The Snap test

One of the quickest ways to start a discussion at the studio is to hand somebody two cones of yarn and ask them to break them.

The contestants are usually a cashmere yarn and a linen yarn.

The cashmere snaps almost immediately.

The linen refuses to cooperate.

Some people pull harder.

Some wrap it around their fingers and pull even harder. We tell them ‘snap the yarn, not your finger! Be careful!’

They eventually surrender and declare the linen the clear winner.

The next question usually follows naturally.

Which one would make the better warp yarn?

The answers are immediate.

The linen, of course.

After all, we just established that it is much stronger.

Interestingly, the loom sometimes has other ideas.

Cashmere, despite its softness and apparent fragility, is usually quite pleasant to weave with. No breaks during warping or weaving.

Linen, despite its impressive strength, can be demanding. A careless brush from the shuttle occasionally leaves the warp looking mildly offended for quite some time afterwards! The elastic recovery of linen appears to be slower than wool.

When weaving linen at the studio, we often keep a damp cloth nearby and wipe both the warp and the weft every now and then. The yarn seems to appreciate the gesture and behaves a little better afterwards!

Over the years, this has made us wonder whether its willingness to stretch a little and put up with a bit of abrasion might sometimes matter more than its breaking strength.

A loom rarely subjects a yarn to the kind of force applied during a snap test. Instead, the yarn spends its time bending around beams, passing through heddles, rubbing against reed dents and constantly moving between tension and relaxation.

Perhaps that is why some yarns that appear delicate in the hand perform beautifully on the loom, while others that seem indestructible test the patience of the weaver.

The snap test continues to be a favourite with visitors, students and designers.