Knitting!

[Katy]

Note to self: Always use yarn ball machine at yarn store. Avoid tangling expensive yarn.

[jannilee]

Ouch!! If you have a willing friend you can wind a ball without a ball winder(like in the olden days!) The friend holds the skein with their hands outstretched, keeping it taut. You wind the yarn into a ball, always winding over your fingerso you don't pull the yarn too tight and take all the bounce out of it. Several good videos around. Here is a link http://knitting.about.com/od/learnto...nk_winding.htm This person distinguishes between a skein and a hank. In Canadian, a skein IS a hank. Other choice is to buy yarn that comes already wound into a ball instead of a skein. How was the class?

[Katy]

Haven't signed up for the class (yet!). Just gathered some supplies this weekend. It took me a few hours to untangle it all. I kidnapped Eliam and he held the yarn while I wound the other night. I think I have the knit stitch pretty much down (other than my terrible tension).

[MaggieScratch]

I bought a nostepinne off Etsy last week. Haven't received it yet, but am looking forward to it. It will be easier to store than a mechanical winder.

http://blog.designedlykristi.com/?p=335

[dorayme]

I am a moderator for a Nostepinde group on Ravelry called Nosty luv. Great info here on how to use a Nosty ball winder, how to make a home made swift and other goodies
Congratulations on your new yarn purchases.

[Fat Crip]

Katy,

Yet another use for a little Lilliput person?

Eric

[Katy]

I bought a nostepinne off Etsy last week. Haven't received it yet, but am looking forward to it. It will be easier to store than a mechanical winder.

http://blog.designedlykristi.com/?p=335

Oh so cool!!! I bet that is going to be handy and portable!

[MaggieScratch]

My nostepinne arrived last night and I am so much in love with it. I sat winding yarn all night. :-) It was a great purchase. It's just a beautiful piece, absolutely satin-smooth. (I got it from this seller.)

P.S. Off to join the Nostyluv group...

[Katy]

Oh my gosh! They're so pretty!!!

[yeti]

Neat! I've been knitting for ~7 years now (I know, I know, it's not THAT long) and I had never heard of a nostepinne. I've been balling by hand all this time (I don't have a ball winder) and have been plagued by the seemingly inevitable tangling that occurs at the end of using a center-pull ball. I'm going to have to try out a Nosty and see if that helps!

Experienced Nosty users, do you guys prefer the cone-shaped (narrower toward the top) or the cylinder-shaped (straight up and down on the working part) Nostys?

Who would have thought that I would discover a knitting technology on the TB forums, of all places You guys are awesome! I just joined the Nostyluv group on Ravelry.

And Katy -- what kind of yarn did you get? Fiber? Color? Gauge? Do share! I'm waiting to experience vicarious smooshiness...

[Katy]

I bought:

1. A baby alpaca worsted from Plymouth Yarn Company (it's so soft!!!) I'm really sad that this is the one I tangled but I guess I have learned to never do it again. It's a pretty white shade.

2. I bought two more (I think I read this in the book, they're called hanks?). Of the same brand/weight in a pretty dark grey color. I plan to make Eliam a cool scarf I saw in one of my books once I'm up to speed enough to attempt it.

3. Malbringo Merino Worsted in some beautiful teal color.

[dorayme]

I prefer a slight taper to my nosty, nothing very drastic, and I prefer shorter ones, 7" range. Imho they are easier to handle when winding. I also prefer a center diameter of .75" ish for the fat part where I wind, and a little fatter for ergonomics where I hold on. My size preferences may have to do with the fact that I'm kind of small/petite and holding something wide/long and heavier and unwieldy in my hand while I'm trying to wind yarn isn't fun.
@Katy, your yarn choices sound lovely. I'm allergic to alpaca, but man is it soft and it feels warmer than wool.

[Moose]

Hi yeti,
My nosty is 9.5 inches long about 1.25 inches across at the handle end and tapers to about .5 at the "working" end. I prefer the tapered ends. They seem to make a smaller center to pull from and for me they tangle less. I've also, in a pinch, used a pencil or my thumb. It works but neither are nearly as pretty.
I'm a spinner and have a bit of hand spun around the house.
Happy travels,
Moose

[MaggieScratch]

I've only had a nostepinne for two days so too early to say what I prefer!

I can see myself getting one of the little ones for ends and bits and bobs. I tend to ball them up, throw 'em in a baggie, and use them for swatching or teaching.

[gmanedit]

Hi, Katy.

You can wind a skein into a ball without any equipment. For example, sit cross-legged and drape the skein so it goes around both knees. Or drape it over the back of a chair.

Someone at the yarn store can show you how to wind a center-pull ball with just your hands. (Ask about how to check for grain, so you know which end goes inside.)

Knitting doesn't demand a lot of equipment: needles and a small bag for ring markers and small safety pins (for row markers), a crewel-type needle for working in ends and grafting, a tape measure, a needle gauge, thread snips, paper and pencil for sketching and taking notes.

And a nice bag to carry the project in (which could be a Swift or a stuff sack in a backpack).