All About Vegan Knitting
“What is vegan knitting?” you ask, in this article we will show that those who adopt a vegan lifestyle can also knit. You can continue to do your hobby without using any yarns, tools or materials containing animal-based materials.
In this article, you will get to know the yarns that were not harmed by animals during their production and you will learn many yarns from vegetable sources.
What is the difference between Normal Yarn and Vegan Yarn?
Normal yarns are traditional-commercial yarns. Most yarns are produced using either animal, vegetable or synthetic raw materials. Sometimes these fiber contents are mixed together to create an optimum blend and increase the strength, color retention or warmth of the yarn. You can’t use these yarns when you start vegan knitting.
We can include all yarns that do not contain animal fiber content in the category of vegan yarns. That is, synthetic and plant-based yarns can be vegan yarns.
Why Vegan Yarn is Preferred? Why don’t vegans use wool yarn?
Although animal fiber yarn is warm, light and also biodegradable, some people refuse to use food, clothing and all other by-products obtained through animal use. For this reason, vegans do not use animal-based yarns.
If you have decided to do vegan knitting, you need to know about the vegetable and synthetic yarns you can use.
You can read our series in which we examine the fiber contents of the yarns;
Fiber Contents of Yarn , blog.iceyarns.com
Can vegans knit with cotton? Can vegans knit with acrylic?
Yes, when the categories are determined as above, vegan knitting can be done with plant-based and synthetic-based yarns.
You can learn more about the fiber content of yarns from our previous blog posts.
Examples of synthetic yarns (suitable for vegan knitting): Acrylic, microfiber (polyester based) and nylon (polymer based), all these yarns are made of petroleum/chemical based plastic
Some of animal-based yarns: Alpaca, Angora (rabbit), cashmere (goat), llama, mohair (goat), silk (silkworm), vicuna, wool (sheep)
Vegetable-based yarns (suitable for vegan knitting): Bamboo, cotton, hemp, tencel (cellulose or eucalyptus)
Knitting needles and crochets are generally known to be free of animal-based materials. But try to learn the information of each product you buy. Thus, you take your precautions and do not use products containing animal-based substances.
Animal-based yarns may have been used in the projects you chose or inspired when you decided to knit. Instead, you can complete projects and continue your vegan knitting with plant-based or synthetic yarns.
The most important factors to consider when choosing a yarn are yarn weight and needle thickness. Bamboo, Tencel and Linen for light and airy projects; You can use cotton for heavy and thick projects.
