I got excited when Monaco Thread announced about their new 5-ply mercerized cotton thread. I love their #8 mercerized thread, which I think is equivalent to 3-ply. But sometimes, it’s nice to have a thicker yarn option so when I saw some craft stores selling the 5-ply, and also in shopee, I checkout right away. (You can find the unboxing video here >>.)
Once I received them, I tried using it the soonest. So here’s a video of my reaction and impressions of the new 5-ply Monaco Mercerized cotton thread.
Here’s a quick summary of the main differences basing on my first use of it:
- The very obvious difference is its thickness.
- The yardage or length of the 5-ply Monaco mercerized thread is only 105 meters, while the #8 is 175meters but I guess that they have the same weight in grams. Depending on your project, you might use less or more balls compared to what you are used to the #8.
- The recommended hook sizes. Based on my own preference, the smallest hook size I will use for the 5-ply is 3mm. With my current doily project, I’m using the 3.25mm hook size. I think I can go up to 4.5mm with the 5-ply Monaco Mercerized cotton thread depending on how loose I want a project to be.
- The 5-ply is softer than the #8 Monaco mercerized cotton thread, which can be a plus or not. It’s good because it can be more suitable for wearables especially for babies. But if you wanted it to use for doilies or other accessories which require a stiffer yarn to enhance its form, the 5-ply may be too soft for it but there’s always stiffener products.
L-R: 5ply, 4-ply undyed monaco cotton, #8 
L-R: 5ply, 4-ply undyed monaco cotton, #8
In conclusion, I love that Monaco releases a new yarn product line. I hope they will add more though I’ll be fine without new yarn products because savings. =) I hope they put out a bigger ball of it because