Cotton and polyester are the most commonly spun fibers in the world.
Cotton is grown throughout the world, harvested, ginned, and prepared
for yarn spinning. Polyester is extruded from polymers derived from
natural gas and oil. Synthetic fibers are generally extruded in
continuous strands of gel-state materials. These strands are drawn
(stretched), annealed (hardened), and cured to obtain properties
desirable for later processing.
Synthetic fibers come in three basic forms: staple, tow, and
filament. Staple is cut fibers, generally sold in lengths up to 120mm.
Tow is a continuous "rope" of fibers consisting of many filaments
loosely joined side-to-side. Filament is a continuous strand consisting
of anything from 1 filament to many. Synthetic fiber is most often measured in a weight per linear measurement basis, along with cut length. Denier and Dtex are the most common weight to length measures. Cut-length only applies to staple fiber.
Filament extrusion is sometimes referred to as "spinning" but most people equate spinning with spun yarn production.
The most commonly spun animal fiber is wool harvested from sheep. For hand knitting and hobby knitting, thick, wool and acrylic yarns are frequently used.
Other animal fibers used include alpaca, angora, mohair, llama, cashmere, and silk. More rarely, yarn may be spun from camel, yak, possum, musk ox, cat, dog, wolf, rabbit, or buffalo hair, and even turkey or ostrich
feathers. Natural fibers such as these have the advantage of being
slightly elastic and very breathable, while trapping a great deal of
air, making for a fairly warm fabric.
Other natural fibers that can be used for yarn include linen and cotton.
These tend to be much less elastic, and retain less warmth than the
animal-hair yarns, though they can be stronger in some cases. The
finished product will also look rather different from the woollen yarns.
Other plant fibers which can be spun include bamboo, hemp, corn, nettle, and soy fiber.
