DIY Yarn Storage Ideas
Updated on March 30, 2017
If you’re an avid knitter, a crochet enthusiast, or even just a general craft lover who values how useful and versatile yarn can be, then you already know how crazy things can get in the craft room if you don’t keep the yarn organized, contained, and well stored. Because things can become so easily tangled or roll away, however, sometimes the best ways to keep your yarn organized require you to get a little bit creative. Lucky for us DIY lovers, however, getting creative isn’t usually an issue!
Just in case you’re looking for a little bit of inspiration, here’s a list of 15 totally awesome ways to store your yarn that are actually effective and, in some cases, even cool enough looking to double as free décor.
1. Diamond shelves
Do you like the idea of having your yarn raised off the ground and mounted on the wall, out of the way so it won’t cause clutter on the floor? You can try piling it all on regular straight-across shelves, but the way it stacks, especially if your skeins are all different shapes and sizes, makes them an “avalanche” risk. Instead, try inserting wooden boards in an X shape between the shelves so that the yarn has a space that’s a little more structured to be stacks into. Repeat Crafter Me shows you how it’s done.
2. Peg board yarn wall
Perhaps you have the wall space for some nice elevated storage but you can’t decide the best way to actually affix your yarn to the wall? Well, in case you’re not handy with things like building shelves, check out these awesomely space efficient peg board idea from Knits for Life! As your yarn collection grows and changes, you’ll simply need to adapt the number and layout of the hooks that insert into the holes into the pegboard. This tutorial shows you how to build that wall itself.
3. Vintage gumball machine stash
When you think “creative storage” does your mind go somewhere really novelty and creative? Then take that idea and roll with it… all the way to the antique store! We can’t get over how stunning this adorable gumball machine idea from One Late Night is. Simply open the top the way you normally would to fill it with gumballs, but pop in your well-wound balls of yarn instead!
4. Wine cabinet yarn cubbies
Are you looking for an idea that’s quick, easy, and doesn’t have to be expensive? Then a simple pre-fabricated wine shelf that you build at home is certainly a low maintenance idea for getting your skeins and balls sorted. Each cubby of the shelf, where you’d normally place a wine bottle, can hold a ball or two whether you organize them by weight, material, or colour! Take a look at Pretty Prudent for more details.
5. Magazine organizer shelves
Have you ever see those colorful cardboard magazine organizers in stores and thought about how pretty some of the designs are but wondered whether or not people actually still have magazines in such mass that they need to keep them organized that way? Well, the truth is that people actually use these sorters to keep all kinds of things organized. Yarn is no exception! Laughing Purple Goldfish shows you how they attached shelves to the wall, lined them with magazine sorters, and filled them up with yarn.
6. Yarn in a vintage side table
When you were a kid, did your grandmother have one of those trendy old living room side tables that was low to the ground in a contemporary looking kind of way that, now, would look more vintage? We often see these pieces in estate sales and at second hand stores and we always think of how nostalgic and kitschy they’d look in our home now. That’s part of the reason why Dottie Angel decided to use one as a simple but totally effective yarn storage solution.
7. Yarn vases
Maybe you need some simple storage for your scrap yarn that you can just throw spare yarn into or dive into when you’re doing your next stash buster project? Easy access is always good, especially when it can easily be set up somewhere off to the side and out of the way. Little Lady Patchwork suggests using large floor standing vases!
8. Tiered basket yarn storage
Have you made yourself tiered basket storage for all kinds of things before, including jewelry or kitchen wares? We’ve always loved stacking storage because it’s easy to reach into but still keeps things out of the way and in place very well. In fact, it’s so useful that The Loop Ewe decided to make some tiered baskets and use them for storing yarn and wool of all kinds; bigger balls in the bigger bottom basket, smaller skeins in the middle basket, and tiny little yarn ends in the little one at the top!
9. Stacked bins on a bookshelf
When you pictures your ideal yarn storage scenario, is there a lot more intensive organization involved? Perhaps you’d like to have things more contained so the cats don’t get at them, or maybe you’re hoping to have things all organized by colour, weight, and content? Then we think maybe you’ll prefer something like this bookshelf and tub design by Sew Many Ways! The clear tubs, neat labels, and stackability will help you get things in order.
10. Hanging shoe organizer yarn
Not everyone has a designated yarn area or crafting room that they can relegate all of their supplies to, so sometimes room must be made in the rest of your house with all of your everyday things. That’s what our situation is like, which is why we opted for this shoe hanger idea from KTB Designs! We cleared out one corner of the closet in the spare bedroom, hung up the show racks, and got to organizing our yarn by weight on each shelf!
11. Stacked coffee can yarn storage
Have you been looking for a yarn storage idea that gives you all of the useful elements we’ve talked about at once? Perhaps you’d like it to look decorative, upcycle something you find yourself with a lot of, and give you a nice, compact place to put your yarn that will keep it tangle free. Well, you’re in a bit of extra luck if you’re a coffee drinker, because this coffee tin shelf design from Leethal has pretty much everything you’re looking for!
12. DIY PVC pipe shelf for yarn
Are you a huge fan of the rounded storage look, just like the coffee cans design above, but you actually have so much yarn to store that you just won’t have room on your wall and you’d rather build a standing shelf? Perhaps the yarn that you’re most partial to and have the most of comes in balls that are too large for any coffee tin you’ve ever seen (or maybe you just don’t think you can drink that much coffee in your whole lifetime)! Then check out how Abaveliar built an awesome rounded shelf from cut pieces of large PVC piping.
13. Plastic shoe pockets
Did you love the simple idea of putting all your yarn in hanging shoe shelves but you’re worried the kind we showed you above will be a little too wide for the space you have available and you’d prefer something flatter? Then take a look at the shoe pocket style instead! You can hang these flat against the wall, just like Felt4U did here, so they don’t protrude into the room or take over an entire closet.
14. Vintage yarn crates
Perhaps you’ve spent some time carefully building a nice, cohesive aesthetic into your home and, if you’re going to build something new that will probably be visible, you’d prefer that is matches your décor scheme? Then try making yourself something like this rustic crate display case that has an air of weathered chic about it. Tamapollo shows you how they put this one together.
15. Clothespin yarn ends
What if your larger stash is actually quite organized and contained but your little yarn ends are still a problem? Don’t worry, there are plenty of ways to keep those contained too! Our personal favourite is this clothes pin tactic from Cornflower Blue Studio! Pinch one end in the pin, wrap the yarn around the outside over and over until you only have an inch or so left, and then pinch that end as well. Put all your pins in a basket together so you always know where to find them!
Do you know someone who’s yarn stash is colourful, impressive, and full of quality things, but also bordering on being out of control? Share this post with them to give them a hand in finding organization inspiration!