by astrid
(england)
Hi, I have just checked a ball of wool bought in Australia labelled as 8ply and the tension on 4mm needles in stocking stitch is 22 stitches and 30 rows on 4mm needles which is exactly the same as double knitting wool sold in the UK as the squares are knitted in garter stitch (every row knit) that makes a much firmer fabric anyway so that I think is where the confusion comes in. American and Canadian yarns do not come in the same thicknesses as Uk and Australian yarns. To achieve the same tension a change in needle size would be neccesary. A standard tension in the US on yarns is 20 stitches to 4 inches on 4.5mm needles in yarn such as cascade 220 this would be slightly thicker yarn that uk double knit being nearer to an aran but not quite. If using this thickness the square would either need slightly less stitches or a size smaller needles. If a sports weight yarn (normally knitted at 24 stitches to 4 inches) is used in US then either slightly larger needles or more stitches would be needed. For warmth I would suggest more stitches to reach the right size on sports weight as it would produce a flimsy fabric if knitted on 6mm needles when the standard size for this is 3.5mm.
Hope this helps
Regards Astrid