IKEA Hack: Winding Station
For years I have been longing for the perfect yarn winding station. I have wanted a place where I could keep the swift and winder set up so I didn’t have to travel back and forth all the time to the Stash Closet (in my son’s bedroom).
Trying to find a place that worked well with both my ball winder and swift has eluded me for years. The kitchen table was too thick for my swift. The kitchen counter was too thin and the winder would pop off while I was winding – creating a huge mess (and 3 broken plastic winders). I finally settled on my desk, BUT the swift and the winder were too close together and many times I would have uneven cakes of yarn that I would have to wind two – and maybe three – times before the cake was usable. Nothing was really my perfect station – until now!
A few months ago, I saw this post on the Fiber Artist Supply Company’s Instagram using an IKEA Finnvard Tressel.
View this post on Instagram
It was perfect! It was the right size and it was an easy hack to make it work for me. It’s lightweight enough to make it portable so I can wind yarn anywhere I want. And I love that it allows for height adjustability too so I can stand or sit and wind comfortably. I have been using mine now for a few weeks and I love it. All it takes is adding a piece to the top of the Finnvard to give you more width to clamp your tools and length to separate the swift and the winder.
Now I want to show you how simple it is to make this yarn winding station for yourself!
Materials
The first thing you need to do is gather everything you need to complete the project:
- IKEA Finnavard Tressel
- A board to extend the width and length of the top of the Finnvard to allow for perfect clamping of your winder and swift. It should be at least 6 inches wide, 3/4 of an inch thick and at least 40 inches long.
- Sandpaper and block
- 6 one-inch screws
- A drill
- Tape measure
- Pencil
Directions
- Cut your board to the desired length and sand to smooth any rough edges using the sandpaper and block. If desired, you can paint or stain the board to match the Finnvard color you chose.
- I used a shelf that we saved from my husband’s office remodel. It was already white and I didn’t mind having the cut edges showing.
- I am the daughter of a cabinet maker/carpenter so it is ingrained in me to save anything wood related that could possibly be used in the future! We hack a lot of things in our house that way and it saves us loads of money!
- My shelf is 8 inches wide, 3/4 inch thick and I cut it down to 40 inches. You can choose to make it longer, but I would not go any shorter than 40 inches. This allowed for a 6-inch overhang on either side of the Finnvard top.
- Next using the tape measure and pencil, center the top of the Finnvard on the board you just cut. Then screw down the Finnvard piece to the board.
- By doing it from this side, you won’t see the screws on the top.
- The one-inch screws are long enough to screw into both layers but not completely through the board
3. Put the top of the Finnvard back on top of the Tressel and attach your swift and yarn winder. And your yarn winding station is done!
(Yarn swift is Knit Picks Birch Swift and the winder is the Fiber Artist Supply Company Jumbo Yarn Ball Winder)
See how easy it is? Now its time for you to try it! I would love to see your photos! You can tag me on Instagram as @karenwhooley and use the hashtag #IKEAHackYarnWindingStation. Or you can share your photos in the comments below!
What color would you make your station?
