Yarns for Brother knitting machine: tips and reasons

Yarns for Brother knitting machines

When working with home knitting machines like Brother or similar ones, yarn selection is crucial for achieving good results. Below, I'll explain which yarn to choose, how to use it correctly, and why making the right choice is important.

🎯 Which yarn to choose

1. Yarn count (thickness)

• Brother machines (such as the KH-840, KH-910, KH-260) are available in fine gauge, standard gauge, and bulky gauge:

  • Standard gauge (4.5 mm) → fine yarn: Nm 2/30, Nm 2/28, Nm 2/20, Nm 1/15 (cashmere, wool, blends) – often used double or triple. Nm 2/13, Nm. 2/16 to be used as a single strand

  • Bulky gauge (9 mm) → thicker yarns: Nm 2/10, Nm 2/8, Nm 3/7, Nm 1/4, – can also be used as a single strand.

  • Fine gauge (3.6 mm or less) → very thin yarns: Nm 2/48, Nm 2/60 – used with low tensions or multiple strands.

2. Yarn type

🧵 Recycled and regenerated cashmere

Recycled cashmere is one of Hircus Filati's gems. It is a precious yarn, obtained from used garments regenerated in Tuscany. It has a soft hand, an elegant drape, and above all, an ethical and sustainable soul.
Recommended counts for standard Brother (4.5 mm):

• Nm 2/28 or Nm 2/30 to be used in two or three strands.
  Perfect for making light sweaters, scarves, accessories, and baby knitwear.

• Nm 2/13 or 2/14 or 2/15 to be used as a single strand
• These are full, substantial yarns, perfect for single-strand use to achieve a compact and soft hand

🐑 Extra-fine merino wool

Superfine merino is selected for its softness and yarn regularity. It is elastic, warm, and runs well through Brother machine carriages, making it ideal even for beginners.
Suggested counts:

• Nm 2/30 or Nm 2/28, also used doubled for a fuller result.
  Ideal for winter garments, sweaters, cardigans, and wool underwear.

🦙 Baby alpaca

Baby alpaca is an extraordinarily soft, light, and thermally insulating natural fiber. It is perfect for making warm, weightless garments and works well on Brother machines if the yarn is regular.
Recommended count:

• Nm 2/28, also doubled or with combined yarns (e.g., alpaca + silk).
  Excellent for oversized sweaters, large scarves, and capes.

• Nm 2/16, to be used as a single strand.
  Excellent for oversized sweaters, large scarves, and capes.

🐛 Pure or blended silk

Silk – both pure and blended with wool or cashmere – adds brilliance, lightness, and a precious touch to knitting. Hircus offers natural silk yarns that run well in Brother machines if well-tensioned and balanced.
To be used in summer or for refined and light garments.
Tip: pair it with a second strand of wool or alpaca for a balanced and smooth mix.

✅ Natural yarns for your Brother, Run better in the carriage if well-prepared, Offer higher quality final results, breathable and durable, Are sustainable and skin-safe, perfect even for newborns and intimate apparel, Allow you to fully exploit the potential of Brother machines.

🔧 Practical tips:

• Always prepare the yarn with paraffin wax or pass it through a uniform tension guide.

• Make a test swatch to check tension, hand, and result.

• Prefer cones or spools: the unwinding will be smooth and continuous.

Working with natural yarns on a Brother knitting machine means combining technological precision with the beauty of nature's noblest fibers. With Hircus Filati's proposals – 100% natural, selected, and produced in Italy – every project becomes a unique, durable, and refined garment.

Happy knitting!