I’m going to show you how to make a mini skein – no calculations, measuring or complicated maths. You’ll just need a swift and a set of reasonably accurate scales.
I’m taking part in the Posh Yarn Advent Swap 2019. This is a really fun swap that takes place on the Posh group on Ravelry. Each participant winds 24 x 10g of Posh 4ply/Sock yarn into balls or mini skeins, wraps them up (preferably in a festive fashion) and sends them off to the organiser. Each participant then receives a delicious parcel with 24 little packages of beautiful, hand dyed yarn which can be opened, one each day, just like an advent calendar.
I took part last year and I thoroughly enjoyed it, however, at the time, I didn’t know how to make a mini skein so hand winding 24 little balls of yarns was a real bore.
This year, I decided to get to grips with making mini skeins. As we all do, I had a quick look on you tube… it seemed so complicated to get a specific weight and yardage. In the end, I came up with this simple method for making a mini skein – no calculations involved!
How To Make A Mini Skein
You’ll need:
- A swift. Any kind of swift will work – I have a simple Sunflower Swift (no longer made). An umbrella swift is also good.
- A set of accurate scales (I’m using my digital kitchen scales).
- Scissors.
Before you start, you’ll need to make sure that your hank of yarn has been wound into a cake or ball. If you’ve wound it into a ball, you’ll also need a bowl to put it in, so that it doesn’t roll off the table and bounce round the room!
Instructions
- Place your cake (or ball AND bowl) on your scales.
- Tare the scales, i.e. set to zero. On mine, I have to hold the “on” button down for a couple of seconds.
- Set your swift to the desired size – this will effect the length of your mini skein. I’ve set mine with a radius of about 10″/26cm.
- Secure the end of the yarn to the swift.
5. Start winding the yarn onto the swift, keeping an eye on the scales.
6. When the scales are minus the desired weight (e.g. 10g), stop, ending at the point where you secured the end of the yarn.
7. Cut the yarn, wrap the two ends around each other and then wrap one end around all the strands and fasten off.
8. Carefully remove the yarn from the swift, making sure the strands are kept together, using your index fingers.
9. Extend your arms and start to twist each end in opposite directions, being careful that the yarn doesn’t slip off your fingers!
10. Twist until it’s quite tight. I needed to twist 11 times. If it’s too loose the skein ends up looking messy and if you over-twist, you could accidentally damage the yarn by overstretching it. You might need a few goes to get this just right.
11. Draw your hands towards each other. The yarn should naturally start twisting together.
12. Transfer the loop off yarn off one finger to join the other.
13. Gently pull and massage the twist to make the “twizzle” uniform.
14. You might need to give each end a couple of extra twists if they are not as tight as the rest of the mini skein.
15. Now you’re going to tuck one end into the other.
15. That’s it! You should now have a cute little mini skein!
Need to SEE this being done?
I also have a You Tube video “How To Make A Mini Skein” :
Disclosure : I sometimes use affiliate links for my favourite yarns and other accessories!