Skeinote
For quantity, read the length per skein first. Use package mass when the pattern gives its requirement in grams. Weight or category, gauge, fiber, and care answer separate questions about the fabric you might make.
| Label field | What it answers | How Skeinote uses it |
|---|---|---|
| Length per skein | How much yarn is in one package? | Required for every whole-skein count |
| Package mass | How many source packages does a gram requirement represent? | Used only with the same exact line's length |
| Weight or category | Are the two published records clearly far apart? | Produces a stop or a caution |
| Gauge, fiber, and care | What still needs checking before a swap? | Context for the swatch and project decision |
The fields work together, but they are not interchangeable. A 100 g package does not imply a particular yardage, and the word Sport in a product name is not a maker-published category number.
Read the complete line name first
Start with the maker and exact line, including words such as Print, Sport, Chunky, Wave, Superwash, or Merino. These words can distinguish products with separate package figures.
Do not use a shop filter, color photograph, or nearby family name as the record. Skeinote links every selectable line to the maker page it used and keeps a checked date. The yarn catalogue shows those exact identities together.
Length drives the whole-skein calculation
Length appears in yards, metres, or both. It tells you how much linear yarn one package supplies.
| Exact line | Published length | Published mass | Published category wording |
|---|---|---|---|
| Berroco Vintage | 218 yds / 199 m | 3.5 oz / 100 g | 4 - Worsted |
| Cascade 220 Superwash Sport | Approx. 137 yds (125 m) | 50 g (1.75 oz) | No formal category printed on the surveyed page |
If a pattern asks for five skeins of Berroco Vintage, the recorded length is 5 × 218 = 1,090 yards. A target-yarn count then divides 1,090 by the exact target package length. The complete method is shown in how many skeins of a different yarn do I need?.
Grams require a same-line ratio
A gram requirement needs both mass and length from the exact pattern yarn. Cascade publishes 220 Superwash Sport at approximately 137 yards (125 m) in a 50 g package. For a pattern calling for 250 g:
source packages = 250 g ÷ 50 g = 5
required length = 5 × 137 yd = 685 yd
The intermediate package count stays unrounded. A requirement of 225 g would represent 225 ÷ 50 = 4.5 source packages, followed by 4.5 × 137 = 616.5 yards. Only the final target-skein result gets rounded upward.
This ratio belongs to Cascade 220 Superwash Sport. Berroco Vintage also uses a 100 g package, but its 218-yard length cannot be attached to another 100 g yarn. Mass describes the package; it does not determine the length inside it.
If the exact source record lacks either mass or length, the grams route stops. A length-based route may still work when the maker publishes length but omits mass.
Weight category is not package weight
4 - Worsted is category wording. 100 g is package mass. They answer different questions even though both may appear under a heading containing the word weight.
Maker wording also varies. Berroco labels Vintage 4 - Worsted and Vintage DK 3 - DK. It labels Comfort DK 2 - Sport despite DK appearing in the product name. Cascade describes Cascade 220 as a worsted-weight hank, while the surveyed 220 Superwash Sport page prints the product name but no formal category number.
Skeinote preserves those differences. When both records publish clearly different categories, the calculator withholds the target count. When one category is missing, the length arithmetic can appear with a caution instead of an invented category.
Read do solid and print yarns have the same yardage? before carrying a category or length across related names.
Gauge, fiber, and care shape the next test
Gauge is a maker's published reference, not the result of your project swatch. Cascade prints 22 to 24 stitches over 4 inches for 220 Superwash Sport. Berroco prints two knitting-gauge rows for Vintage. Record the exact wording and the needle or hook context when the maker supplies it.
Fiber and care also remain attached to the exact line. Cascade prints 100% Superwash Merino Wool for 220 Superwash Sport. Berroco prints 52% acrylic, 40% wool, and 8% nylon for Vintage. Those are material facts to compare after the length arithmetic, especially when the finished item's feel, care, or behavior matters.
The same yarn weight guide shows why a shared category still needs a swatch.
Let a missing field stay missing
Berroco's surveyed Vintage Chunky page publishes 136 yards / 124 m and 5 - Chunky, but it does not print package mass. Skeinote can use its length for skein, yard, or metre inputs. It cannot use Vintage Chunky as the source of a grams calculation.
Use this label checklist before calculating:
- Match the maker and complete line name.
- Record length in the maker's printed unit.
- Record package mass if the pattern quantity is in grams.
- Keep category, gauge, fiber, and care as separate checks.
- Save the maker URL or exact physical label with the date you read it.
Once those facts are separated, the arithmetic becomes simple and any missing field has an honest, predictable effect.