to wind or not to wind?

[jenksie]

I finally broke down and bought a yarn winder (joanns 50% coupon was a great help) Once it came in the mail I then spent three days winding all of my scraps. But now I wonder, is it worth taking the time to wind ALL of my yarn for the up coming projects?

What do those of you with winders do? I noticed that some of the yarns are more compact when wound into cakes, but others are slightly bigger in storage.

Just curious what advice you might give.

[deneen]

I use the winder to wind my big cone yarn I buy off of eBay. I'm lazy, so I just put my scraps into a scrap bag wound into balls where they comingle and tangle with each other.

[crochet smartcat]

To me it depends on how easy it is to work with the skein. If it is a center pull skein that is easily pulled then I leave the skein as it is, however if the skein will not center pull or at least not easily pull, then I will rewind it into cakes. The skeins seem to stack almost as well as the cakes and so storage wise I don't think it makes that big of a difference whether I store them as cakes or skeins.

 

 

The way I mark my skeins after winding is, I take the wrapper and pull it apart, so it lies flat. I then fold it in 1/2 or less lengthwise and wrap it around the cake, sp that the color and dye-lot are visible. I then fold plastic wrap around that and secure it with tape. This way I have all of the information about the skein right there and I don't have to worry about trying to mark the cake in other ways, or find containers large enough to hold all of one color.

[threeolivemartini]

i wind off the cone.. usually what i buy stays in the pull skein unless i end up with like a half skein and i wi nd it to compact it ..

[MiCountess]

i wind off the cone.. usually what i buy stays in the pull skein unless i end up with like a half skein and i wi nd it to compact it ..

 

This is what I do too!

 

Michelle

[mc_crochets]

I work out of skiens if the skiens are workable...like most everyone else, otherwise I wind them... my scraps all get wound, they are easier to work with later, unless they are not enough to bother winding, then useally my daughter gets them to use as "necklaces and bracelets" and various other cheap amusements. I wind cones to cakes though, much easier to work with!!

[xaviera]

um, what's a cake? I tried to google it, but couldn't find an img or obvious description...

[jakesmom31]

Thanks for the info on cones. . .I hadn't used yarn from a cone before and just ordered silk city bounce from elanns. I usually wind my yarn into balls. . .I'm curious (and a little hungry) about "cakes" too!

[Me&P]

cake = the end result after using a yarn winder to wind yarn. They are little center-pull "balls" that are flat on top and bottom making them look like a cake. Basically.

 

I generally use the yarn straight from the skein. But I then wind all of the scraps for later use instead of leaving them in the floppy state they usually are after being 1/2 used - plus if it is a nearly full skein, it keeps me from using that one for another project thinking its full. There are some yarns where I wind the full skein - like Watercolors and Landscapes or yarn that came in hanks (yuck).

 

Some of your cakes are smaller and more dense vs. bigger and "fluffier" due to the tension you used when you wound the yarn. I generally hold an even tension on the yarn as I wind it so that it stays compact.

 

I also fold labels from the new skeins I wind and then roll them up and stick them in the middle of the cake.

[losingmymind2]

My cakes are like yours Lynlee. I put a fat rubber band around the middle (learned that at a fancy yarn shop when I bought my swift and they had to show me how to use it. When the cakes are stacked, I can get 6 full size ones or so into the plastic storage drawers I lined my closet with so I can hide my stash much more easily. What is left of a cake can be rewound into a smaller cake.

 

I put my 'working cakes' in to zip lock food storage bags to keep them neat and organized under my desk and in my tote I carry to work. No more 'escaped balls' bouncing across the room.

 

Kathy

 

BTW, any idea how many calories you can burn in an evening of vigorous winding? at least it's something...right?

[Me&P]

BTW, any idea how many calories you can burn in an evening of vigorous winding?

 

A lot. Especially if you break a sweat.

[whitedtu]

I have a winder but have never used it

[cajunwhacko]

I wind my partially used skeins, and any skeins that don't pull easily because of the yarn type - like some of the boucle. Generally I won't wind larger skeins because I hate to make more ends by putting it into multiple cakes, especially depending on what I have planned for it. Some of the smaller skeins, like microspun for example, I'll go ahead and wind while they're still full. I also wind my wool for dyeing so it's easier to manage when the time comes.

[kariholtz]

I, like everyone else wind off the cone. I also wind partial skiens to store in an underbed storage box for later use in making granny squares.

[xantha]

I wind everything, just about. I often have trouble finding the center of center-pull skeins of yarn I buy, so I just wind it off. I often just work from the cone however, rather than winding it off.

 

I also tend to buy a lot of hanks, and those always have to be wound.

 

I wish sometimes that I would wind things into cakes as I buy them!

[MaryPat]

I usually work directly from cones, but now I'm in a van pool and crochet while riding to work. Some cones are too large (like the 10 pounder I got from R&M Yarns) , so I've had to wind from them. Before breaking down and buying a cone winder, I decided to try my juicer. It has a part that holds the blade that I thought might hold a yarn cone spool. It did and so for now, I use that as a yarn winder. It goes so fast however, that I really have to focus on it. If I let my attention drift, the yarn winds around the shaft instead of the spool.

 

http://www.vitality4lifeshop.com.au/images/champion-juicer.jpg

 

You can't see it on the picture but there's a fast rotating shaft that sticks straight out. To clean the juice, you remove the input funnel and the output thingy. That leaves the shaft exposed and available as a yarn winder.

[Elvee]

I let my grand kids wind my yarn into what they call "hockey pucks" lol. They we put each cake into a zip lock baggie so it stays neat. We love our winder!

 

 

Lorry

[losingmymind2]

I find winding a good way to check on shall we say, um, lesser quality yarns that might have a lot of snags or bad spots in the skein. I'd rather find them now, and if necessary, cut and tie properly so I can deal with them as they come along in my work.

 

I do know a good winding session usually results in really needing my next visit to my chiropractor, and a lot of muscle cramp below my shoulder where I tore the muscles a couple years ago.

 

Kathy