The first time I saw a skein of yarn I wasn't sure exactly what to do with it. I was used to using balls of yarn and it was totally new to me. Needless to say, I ended up with a huge tangled mess that took me hours to untangle and if the yarn wasn't so expensive, I would have just thrown it away instead of untangling it for ages. But, if you know what to do with it, a skein is really easy to work with. There are two ways I do this depending on where I am: 1.) when I am at home, I use an umbrella swift and ball winder and/or 2.) when I'm not home, (and before I got the yarn swift and ball winder) I use my legs...that's it. For the umbrella swift and ball winder method- I have this umbrella swift and this ball winder . I got them as a Christmas gift off of my Amazon Wish List. At first I was hesitant to put them on there because they are expensive but I am so glad I did, I love using them! First you unwind your skein. Next look closely ...