Tangly yarn

I am having a run of bad luck with tangled yarn. Just wondering if this is something others are finding - lately have been knitting with cheaper yarns, currently using Bernat Baby Coordinates. The insides of the balls are a tangled mess.

Before that was Cottonease by Lionbrand. Anybody have any clues about this problem? I always pull from the inside and keep the wrapper on as long as possible.

Is this less of a problem with more expensive yarn? Neither of the above are wool, and my last wool project was fine. Also I don’t remember the Vanna’s choice I used 2 projects ago being too tangly either.

Nope, expensive yarn does it too. If it happens when you start, make sure you’re pulling gently, don’t yank or it makes it worse. If a whole bunch comes out at once, wind it into a figure 8 skein and stuff it back in the middle. If this is near the end, wind the rest of it into a centerpull ball, instructions on the Tips page.

If you look at the average skein of yarn, the outer end of the yarn is tucked into one of the ends of the skein. Make sure you pull this out so it doesn’t catch the innards. The other end for center pull is at the other end of the skein than where the one was tucked in. Can’t guarantee no knottage, but it can help.

I call that inside mess “yarn barf”. :lol: Unless it comes out nicely I untangle it and wind them myself into a center pull ball.

I occasionally get tangled up mangled up balls of yarn regardless of manufacturer. But I learned quickly that often I was pulling from the wrong end of the skein.

I just saw this online in a tutorial, and so far it’s held true through several balls/skeins of yarn. If one pulls from the wrong end, the yarn will tangle. To always get the right end to pull: hold the yarn with the label facing you as if to read it (not upside down).

If your skein is labelled horizontally like Red Heart, the right end will always pull from the left.

If your skein is labelled vertically like Berella, the right end pulls from the top.

Always remove the outside tucked in yarn end from the other end of the skein first.

Good luck and Happy Knitting!

It’s not just you, it’s the yarn. I have the same problem, especially when I get down to the last of the skein. It always tangles and I have to stop to straighten it out. I think it has something to do with how they wind it at the factory. I don’t remember having a problem with it a few years ago, so they must have changed something in the manufacturing process recently. I’m not familiar with Bernat Baby Coordinates. The Bernat I’ve knit with has been the baby sport yarn. The Bernats I’ve used don’t have a center pull. They always unwound from the outside. Another one that only unwinds from the outside is Lion Pound of Love. The best thing to do in this case is to wind your own center pull ball. There are videos on Youtube that show you how to do this with a skein winder or by hand. I just wind a plain old ball.

I also like to pull from the center. I’ve learned to find and tuck in the outside end of the yarn and then put two fingers into the ball of yarn from each end in order to locate the inner end. I don’t always find it exactly, but I usually come quite close.