.75 to 8 stitches per inch on US 1–3 (2.25–3.25 mm) needles, this wide-ranging yarn category is delicate but not insubstantial. Read on for our guide to the world of fingering-weight yarn, and gain all the confidence you need to shop our fingering-weight yarns and to explore our huge collection of beautiful fingering-weight knitting patterns!
Where Does The Name “Fingering Weight” Come From?
Most names for yarn weights are a bit enigmatic, and “fingering weight” is particularly so, with a couple of competing origin stories. Some sources say the name comes from the French fin grain, meaning “fine grain” to describe the yarn’s delicate weight. Others trace the name back to 19th century Scotland, when the Scots word “fingerin” referred to yarn spun on a small wheel from combed fiber, as well as to fabric made from that yarn. Interesting theories, and the mystery is part of the charm of our centuries-old craft… Truth and legend are always plied together!
Fine Print, Nigh Fine, and Line Weight
Understanding Yarn Weight
Let’s zoom out a bit and look at yarn weight in general. Yarn weight (or yarn thickness) ranges from delicate lace weight to chunky jumbo yarns, with fingering-weight sitting on the lighter end between lace-weight, which is even finer, and sport-weight, which is just a little thicker. We follow the Craft Yarn Council (CYC) standards for labeling yarn weights, as do many yarn companies and pattern designers, but there’s plenty of wiggle room in these categories, and nothing beats knitting a gauge swatch for picking the right yarn for your project!
Gauge + Yarn Weight
Yarn weight is a great starting point to inform your yarn, needle, and pattern choice, but gauge is where the rubber really meets the road! Gauge tells you how many stitches to work over a certain measurement, usually 1 or 4 inches. Fingering-weight yarns are defined by the CYC as knitting up at 6.75 to 8 stitches per inch on US 1–3 (2.25–3.25 mm) needles, but every yarn (lofty or tightly spun?), every fiber (cotton or cashmere?), every knitter (tight or relaxed?), and every stitch pattern (loose or dense?) is a little different. Even if the gauge on your yarn’s label matches your pattern’s gauge, knitting a swatch is the best way to be sure your finished piece will come out just right. For all the details on gauge swatching, be sure to check out our All About Gauge Tutorial!
How Many Yards In A Skein Of Fingering-Weight Yarn?
Fingering-weight yarn is the broadest yarn category when it comes to gauge range, and that variety shows up in yardage per skein, too. Our fingering-weight yarns range from just above 300 yards to over 600 yards per 100 grams, depending on the fiber content and construction of the yarn. Lightweight, lofty fibers like cashmere tend to give you more yardage, while denser fibers like cotton yield less. While it’s tempting to match yardage when choosing a yarn substitute, it’s just one piece of the puzzle. To know whether a fingering-weight yarn will work for your project, look at the fiber, gauge, and spin, and only consult the yardage to make sure you’ll have enough yarn to finish your project!
Left to Right: Cygnet, Oleander, Quartz, and Sweetgrass
Is Fingering-Weight Yarn The Same Thing As Sock Yarn?
The terms “fingering-weight” and “sock yarn” are often used interchangeably, but calling sock yarn a weight doesn’t quite make sense… After all, socks can be knit in any weight yarn! The two terms get murky because many sock knitting patterns call for fingering-weight yarn, and yarns made for knitting socks are often fingering weight. True sock yarns also maximize durability with strong fibers, multiple plies, and bounce, allowing handknit socks to stand up to wear. For example, our Fine Print yarn blends superwash wool with nylon for durability and easy care, while Quartz offers a nylon-free mix of merino wool and suri alpaca that’s still resilient and bouncy. Both are fingering-weight yarns and sock yarns!
Left to Right: Echo Cashmere, Simply Camel, Santolina, Estuary, Tussock, Cattail Silk, and Linen Quill
Meet Our Fingering-Weight Yarns
Nigh Fine
100% Cashmere
Line Weight
100% Merino Wool
Estuary
65% Fine Merino Wool, 20% Mulberry Silk, 15% Linen
Cattail Silk
100% Mulberry Silk
Fine Print
75% Superwash Wool, 25% Nylon
Echo Cashmere
95% Recycled Cashmere
Quartz
65% Merino Wool, 35% Suri Alpaca
Sweetgrass
65% Organic Cotton, 35% Superfine Alpaca, Undyed
Linen Quill
50% Fine Highland Wool, 35% Alpaca, 15% Linen
Oleander
50% Cotton, 50% Linen
Simply Camel
100% Baby Camel, Undyed
Tussock
60% Super Fine Kid Mohair, 40% Mulberry Silk
Shop all of our fingering-weight yarns, including the ones above, and all of our other inspiring yarn… You’ll find a wide variety of fibers and spins and hundreds of spectacular colors. These yarns can all be knit up at a similar gauge, and some can be substituted easily for each other, but we always recommend you knit a gauge swatch to make sure you love the fabric and that you get the gauge you need for your project!
Lace- To Fingering-Weight Yarns (Also Known As Light Fingering-Weight Yarns)
- Tussock is an incredibly fine strand of mohair and silk that can behave like a lace-, fingering-, or even sport-weight yarn, depending on how you knit it, into a fluffier denser fabric or worked loose and lacy. Either way, Tussock is always radiant!
- A slender single ply of pure merino wool, Line Weight is another yarn that spans lace and fingering weight. It is one of the first yarns we ever created and is still a beloved classic in our collection!
- Feather-light yet toasty warm, Nigh Fine is a delicate cashmere yarn you’ll want to hold close. As thin as many lace-weight yarns, this yarn’s incredible bloom allows you to also knit it at a looser fingering weight gauge.
- Our hand-printed superwash wool and nylon sock yarn, Fine Print is a very soft, very smooth, very fine yarn, but don’t be fooled by its lace-weight gauge, which reflects how densely you’d want to knit it for socks. On slightly bigger needles, Fine Print becomes closer to a fingering-weight yarn, lovely for baby garments, shawls, and more!
True Fingering-Weight Yarns
- Cygnet is an inspired combination of 70% fine cashmere and 30% baby alpaca, available in a range of natural colors, created by combining undyed white cashmere with naturally occurring shades of baby alpaca fiber. It’s a real fingering-weight beauty!
- Another incredible undyed yarn, Sweetgrass is 65% organic, undyed cotton and 35% traceable alpaca, also in a range of natural colors that come straight from the animals’ fleeces… Simple yet elegant, breezy yet warm.
- A glowing mix of soft merino wool and fluffy suri alpaca, Quartz is strong and soft, with both elasticity and drape. It’s beautiful for no-nylon socks, garments, and accessories, with a subtle halo that makes this super lustrous yarn really special!
- The perfect warm-weather yarn, Oleander is made with a 50/50 mix of cotton and linen. It’s strong and pleasantly dry to the touch, with a smooth, soft feel that’s as light as a summer breeze!
Fingering- To Sport-Weight Yarns (Also Known As Heavy Fingering-Weight Yarns)
- Our most popular yarn for very good reason, Linen Quill is a hearty blend of springy highland wool, soft alpaca, and just a bit of rustic linen. The bloom of the alpaca and body of the linen make Linen Quill extra flexible when it comes to gauge, and its vast palette makes it a trove of inspiration!
- Hand-dyed Estuary is a gorgeous single-ply mix of soft merino wool, lustrous silk, and earthy linen. At a classic fingering-weight gauge or knit slightly looser (i.e. on bigger needles!), this yarn relaxes and blooms beautifully into a soft, fluid fabric, with deep lagoons of color punctuated by sand bars and swirling eddies… So gorgeous.
- Simply Camel is our 100% pure, undyed baby camel yarn, a unique, very soft fiber with a lovely drape and a desert glow. This exquisite camel yarn has a lofty spin that makes it versatile enough to knit at a denser fingering- or looser sport-weight gauge.
- A wonderfully wild mix of organically grown cotton, bamboo, and hemp, Santolina is a dreamy plant-based yarn… Velvety, strong, and machine-washable, too!
- Cattail Silk is a 100% mulberry silk yarn with an earthy texture and a casual spin speckled by little nubs of color. This yarn has a lighter drape than most other silks, a more subtle shine, and an offhanded elegance. Explore it at both ends of its gauge spectrum!
- 95% recycled cashmere, Echo Cashmere combines timeless elegance with an inspiring story of renewal. Turning excess fibers from cashmere sweater production and from recycled sweaters back into cashmere yarn, it’s a beautiful new beginning for fiber that deserves a second life!
Knitting With Fingering-Weight Yarn
Fingering-weight yarn is wonderfully versatile and full of possibilities! From lacy shawls to cozy socks to heirloom baby sweaters, you won’t believe how elegant and refined your knitting looks when you knit at a finer gauge. Don’t be intimidated by the smaller stitches… You may be knitting more of them, but with yarns that feel this good in your hands, you’ll enjoy every single one! With so many fiber blends, spins, and colors to choose from, there’s a fingering-weight yarn for just about anything you dream of making. Explore our extensive collection of (mostly free) fingering-weight knitting patterns, too, and knit something truly beautiful!
Looking for more inspiration? Explore all of our free knitting patterns and knitting tutorials, buy one of our many knitting kits and yarn bundles, and shop for beautiful yarn. We have over 45 gorgeous natural fiber yarns in 1000’s of magnificent colors, designed to bring integrity, beauty, and joy to your next knitting project and only available at Purl Soho!
Enjoyed this very much – lots of great info! Hope u do a series on all weights!