Two-Ply Yarn
Fiber — one of 29 in the glossary
Yarn made by twisting two single strands together before knitting or weaving. Twisting evens out thin spots and roughly doubles strength, so the resulting cloth is smoother, denser and far more resistant to tearing and pilling than a single-ply of the same weight. In terry and towelling it is what separates a plush towel from a thin one; in shirting it marks a premium fabric. Expect a higher price and a heavier finished garment, and expect it to survive commercial laundering better than anything single-ply.
Twisting two singles into one
A single yarn — a "single" — is one continuous strand of spun fibre. A two-ply yarn twists two of them together, usually in the opposite direction to their own spin.
That counter-twist balances the yarn. An unbalanced single wants to untwist, which is what makes single-ply woven cloth skew out of square after washing; a balanced ply does not.
It also evens out thin spots. Where one strand is thin the other is not, so the yarn has no weak point and breaks far less readily.
Reading a yarn count
Shirting is often specified as something like 2x80s, meaning two-ply eighty-count yarn. The number is the fineness of each single; the 2 is how many are twisted together.
Higher counts are finer and make smoother, lighter, more expensive cloth. A 2x100s poplin is a dress shirt; a 2x40s is a work shirt.
A single-ply 80s and a two-ply 80s are not the same cloth. The ply matters as much as the count.
Where it shows
In terry and towelling it is the difference between a plush towel and a thin one, because the ply gives the pile body.
In shirting it shows as smoothness, density and resistance to pilling and tearing, and it survives commercial laundering far better than single-ply.
Note that on a polo spec sheet, "two-ply" usually refers to a two-layer collar rather than to the yarn — a different thing entirely, covered under two-ply.
Common questions
- What is two-ply yarn?
- Two single strands twisted together, usually counter to their own spin, before knitting or weaving. The result is stronger, smoother and more balanced than either single alone.
- What does 2x80s mean on a shirt?
- Two-ply eighty-count yarn: two singles of eighty count twisted together. The number is the fineness of each single and the 2 is the number of plies.
- Is two-ply yarn the same as a two-ply collar?
- No. Two-ply yarn is about how the thread was made. A two-ply collar is two layers of fabric, which is what stops a polo collar curling. Both terms appear on blanks spec sheets.
See also
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