FAQ - Acrylic Yarn

What is Acrylic Yarn?

Acrylic yarn is an affordable style of yarn made from synthetic, acrylic fibres. These fibres are not natural. Acrylic yarn is affordable, durable, machine washable and usually lightweight. Acrylic fibres these days can be very soft and are used to make a variety of garments and projects. Those new to knitting and crochet are often guided to use acrylic to begin with before moving to more expensive fibres.

Which is better, cotton, wool, polyester or acrylic yarn?

The choice of which fibre to use for your project is completely dependent on personal preference.

Cotton and Wool are natural fibres and are usually sold as blends or pure products. Polyester and Acrylic are made from synthetic fibres. Cotton: Cotton is soft breathable and great for summertime, baby items (i.e dolls & amigurumi) and dishcloths. Cotton is easily stretched and has a heavier feel to it. Wool: Wool requires more care with washing and care and some people find it itchy.

However, wool is also warm, insulating, and elastic. It's perfect for those cool/cold months and is odour resistant. Polyester: Polyester is not as soft or breathable as natural fibres it is however, strong, durable and often blended with other fibres ie. cotton. Its seen as a good fibre to use with items that need to be hardwearing i.e bags.

Acrylic: Acrylic yarn is cheap, durable, machine washable and lightweight. Acrylic fibres these days can be very soft and are used to make a variety of garments and projects. Those new to knitting and crochet are often guided to use acrylic to begin with before moving to more expensive fibres.

What is Acrylic Yarn Made of?

These days acrylic yarn is made up of a specific type of plastic called ‘acryonile’. Acryonile is a poly compound that releases toxic fumes when its produced, but should not smell or be toxic when being used for crafting.

Will Acrylic yarn shrink, melt or stretch?

Acrylic yarn has the capacity to melt when exposed to an extreme, direct heat, like fire, as it’s essentially made from a poly compound that is plastic. There is very little ability for acrylic yarn to shrink or stretch compared to other natural fibres.

Can Acrylic yarn be washed?

YES! A massive benefit of using acrylic yarn is that it is machine and hand washable. This makes it perfect for garments, toys and fabrics that are going to be prone to getting dirty.