From Hank to Cake - NO TANGLES! 

Don't remove the yarn ties before it's on the swift! AND, you need to hold the loop stretched in your hands and give it a couple snaps first. That will cause all the strands to align. You need to do those two steps before placing it on the swift.

THANK YOU!!! Breaking down the anatomy of a hank helped tremendously. I don’t have a swift, so I used my legs to unwind some sock yarn. It went without a hitch and only took a few minutes! Last time I tried it, it took me over an hour because I didn’t know WHAT I was doing and ended up with a tangled mess😂 BIG HELP, new subscriber! ❤

I think seeing the ball winder would have been helpful to show how you got that initial cake you showed. Would be nice to see a finished product and how it got there fully...

I literally had no idea this is what I needed to do. I have ended up in a huge spaghetti mess because I was knitting and trying to unwind from the original roll. What a huge mess I'm in.

What I loved the most was your “puddy cat” 🐱💗🙌🏻trying to help out. I had my black cat Chloe who loved to be up on my sewing cabinet when I was trying to sew! Thank you for sharing.

An excellent tutorial, especially as I had the biggest tangle yesterday that took me over an hour to sort. Thank you very much!

Thank you, and I loved the kitties!

A couple months ago I subscribed and on occasion watch your videos when I get the notifications. I admit, I get so many I’ve signed up for I don’t watch them all. This morning I was sitting here knitting and this popped up in my email and I thought, only 4 minutes, I’ll watch. Perfect timing! I just bought my Amish tabletop Swift. I learned so much from this video, thank you, including your Campside Cardi knit along! I had that in my que! I’m in the middle of a top for my granddaughter but definitely plan to knit along with you. Thanks so much.

I love the cats.❤

This was super helpful, thank you so much!

Thank you so much for the detailed instructions on how to unwind correctly. I've recently been watching more of your videos and find them very helpful.

This seems like such a simple process, but that is contingent on getting the right start. This was very helpful for me. Another tip I would add, is as always, do this in a place where you have good light. Especially when working with a dark yarn.

Oh my goodness your video is a life saver the first hank I tried to wind turned into tangled mess and I was so sad. But after watching your video, I was able to wind my hank into a perfect ball!

I just did this the other day! Love love love your helpers/ inspectors! P3 is just too much cuteness!

🙏 Thank you. I wished I had watched this on Mother’s Day. I would have been much happier.

Thank you for your good tips, they helped a lot. Please stay safe and healthy. Sending love from Germany - Karin

This explanation is just what I needed, so thank you very much!

This is very helpful, I’m having issue on how I tangling my yarn as I haven’t used the twisted yarn before. Thank you ❤!

Thank you for this tutorial, it is very straightforward and easy to follow . ❤

Oh my! Those adorable cats distracted me😀I had rewind to not miss your advice ! My cat would have attacked that moving yarn so fast !

Thank you so much for the detailed video. I've been knitting since I was 8 and I never knew all the things to do to prevent a giant yarn barf!!

Very helpful video! I am getting ready to begin a project that uses yarn that comes in hanks. Your tips are a godsend!

Thank you! I think I spent 10 hours last weekend untangling yarn thanks to getting this wrong! 😉

Thank you for this video.

Thanks for sharing ❤love the kitty cats 🐈 🐈 😊

As always Jana thank you for a helpful video. Love the sweater you chose for the KAL but unfortunately I’m not at that level yet. I will enjoy watching your progress. Be safe. 🌷

NEw subscriber here. Bought my first ...Hank. All I can say is my husband worked 7 hours untangling the the mess I made. Now I'm ordering a ball winder and a swift.

Thank you. I was so stressed from messing one up. 😊

This was so helpful ! 😁

Thank you! I’ve wondered why some skeins wind up easily & others tangle, figured there was ‘operator error’ involved but never knew for sure how to get it going correctly. Next time I’ll know how to set it up correctly.

Thank you thank you for explaining this in great detail, so great!

Wow thanks for the video. I was going to pass it so I didn’t think it was one I would need. But I got a lot out of it so thank you. And your cats are hysterical. Happy knitting!

Just finished winding 7 skeins in to hanks..ready yo start knitting.

That Really helped. One point of confusion for me is when the hank has 4 tie offs and sometimes a huge flaw with double ends this was about a week ago it really was a big mess trying to figure out how to straighten out the problem.

Thanks for this! Nice cat. 😊

Thank you some great tips!

Sure wish I had watched this before I just took a hank to ball with some difficulty 🤪

This video was extremely helpful and informative. 20:51

Thank you👌🏽God Bless

Thanks. I’ve absolutely had instances when I thought I had the exterior and had the interior end, that’s not fun. Great idea to unwind a few rounds as it’s not much and makes getting a successful cake in the long run.

I really should have watched this first. I've now got such a tangle of yarn and I'm so angry that I'm about ready to just throw it out.

Thanks 🙏🏾

Before I watched this I thought something was wrong with me. I hope your explanation has stopped my tangled yarn. Once that happens it is almost as if it would be better to just wind the skeins into a ball. I have a Hornshaw yarn swift which I love, but it doesn't prevent the tangles when I don't set the skein up properly.

You are a “lifesaver” 😇 I’ve watched several videos on this topic and you really helped me understand how to master that gigantic loop of yarn and get it on the swift. I thought I heard something about a “clinic” or becoming a patron? I could use a tip or two. (My sweaters don’t come out quite right 🥹) Please keep up the good videos so we all can learn more. 😂Happily knitting, Patty 🧑🏻‍🦳 P.s. Peanut🐈‍⬛ looks like he/she really wanted to help you? My kitties love to attack anything that moves ie. banned from the knitting/sewing room.

Thankyou 🌹

i don’t know why i’m watching this when i already have a big tangle of yarn in my lap

I like your help

Really helpful video - thanks. I’ve just bought a yarn winder and am having problems with losing the end needed for a centre pull. I think there must be a trick to making sure the end doesn’t get sucked into the cake! Its a big Stanwood yarn winder and the slot seems too wide to keep the yarn trapped.

Thank you for clarity. I wondered why WHY do I go from smooth.balling to tangle after tangle and I believed I did the same " movements". Haaa, it is the twisting (inside out on one side) and choosong the inside not out side end. Using hanks for the first time and no special tools. Chair back and by hand. Thank you

I should of watched this video two nights ago because now I am in a tangled mess ugh

E your ginger's ❤❤❤🎉

This is definitely the best video of this ever. Thank You so much. I am going to try everything you say. I am afraid mine is still going to stick. It seems like my yarn is felting a little and the hairs of the merino fibre are sticking together a tiny amount, making it not a smooth turn on the winder. (I am dyeing the yarn by the way haha). Even if I undo the yarn and skein it back up and its smooth, it does not ball up properly. I wouldn't dare stop my winder, it will never go back into a ball again. Definitely defeat haha. I wonder how the dyers do it, after it is dyed and dried. The fibres stick together.I have been frustrated for years. Mine is always kinda stuck to together. It is not a smooth turn on the winder. Does the dyer ball it up and then re-skein it, so the fibres aren't all stuck together so that the customer can put it on the skein with smooth turns? Does it need a specific tension and height from winder to baller? I am thinking my ball winder is just dysfunctional, but believe more in my own human error. Your cat is adorable, so glad he came to see if you needed help.

Ive gotten lazy and have been getting my yarn wound at the LYS. Hubby made me a floor swift because I have no “edges” to hook up a regular swift.

Which umbrella swift and ball winder do you dream of using?

Very helpful! I have an Amish Swift and have encountered problems winding my yarn. I really liked that you showed how to try each strand to see which one is the correct one. What do you do when the hank has 4+ ties around it? Thanks for a great video!

Nice video but you really didn’t show how to make the cake of yarn.