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If you’ve ever bought yarn that wasn’t already in some kind of workable shape, you might be wondering how to wind a ball of yarn so you can crochet or knit with it. Let’s learn how to wind a ball by hand and with some special tools that make it easier.
First, Some Definitions
There are a few different ways you might find yarn presented when you buy it in the store.
A skein is the oblong hunk of yarn that’s common in mass-produced yarns like Red Heart Super Saver, Caron Simply Soft, I Love This Yarn and so on. You can work from either the yarn on the outside or the inside of the skein just as it is. Some yarns are easier to find the center thread on than others.
A cake is sort of like a flattened ball in shape. It’s not quite round, but you can also work from the inside or the outside on this kind of yarn presentation. The center should be easier to find.
A hank is a big circle of yarn that’s tied together at intervals. It’s sold twisted on itself, usually with the paper yarn band wrapped around it to help hold it together.
Of course you can make any yarn into a ball or a cake before you knit with it, but it’s only really essential to do so with a hank. If you’ve ever tried to knit or crochet directly from a hank you know why: it will quickly tangle on itself, leaving you a huge mess.
The other terms you need to know for this tutorial are an umbrella swift and a yarn winder. These tools aren’t essential (I’ll show you how to wind a ball without them below) but they do make it easier and are worth the investment if you buy a lot of hanks.
A swift is a device that clamps to the table and opens up like an umbrella to hold you hank while you make a ball. And the ball winder is the device that turns it into a ball (more accurately a cake) by attaching the winder to the table and the yarn to the winder, then turning the crank.
The winder and hank shown above both came from Knit Picks many years ago. They don’t carry those exact ones any more. This one from Stanwood is similar to my winder (which is Japanese); the swift may actually be a Stanwood because this looks just like mine.
Make a Ball of Yarn with a Winder and Swift
First let’s talk about how to make a ball of yarn using a swift and ball winder.
Attach the swift to the table and open it up.
Unwind the hank so it’s a loop.
Cut all the ties that are holding it together.
Drape the yarn on the swift so that the arms are holding the hank. Adjust how much your swift is open so that the yarn will stay in place but not be super tight on the swift.
Attach your yarn winder to the table a couple of feet away from the swift.
Instructions may vary a bit on how to attach the yarn to the winder, but for mine it threads through the metal yarn guide and slides into a notch on the winder.
Turn the crank and the yarn cake will start building on that plastic bit.
Once all the yarn has made it from the swift to the ball winder, stop cranking. Remove the yarn end from the notch and slide the cake off the winder.
So pretty.
How to Wind a Ball of Yarn By Hand
If you don’t have a swift and ball winder, that’s totally fine, though it is really nice to have the right tools for a job. If you don’t buy a lot of hanks or your budget doesn’t allow those purchases, you can wind a ball of yarn by hand, too.
The main thing you need to do is place the hank somewhere so it won’t get tangled on itself as you work. Two chairs placed back to back are a classic. You can also just do it on your knees (or spread around one knee and foot), have a friend hold the skein on their outstretched hands, or use a single chair or a doorknob, but those won’t work as well.
Once you have your skein spread out, find an end and start rolling. I like to start by wrapping the yarn around my fingers a few times.
Then take your fingers out and being to wrap around that wad of yarn until you’re making a ball.
The only problem I have with winding a yarn ball by hand is that I tend to wrap more tightly than the yarn winder does, so try not to put a ton of tension on the yarn as you wrap.
When you’re done you’ll have a nice ball of yarn you can crochet or knit from the outside in.
If you want to make a center-pull ball but don’t have a winder and swift, check out my tutorial for making a center pull ball by hand.
