Knitters, talk to me like I'm five.

[Deleted]

If I wanted to use a hank of yarn, do I have to get a swift and all that other shit or is there some kind of hand method by which this works?

Knitpicks has some new tonal yarn that's making my fingers itch. Help a bitch out.

[bluelikejazz]

Make one of your kids hold the yarn for you (a human swift) and then ball it by hand.

[Deleted]

May 11, 2012 15:36:25 GMT -5 bluelikejazz said:

Make one of your kids hold the yarn for you (a human swift) and then ball it by hand.

Maybe I should say like I'm two lol. I have no qualms about using slave labor but what exactly do I do with the slave labor?

[bluelikejazz]

May 11, 2012 15:47:34 GMT -5 @habbsies said:

May 11, 2012 15:36:25 GMT -5 bluelikejazz said:

Make one of your kids hold the yarn for you (a human swift) and then ball it by hand.

Maybe I should say like I'm two lol. I have no qualms about using slave labor but what exactly do I do with the slave labor?

When you open up the hank, it will be in a big loop like this:
encrypted-tbn3.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSEfdqHMqUrFAVVxe0GO0Cku1eq_J00mudenFhcaugVeY4ADVnV3Q


Have your kid hold their hands on the inside of the yarn loop (so it's pretty tight):
encrypted-tbn1.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRELaqRAL_VJ7eCWiV7KMhagLWAloTw4-uy8tcRD1AmT09pshJA


Once you find the end of the hank, you can ball by hand:
encrypted-tbn1.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQdFnTsQovxlWXNKsBLkgDCfmraGtoOaBHFZj_ndGOTW-VBCmgA

[bluelikejazz]

Why aren't my pictures working?!?!

[Deleted]

Is there a better way to ball that works better than others?

Thank you so much for all this, btw. I have issues with information overload when it comes to anything not related to sewing.

[overture]

Wind the yarn in a figure 8 around your thumb and index finger about 20 times. Holding it by the center, take your thumb and index finger out and fold the "8" in half. Wind the rest of the yarn around the folded 8 to create a ball, turning the ball as you go to keep it even.

[meshaliuknits]

Which yarn?

Overture's method is what I did before I got my beloved ball winder. You can you one of your children as a swift (I recommend pete, pinky might move too much & tangle the yarn) and hold the hank in a circle on their hands. If you can't find a small child, you can use the back of a chair.

[Velvetshady]

What terrible thing happens if you are impatient (like me) and just start knitting without balling the yarn?

[bluelikejazz]

May 11, 2012 17:30:00 GMT -5 Velvetshady said:

What terrible thing happens if you are impatient (like me) and just start knitting without balling the yarn?

Speaking from personal experience, you get a terrible terrible knot that takes a million years to get out. Not recommended

[meshaliuknits]

May 11, 2012 17:34:41 GMT -5 bluelikejazz said:

May 11, 2012 17:30:00 GMT -5 Velvetshady said:

What terrible thing happens if you are impatient (like me) and just start knitting without balling the yarn?

Speaking from personal experience, you get a terrible terrible knot that takes a million years to get out. Not recommended

I've seen people do it with no trouble. They generally hold the yarn in a loop over their shoulder. But the above has always been my experience.

[bluelikejazz]

May 11, 2012 17:37:42 GMT -5 meshaliuknits said:

May 11, 2012 17:34:41 GMT -5 bluelikejazz said:

Speaking from personal experience, you get a terrible terrible knot that takes a million years to get out. Not recommended

I've seen people do it with no trouble. They generally hold the yarn in a loop over their shoulder. But the above has always been my experience.

Impressive! Seems like it would be awkward to knit from yarn on your shoulder though.

[meshaliuknits]

I think that's how they learned. It didn't work for me. My yarn was a hot mess.

[PinkSquirrel]

I got half way through winding my first hank before I gave up and bought a swift and ball winder. If you knit a lot they are so worth having.