do you have to ply?

[ctmax]

I just started spinning and my first hank is probably a heavy worsted thickness. Everything I read says you should ply your hanks together, but I would end up with some really thick yarn not really what I was going for. Do you have to ply or can I just use it as is? When I am spinning should I be trying to get really thin yarn so I can ply it together? Thanks

[rennfamily]

From what I've read it's a personal thing. if you're yarn is thick already you don't have to ply it. Plying helps to get the kinks out and makes it a little more uniform. I tend to spin mine pretty thin so that I can ply it. But thats my personal preference. Look at Malbrigo Its not plyed.

[Yarnlady]

No you don't. Lamb's Pride is spun as singles. I do 99% of my spinning as singles.

If you block the yarn after spinning, it will remove the kinks and it works just fine.

I hate plying and avoid it all costs.

[ctmax]

Yarnlady how do you block your yarn?

[Yarnlady]

Yarnlady how do you block your yarn?

After I am done spinning, I wind it onto my niddy noddy. Tie in several places and remove from the niddy noddy. Place yarn in HOT slightly soapy water and let sit until water is lukewarm. Drain water. Remove yarn from sink, run HOT water and add a bit of hair conditioner. Put yarn back in and let sit till lukewarm. Take yarn out, place in a towel, roll up and step on the rolled up towel to press water out.

Hang the skein over a pipe, shower head, etc. Take two shoes and tie shoe strings together. Place one shoe through the loop of the skien so one shoe is on each side of the skein and pulls the yarn straight. Let dry.

Blocked yarn! You can use other things for the weights...a nylon knee-hi with a rock in the toe and one at the open end after it's tied shut. Or an S hook at the bottom of the skein with something heavy hanging from the other curve of the S. Really doesn't matter, but you don't want it so heavy it'll pull the yarn too hard and have no elasticity left. Just enough weight to pull it straight.

[ctmax]

Thank you for all your help. I just ordered a niddy noddy so I will try this as soon as I recieve it.

[Queen of Rust]

Just want to add that I weight my yarn when blocking with a filled water spritz bottle. I simply hang the by the crook of the pump over the bottom of the skein so it weighs it down. I fill it with just enough water so that the yarn hangs straight.

[mullerslanefarm]

You have to be careful about blocking single ply when the majority of the fiber is wool. Wool has memory.

Your project will be just fine until you wash it. Unless you reblock your project well, the wool will 'remember' it's original form ...

[dana_renay]

People recommend plying as a way to balance an overspun yarn. If your singles yarn has a little extra twist, then when it's knit (particularly in stockingette) it is going to bias, which means your stitches will look like this /| instead of like this /\. The infamous Mmmmmmalabrigo biases a bit.
Blocking the yarn isn't going to help that in the long run. As mentioned above, it will spring back when the finished object is washed, and the bias will reveal itself.

Personally, I love singles and I don't mind the look of bias in the knitted object. I guess it's about personal preference and the look you want in your finished project.