I do not know what you mean by rewinding the yarn. I have knitted for a long long time with the wool coming from the centre of the ball. I just fish the end of the wool from the the centre of the ball and that's it. I never rewind anything. I may have a little ball of wool coming out of the centre but that's no problem.

Suzanne

Yes, but when you rip out a huge amount of yarn, how do you EASILY rewind it so that the yarn pulls from inside the hand made ball of yarn? I do buy yarn that pulls from the center and then pull it out as I need it, but I am talking of ripping a HUGE amount out--1 or 2 pounds.

If I rewind the skein I often put the ball in an oatmeal carton with a hole in the top. My friend uses a plastic pitcher and has the yarn coming out the pour spout. I may try that cause the handle is handy. I don't have the patience to rewind into a pull skein.

I have a mechanical ball winder (clamps onto a table) that I usually use with my yarn swift - (an aparatus that stretches out to hold a hank of yarn). The yarn winder makes a flat on the bottom and top "ball" of yarn. They work well together to get the hank of yarn formed into a perfect ball, or for projects where you rip out. You can also pull the yarn from the center or the outside, and the "ball" of yarn sits flat and doesn't roll all over the place once wound on the yarn winder.

As for pulling your yarn out of the center of a ball, what you need to be aware of before pulling yarn from the center or the outside of ANY ball of yarn is that there is a nap on most yarn. You can figure out which way the yarn nap is going by drawing the yarn through your fingers. Take a lose end and draw it through, then pull it through the other way - the middle of the yarn to the cut end. You may note that one way it will drag a little more than the other way. You want to use the yarn so that there is the least amount of drag/resistance. The nap will determine which way you use the yarn - from the inside out, or the outside in.

Grainlady

Thank you Grainlady, I had no idea yarn had a nap I will put that to use from now on.

I wind my yarn with a pill bottle, just drop the end you want to start with inside the pill bottle, put the lid on and start winding. I usually wind the yarn at a 45 degree angle (from bottom to top) of the bottle and turn it a smidge every 5 or 6 turns. I also use a pill bottle with a smaller neck on it (my meds come in those lol) which makes it easier to hold the top as I wind.

SheilaJoyce, have you ever heard of a nostepinne? It is basically a wooden stick which is used to hand-wind a ball of yarn with a center pull. Take a look here: http://www.mts.net/~tabachek/nn-np.htm . And the link I'm posting gives instructions on how to wind the ball. But who wants to pay $20 or more for a stick? I went to Home Depot and bought one simple tapered table leg and took the metal end off of it. I think it cost me $2.50. And it's longer than most nostepinne, so you could make an elongated ball (using more yarn). Just be sure to sand it until it is nice and smooth. It works for me.

Here is a link that might be useful: how to wind

When people hand-wind yarn, they tend to wrap yarn tightly and that will destroy the integrity of the size of the yarn used because it stretches it out. Then the gauge of the knitted item will be off because you are using a slightly smaller yarn from stretching it tightly into a ball. If you wind yarn by hand, make sure it's done slowly and with a relaxed hand.

It is much better to invest in ball winder if you are purchasing hanks of yarn that need winding into a ball, or find yourself needing to re-wind yarn alot.

Go to this web site (scroll down a ways) to see the Royal Ball Winder (blue and white plastic), which is what I use, as well as the swift used for holding hanks of yarn.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pacific Wool and Fiber

Actually, I learned from my mother that when your hand wind a ball of yarn, you wind the strands OVER 2 or 3 of your fingers. Then when you pull your fingers away, the yarn is relaxed and not stretched out.

there's a demonstration on the site: KnittingHelp.com. Click on basic tecniques, then ...more. Scroll down and she shows how to wind yarn with an inside pull. I can't imagine doing a large skien that way, but for a smaller one, I have done that. Think I'll look into a winder.

That is a great site, Foggy. I have some 3/4 inch dowel that I made into knitting needles for making eyelash scarves, so I can use one of them to make my huge balls of frogged yarn. Thanks for your help too, Donna.

I have a yarn winder. It will make pull from the center balls. There are times, though, when using it would mean too many smaller size balls. So, I just hand wind. Then I use a gallon sized zip lock bag. Put the ball in there. Close the zipper, leaving just enough room for the yarn to be fed out. Keeps the yarn from flopping all over the place and doesn't require rewinding.