Storing Leftover Yarn

Dear users, dear authors,
Where/how do you store your leftover yarn?

A big, colorful mess :-) ... but “sorted by type.” So the leftover yarn is with the cotton yarns, and the sock yarn is in the box with the sock yarn. However, I’m still missing that crucial tip on how to match the leftover yarn to its label, which is now too big. Maybe someone has a practical idea.

Best regards, Ina

Take an empty jam jar or canning jar, put the leftover yarn inside, and toss the label in there too—or stick the label on as a tag. How about that?

That’s a great idea, Josefa. However, I have a lot of small leftover yarn, and the jars take up quite a bit of space. I’ll just give it a try. 

I can imagine that could look very decorative, too. If you place a few jars in between now and then and put some colorful string lights in them, it’ll definitely look pretty.
Or something like a spice-rack style setup, with jars of leftover yarn instead of spices. :-)

How about a box where you add cardboard dividers so that lots of little compartments are created?

Or you could use envelopes—they come in smaller and larger sizes. Then just put them in a box and that’s that.

Wasn’t that pattern for the decorative fillable acrylic ball yours?
I might be mistaken. I’ll have to check out your shop.

This is the pattern I was referring to.
A Special Christmas Ornament for Knitting Enthusiasts


If you put your leftover yarn into mini ornaments and then place them inside a larger ornament along with a string of lights, that could turn out great. If you fold the ball band up small, it won’t stand out as much under the leftover yarn.

Oh, I see. I guess you’re looking for more of a practical solution and less of a decorative one?

Oh Josefa, I love your ideas! It’s true—you don’t have to hide leftover yarn in a dark closet. You can also display it decoratively.

You could even glue large yogurt cups (we always eat granola for breakfast, so we have plenty of them) onto a wooden board and then mount that board on the wall. Since the lids are transparent, you could see what’s inside. And there’d be room for the label, too. Plus, you can keep refilling them.

Oh, Josefa, you’ve really sparked my imagination! Let’s see if anyone else has any suggestions. 

I think upcycling yogurt cups is great. :-)

Oh, I can’t compete with the yarn wall.

I attach the label to the leftover ball of yarn with a safety pin, then it goes back into the cupboard, a basket, or a drawer.

The yarn wall must look great. Like a picture.

I use Ziploc bags! That way, they’re immediately protected from moths, you can keep the label on, and you can see what’s inside at a glance. I always put all my leftover yarn in a separate box. When I have enough scraps, I knit colorful socks for around the house or bed socks...😁

I tie the end of the yarn around the label. Small scraps are then wrapped directly around the label. 

As a terrible neat freak, I keep my yarn stash organized by color, type, manufacturer, etc., in plastic bins on a shelf. And when there’s just a tiny “scrap” left from a skein, I wind it up neatly and pin it to a full skein with a needle. I always buy 10 skeins of each color in a particular type, and when there are only 2 skeins left in the box, I start to panic and buy more right away. That’s why I’ll probably never know what it’s like to have just a tiny scrap left that doesn’t match anything anymore. Only veeeery tiny scraps are set aside for the birds. If I can’t buy more of a certain type of yarn because production has been discontinued, I’ll start a scrap blanket or use it right away to stuff the little animal or doll I’ve started ;-) I can’t stand having scraps of anything left over ;-)