How to Make a Yarn Barrel

A yarn barrel can keep your yarn tangle-free.

If your cat loves to grab your yarn while you are knitting or crocheting, or if you're just tired of your yarn getting tangled, there is a solution. A yarn barrel can hold a skein or ball of yarn and feed it to you tangle-free, while protecting it from your cat or other frisky pet. It can be decorated to match your decor and personality, or you can knit or crochet a cover for it, if you like.

Things You'll Need

• Oatmeal box (a large cylinder with a lid)
• Scissors
• Paperweight or rock that will fit inside the oatmeal box
• Decorative items (optional)

Instructions

1. Tear the paper off of the oatmeal box. This will leave you with a blank, cardboard cylinder.

2. Take the lid off of the cylinder box and cut a hole the size of a nickel in the center of the lid.

3. Place the paperweight or rock inside the oatmeal box. This will make the box more stable while you are pulling yarn from it.

4. Place a skein or ball of yarn into the oatmeal box.

5. Thread the end of the yarn through the hole in the lid as you snap the lid back onto the box. You can now use the yarn the way you normally would.

6. Decorate the yarn barrel, if you like.

Tips & Warnings

• Use two yarn barrels when knitting or crocheting with two different skeins of yarn.

References

• "Things to Make and Do"; The University Society, Inc; 1970

Resources

• Quick Tips with Eunny Jang: How To Untangle Yarns in Intarsia Knitting