What Are Gradient Yarn Cakes and Why We Love Them

If you are a knitter who has difficulty coordinating colors, you may be drawn to gradient hand-dyed yarn. Gradient yarns allow the color to flow seamlessly and perfectly coordinated through your knitted garment without having to weave in ends. Gradient yarn cakes are beautiful and magical and we love them. 

What Is a Gradient Yarn Cake?

Soft, squishy, colorful, and shaped like a cake- gradient yarn cakes are delightful. The shape of the yarn is what defines it and classifies it as a "cake." When yarn comes off the ball winder, it is shaped like a cylinder with a flat top and bottom. Yarn cakes are a joy to work with because the yarn pulls neatly from the center of the cake. 

A gradient cake can be self-striping, ombre, speckled, or a number of other gorgeous hand-dying techniques designed to add color to your knitting. 

Benefits of Using Gradient Yarn Cakes

Why do knitters opt for yarn cakes over balls, or hanks, or skeins? There are several great reasons.

• Pull From Center: Yarn from yarn cakes can be loosely pulled from the center. This is especially convenient when using multiple cakes for the same project or when you want to pull from both ends of the same cake.
• More Yarn: A yarn cake is able to contain more yarn. Rather than having to buy 2-3 balls of yarn, you may only need to buy one cake. Many times, there is added value.
• Easy to Contain: Balls of yarn roll all around, whereas cakes feed smoothly and stay put. Cakes don't easily unravel themselves the way that balls of yarn do.
• Coordinated Color: Gradient cakes have built-in color allowing knitters to add color-coordinated color without the guesswork. The cake form allows the color to be seen better than a skein or ball of yarn.

If you are looking to knit with a few vividly hand-dyed gradient cakes, look no further. Check out the selection from Zen Yarn Garden. We also have kits with patterns that utilize our gradient yarns.