A classic boucle yarn consists of: A thin ply, a thick ply, and a binder. The thin ply is usually spun Z (right) and has a firm twist. The thick ply is usually spun S (left) and has a soft twist. These two yarns are usually spun together using Z (right) twist and are then plied once more with the binder yarn using S (left) twist. Of course, just because that is the classical way of doing it doesn’t mean that we must limit ourselves to doing it that way.

The important points to remember are that one ply must be spun one direction while the other ply is spun the opposite direction and then these 2 yarns must be plied together using the twist direction in which the base yarn was spun. The binder ply must then be added using the opposite twist direction of the plying operation. If a second binder thread is to be added, then the twist direction must be opposite of that in which the first binder thread was added. Whenever further elements are to be added sufficient twist must be added during the previous operation to allow for the fact that plying in the opposite direction will remove twist. Adding two binder threads in two separate operations forms a nice, discrete little diamond pattern and can add another element of color to your yarn.

While the classic boucle yarn wraps the thicker, softer yarn around the base core, you can easily form larger “curls” or “nubs” in the yarn by pushing the wrapped yarn towards the orifice at regular intervals. The more of the “curly” wrapped yarn you push forward, the bigger the nubs.
Watch point: Keep the nubs small enough to fit through your orifice and around the flyer hooks.

Bump yarns, often called “thick and thin” yarns, have areas of larger slubs spaced between thin areas of yarn. These are formed by pushing the soft yarn up around the core yarn a few times at each place where you want a thick spot. The soft yarn can be wrapped around the same spot on the core yarn a couple times to add to the size of the slub. To add other colors to the slub, keep a supply of small bits of dyed fleece handy and spin some right into each slub. Space the slubs regularly wrapping the core yarn as for a classic boucle for the thin sections.

Another interesting variation is to use two softer spun yarns to wrap the core yarn. Simply hold the two soft yarns together while wrapping. Wrapping may either be by the classic method or neps or bumps can be added by pushing the soft yarn up around the core yarn.

There are many things that can be done to create interesting yarns once you start playing with combining plies of different grists, twist directions, and twist angle. Texture abounds in the boucle yarns but don’t forget that they also give many wonderful opportunities to add color