Standwood Ball Winder

 

 

I bought my 1st and only yarn ball winder at a LYS while on the Hill Country Yarn crawl back in 2016. A simple plastic winder that's been a workhorse for me until last week. 😞 Bless it's heart, it's so tired. The plastic gears just can't go any longer. 

		I ordered the 10 oz Stanwood Needlecraft Large Metal Winder from Amazon. Shown above. WOW! It worked so well. Smooth and quiet by comparison. I felt the cost was reasonable as well. Appx $80 US.
I worked up half a cone of Peaches'n Creme worsted cotton and it is massive and beautiful!

 

I prefer to wind my yarn on TP rolls so I can easily slip them over a paper towel holder. It was easy with the little plastic winder. Just slide the TP roll over the shaft and wind away. This new winder presented a challenge simply due to the larger ball capacity.  I cut 2 TP rolls up the center and taped them together. Then overlapped the edge so it fit the top of the shaft. I pulled the ball off the winder while holding the TP roll in place. The ball slid right on to the TP roll! I can use it on my paper towel holder and let it unwind with no issues!  🎉

I prefer winding my yarn in this particular way for two main reasons. Firstly, I dislike encountering unexpected knots and tangles in my yarn. Secondly, even with a center-pull ball, I still face surprises; the tangles towards the end of the ball are especially frustrating. A little prep before starting to stitch seems to be beneficial in the long term.

I avoid winding my yarn until it's time to use it because winding it onto a TP roll prevents the yarn from resting, and it may stretch if left on the roll for too long.

Now, I'm off to spend the weekend stitching. It's simply too hot in Texas for anything else! Enjoy your day!