One-minute tutorial: How to make an upcycled yarn holder

When I joined Pinterest a couple of years ago, one of my first pins was this ArtBin Yarn Drum yarn holder. Not because I had any intention of buying it, but because I had a freebie bag that I knew would be perfect to make one from.

Ok, sure, the original ArtBin version has some extras that mine doesn’t, but I can live without the shoulder strap and little pouch (that knitting needles couldn’t fit into anyway), especially if it saves me $16.74 (price as seen here)!! But I also found a very bare-bones version like mine for €10… eek! No way I’d pay that! Do you have a zip-top freebie bag made of a plastic fabric, too? Well, then grab your scissors and in less than a minute you’ll have your spanking new yarn holder to keep your skeins from falling all over the place and unravelling while you work!

1. Unzip the bag and pinch the lid near the center, where you’d like your yarn hole.

2. Make a tiny cut where the fabric is pinched together.

3. Let go of the lid so that it’s flat again and wide the slit you’ve made to open up a hole.

4. Even out your hole, making it a nice circle.

5. Put your skeins of yarn into the bag and slip the end of one strand through the hole from the inside.

6. Zip up the bag, gently pull the strand further out…

7. … and get knitting or crocheting! Wasn’t that easy? And quick? And cheap? As you can see, I finally got around to making this yarn holder a few months back when I was knitting my pom pom yarn scarves and it’s been great for keeping my skeins in order, safe from my usual household yarn menaces… the cat and the little boy!

Question of the day: Do you like getting freebies?

Unless it’s something that I think I’ll really use, I generally try not to accept freebies to avoid having extra junk around the house that eventually will need to be disposed of. The bag I used here was part of a gift pack that I received a few years ago, so I couldn’t exactly say no to it. I held onto it because I thought I could use it as a shower bag  when not home or something, and then inspiration struck to make this yarn holder. One freebie I do actually like getting are cheap advertising magnets because we can make them into other fun magnets with my kids.