Countdown to Knitmas: Day 8!

Here is a handy tip that you may end up using all year long if nobody gets you that ball winder and swift that you have been asking for - winding a center pull ball. Remember that we will nearly always wind a ball for you in the shop if you have time(except for 2 or 3 tricky ones that benefit from hand winding), but sometimes we find ourselves at home in the wee hours wanting to break into that hank of yummy yarn.

This tip come from the Lion Brand Blog. Follow this link to see a really nice info graphic with step by step pictures.

In their version, they are using a smaller needle, perhaps a US10 or smaller as a tool known as a Nostepine. I realized that this use may be a good to revive my US50 because a larger tube in at the core of center pull ball is more beneficial for the yarn.

I also found a cute video about this type of ball winding in which she uses a wooden spoon as her winding tool or Nostepine.

Now, I will contradict myself and you will wonder why I shared this tip. These days I rarely pull from the center of the ball; I have almost entirely converted to being an outside puller. The yarn benefits from pulling the center end out first because its exit allows negative space and air to inhabit the center. Then, the remaining yarn can relax and not be as stretched out as it awaits its own time to be stitched. Well, that negative space and air also allow the inside to tangle more readily on itself which is more annoying than the benefit is good. I still value this tip because sometimes your yarn really needs to be rewound and tidied up as you work through a project and this method makes a pretty cute and tidy little ball.

Here is my practice -

Happy Holiday Needling,
Anne