Finding the inside beginning of a skein

[curlgirl64]

Hi all,
I haven't posted in a while,but when I read about the baggie(good idea!) I thought I'd suggest something that I had made and is helpful to me so why not others. I took an empty clean Old Fashioned Oats canister and made a yarn holder out of it. A 6oz. or larger skein works well. If you find the end that you start with and pull enough yarn to know you've got the right end,put skein in the canister standing up,make a hole in the lid in the center, I've even put a grommet there,pull the yarn through the hole and replace the lid. Your skein stays clean and tangle free! I've decorated mine with fabric and dangly crystal beads.

[Judi Gums]

Great idea. I have one in the pantry, I'll have to remember this when it is empty.

Don't you just love having so many others to bounce ideas off?

Judi G

[duckie43]

I usually pull out a gob of yarn from the center to find the end. I don't like to work from the outside end because I have long hair and end up with hair being wond up in the work resulting in a lot of frogging.

[pat1935]

I have been wondering the same thing, about finding the beginning end yarn piece from a new skein of yarn, sometimes the end piede does not show up. anyone know yet???

[curlgirl64]

I'm in the same boat. Long hair and frogging work.

[Dsynr]

The yarn companies USED TO have the end of the yarn tucked securely under the band near the bottom.
If you hold the band with the printing the right way, the end of the yarn SHOULD BE at the bottom; but this isn't always the case.
Some brands, it's mostly hit-ot-miss and there's always a ball of yarn vomit to untangle when you've knit or crocheted a few rows. What ever happened to quality?

[Dsynr]

Steps to find the center "pull" or "end" of the ball [Lion Brand Yarn---other brands are similar, but you may have to work from the opposite end of the skein]:

1. Pull out the end of the yarn which is visible from the outside of the ball, which has been tucked into the ball. This is important, as it may get caught on your inner end, if you do not remove it, and cause tangling later.

2. Go to the opposite end of the ball from which that outside end was tucked, and insert the thumb and index finger of each hand into either side of the skein, compressing the skein between your fingers until they meet.

3. Feel for the very center. Pull this out and the end should be with it.

4. Extra yarn will usually come out with it but is quickly used up. You can also wrap the excess yarn around the outside of the ball (to keep it neat) until you find the center "end" of the yarn.

5. Start working from this end.

[ooh-lalah]

I've done what dsynr wrote on a couple skeins of yarn now, and am excited to say that I found the inside end of the skein. It takes me awhile, with a lot of poking around, but it's kind of like being on a treasure hunt :-D