New ball of yarn

lynn893 · 09-07-2008, 09:56 AM

What is the absolutely best way to find the working end inside the ball of yarn? I usually just dig in and pull a small hunk. Is this the norm?

RANT:
Last night I decided to start working on one of the sleeves for my 'Grapevine' cardigan.
So, I started a new ball, and when I stuck my fingers into the little hole at the top and grabbed a small hank and pulled - a huge tangled mess came out!

It took me over an hour to detangle it, and I ended up re-rolling the ball into 4 smaller balls due to having to cut it cause it was tangled so badly! The whole time I was thinking 'I should take a pic and send it to Bernat to complain', but my batteries are dead and I can't remember where I put my charger. :(

Mirl56 · 09-07-2008, 03:01 PM

I feel your pain - but that's pretty much what I do too.

It is rare, however, that I get a untangleable mess like that. 9 out of 10 times I can find the end and start knitting w/out getting an unmanageable knotted up mess.

susi · 09-07-2008, 03:05 PM

Originally Posted by Mirl56

I feel your pain - but that's pretty much what I do too.

It is rare, however, that I get a untangleable mess like that. 9 out of 10 times I can find the end and start knitting w/out getting an unmanageable knotted up mess.

goodness, i never ever do that. i work for the outside of the skein to the middle. i rarley get tanged etc doing it this way as i put each skein into a small sandwhich sized plastic bag, tie it up so the yran can run freeely out and i can knit away.
i know its frustrating as my cats like to undo my bags and play wit hthe yarn, so i get the tangled mess often as well.

ktek5387 · 09-07-2008, 03:07 PM

She is right. Usually you can pull out a clump, unwind that, and go for it. Too bad about the tangled web though. I've not had that problem with Bernat before. You could always go the website and email to customer services or something.
K. Ojeda
TX

ktek5387 · 09-07-2008, 03:11 PM

working from the outside can be a bit of a bother because the yarn will roll, sometimes away from you, and then it has to be picked up & repositioned. I never want to mess with readjusting the placement of the ball. Just pulling out plenty from the center is easier for me. And whatever you have on the floor doesn't tangle, it just lays there. And then it is knitted up quickly, time to pull out more.
Hope this helps and is not rambling!
K. Ojeda

lynn893 · 09-07-2008, 05:02 PM

Originally Posted by Mirl56

I feel your pain - but that's pretty much what I do too.

It is rare, however, that I get a untangleable mess like that. 9 out of 10 times I can find the end and start knitting w/out getting an unmanageable knotted up mess.

I've never had it before either - it was litterally twisted into a hank so tight that I couldn't unknot it - I ended up cutting the yarn at each end and then untwisting it and unknotting it.

MerigoldinWA · 09-07-2008, 07:17 PM

There are those two ends, the one you could unwind from the outside if you were so inclined and the one you dive for in the middle. Sometimes the one that will unwind on the outside is tucked into the center as well, and if you don't first find it and make sure it is securely on the outside before you dive for the center thread you get the two ends tangled around each other and create a "knot". I always try to find the outside end first and make sure it is out of the way. If I see which end it was tucked into I dive into the opposite end of the skein from where it was, that seems to help.

luvmykid28 · 09-14-2008, 03:46 AM

I was having problems with my yarn tangling so I just decide to always wind each skein into a ball. That way I can get the tangles out before I start knitting and I don't get frustrated.

brittyknits · 09-14-2008, 05:12 AM

AND WHY IS IT THAT THE YARN COMPANIES CAN'T COME UP WITH A DESIGN WHERE YOU CAN ALWAYS FIND THE CENTER PULL???? Grrrr. . .it really is amazing. I mean, does no one who works for any yarn manufacturer, knit?! I, too, most often start from the outside with pre-wound skeins, but it's so much easier to pull from the inside whenever possible. When I have to wind a hank myself, I leave a long tail so that I'm winding of course from the inside to the outer layer, but I can pull from that tail I left behind. So why they can't come up with a machine which does it. . .

Shandeh · 09-15-2008, 07:59 AM

I always knit from the inside of a skein, because the yarn sits there quietly while I knit, instead of rolling all over the place.

But, you're right....it can be a pain to find the center strand.

Sometimes, if I'm having trouble getting a small section to come out of a skein, I'll try the other side instead.

If I get a tangled mess, it's easier to get it untangled if I pull the knot loose from the end that came from the ball. If you try to untangle it from the actual END of the yarn, it just gets tighter. So, I pull out the tangles and make a little pile beside the skein. Then, the knots eventually come out.