Yarn Hacks: 4 Random Jobs for Rubber Bands
Who doesn’t have a rubber band ball lying around somewhere? These little stretchy circles accumulate so easily over time, and though they do occasionally come in handy afterward, they always seem to sit around for such a long time without use, taking up space. The Interweave Yarn Hacks team brainstormed some random ways knitters can utilize rubber bands, and here’s what we came up with.
1. Reattach a Yarn Label
It’s always smart to keep a yarn and its label together, so you don’t lose track of the yarn’s information. Use a rubber band to secure a label after it’s been removed.
2. DIY Straight Needle
If you’ve lost one of a pair of straight needles, but you have a DPN in the right size, you can use a rubber band to make a matching straight needle for what you’re working on. Just wrap the rubber band several times at one end, creating a stopper so that the stitches can’t fly off the end. Knit away!
3. Stitch Marker
We love coming up with ideas for random things to use as stitch markers. Rubber bands still pass that test. Sure, they’re not ideal, but in a pinch, they work great! Just double once or twice, depending on how large the rubber band is, and use it in place of your regular stitch marker.
4. Stitch Stopper
Whether you’re working on DPNs, circular, or straight needles, when you put your knitting in a project bag, you really don’t want your work to fly off the needles (especially relevant with metal needles, since they are slicker than wooden ones). Just wrap a rubber band multiple times around both or all the needles, and it will stick well enough to keep your project on the needles for when you go to pull it out of your bag.
There are probably a million other ways knitters and crafters can utilize rubber bands on the daily. What are some ways you’ve used rubber bands in a pinch?
Happy hacking!
Yarn Hacks Team
Another good use for rubber bands is securing the balls of leftover yarns. When a skein or donut of yarn is at its last few dozen meters, the yarn tends to get tangled more easily, so I usually wind what’s left of the yarn into a ball.
I have a whole collection of little balls secured with rubber bands that I keep in a jar, either for repairs on my FOs, or for fun things like clothing for teddy bears.
Another good use for rubber bands is securing the balls of leftover yarns. When a skein or donut of yarn is at its last few dozen meters, the yarn tends to get tangled more easily, so I usually wind what’s left of the yarn into a ball.
I have a whole collection of little balls secured with rubber bands that I keep in a jar, either for repairs on my FOs, or for fun things like clothing for teddy bears.
I use the tiny clear rubber bands found in the hair styling accessories to keep all of my double points in each size together. That way if I open up my dpn case upside down, I don’t play pick up sticks and have dpn’s spilling everywhere.
I do that, too! My dnp bucket is a lot more tidy this way.
I use the tiny clear rubber bands found in the hair styling accessories to keep all of my double points in each size together. That way if I open up my dpn case upside down, I don’t play pick up sticks and have dpn’s spilling everywhere.
I do that, too! My dnp bucket is a lot more tidy this way.
I use large rubber bands and clipboards to keep track of where I am in patterns and charts. Clip the pattern/chart to the clipboard, wrap the rubber band around the whole works, and move it as you move through the piece. You know where you are because the rubber band indicates that you’re working on the row above it (or below, your preference), and the whole thing stays together.
I use large rubber bands and clipboards to keep track of where I am in patterns and charts. Clip the pattern/chart to the clipboard, wrap the rubber band around the whole works, and move it as you move through the piece. You know where you are because the rubber band indicates that you’re working on the row above it (or below, your preference), and the whole thing stays together.