Loom Knitting

What do I do with the starting end of yarn? TOP

To begin with, make a slip knot, leaving a 6” tail. Put the knot onto the anchor peg (the one on the side of the loom). Then cast on.

After you have knit several rows, your knit piece may seem snagged if the slip knot is still attached to the anchor peg. You can remove the slip knot from the peg, pull on the strand of yarn to undo the knot, and tuck the strand between the loom frame and your knit piece to the inside so it hangs free.

You can also include the starting yarn with the working yarn when wrapping the pegs. Treat the starting yarn and the working yarn as a single strand when knitting off.

If you are making a brim or cuff in your piece, you can tuck the starting yarn end into the inside of the brim.

Can I wrap in either direction? TOP

Yes! Some people wrap the round looms in a counter clockwise direction; others wrap in a clockwise direction. Some people hold the loom with the pegs pointing up, pointing down, facing to the right, or facing to the left. Whatever feels the most comfortable to you is fine. Remember, when you are knitting a flat piece on a round loom, you will be wrapping one row in one direction, and the next row back in the other direction.

How do I weave in the yarn ends? TOP

Thread the yarn onto a blunt end tapestry needle. Make running stitches through the "bumps" on the wrong side of the knit piece until you get to the end of the needle. Remove the needle and snip the yarn with sharp scissors. If your yarn ends are long enough, they won’t come unwoven from your work. For extra security, turn around and go back the way you came for several stitches.

Another option is, on the inside of the knit piece, make stitches that follow along about 6 knit stitches, then turn around and sew back the way you came.

Some yarns, such as homespun, may need a small tight knot tied at the very end of the tail so it doesn’t fray.

How do I keep my starting row from being looser than the rest of my piece? TOP

Instead of starting with an e-wrap, start the first row by weaving in and out of the pegs. You will need to go around the loom twice to have yarn on the outside of each peg once. Then go around the loom with a single row of e-wrap, and knit off.

Another option is to create a crocheted chain, and put the back loops of the chain stitches on the pegs, using either every loop or every other loop.

You can use a crochet hook to put the first row of loops onto the loom. Put your slip knot on the first peg. Insert the crochet hook into the loop on the peg. Catch the working yarn with the crochet hook and pull it through the loop on the peg. Put that new loop onto the next peg. Continue until all the desired pegs have a loop on them. If knitting in the round, the last loop goes on the first peg. Knit off that first peg so only one loop is on it. Start wrapping on the first peg for your second row of loops.

How do I remove my work from the loom when I'm done? TOP

There are several ways to bind off. If you are using a double rake loom, first bring the loops from one row of pegs to the other row and knit off. Then follow any of the removal methods below.

The gathered removal method involves picking up each loop with a threaded needle and pulling the yarn tight on the inside of the work.

You could do the same thing without gathering the end; this is how a "magic scarf" is removed from the loom. However, it does not make a pretty finished edge if you are using yarn where the stitch pattern is visible.

You can use a crochet hook and crochet each loop from each peg. If this bind off is too tight, add a single crochet stitch in between each peg's loop.

You can mimic the crochet hook bind off by moving the loop from the last peg to the previous peg and knitting off, then putting the remaining loop on the empty peg. Continue until there is one peg left, wrap and knit off twice, then pull the cut end through the loop to secure.

These techniques are all detailed and illustrated in our free Getting Started on the Round Loom book.

How do I keep my knitting from getting tighter and tighter? TOP

There are several things you can do. First, make sure there is plenty of slack in the yarn between the skein and the loom. The most common reason the knitting gets tighter is because there is tension on the yarn when you wrap the loom. So, always have a "puddle" of yarn to draw from when you wrap.

When wrapping the loom, hold the yarn on the previous peg with one hand while wrapping the current peg with the other hand. That will limit how much you stretch the yarn.

You can also wrap and knit off each peg before going on to the next peg instead of wrapping the whole loom then knitting off all the pegs.

Try threading the yarn through a 2-3” length of a drinking straw, and hold the straw to wrap the yarn. This can help give an even tension when you are wrapping the pegs.

When you pick up the loop from the peg to knit off, pull it out away from the loom a little, then lift it up and over. Slide the remaining loop down to the bottom of the peg so there is some stretch between that loop and the loop that gets wrapped on the next peg. This technique is especially helpful with the flat knit stitch.

After you have knit off the peg, use the hook tool to pull on the new loop to add some slack to it. Make sure the slack comes from the working yarn, not the loop on the previous peg. This technique is also especially helpful with the flat knit stitch.

How do I make a hat brim? TOP

When the length of your knitting is twice the length of the desired brim, bring the loops at the bottom of the piece up through the loom and put one loop back on each peg. (Follow a chain of knitting down from a peg to the bottom of the piece to determine which loop goes on the peg.) Wrap the entire loom, then knit off 2-over-1. Your brim is complete. Continue knitting the body of the hat.

You can tuck the beginning tail of yarn into the brim to securely hide it.

How long should a hat brim be? How long should a hat be? TOP

This is usually a personal preference, but a guideline is:

Infant hat: 3” of knitting to turn for a brim; total hat length 6-7”

Youth hat: 4” of knitting to turn for a brim; total hat length 7-8”

Adult hat: 5” of knitting to turn for a brim; total hat length 8-9”

Large adult hat: 6” of knitting to turn for a brim; total hat length 8-9”

You can adjust the size of a hat by making is slightly shorter for a smaller hat, and slightly longer for a larger hat.

How do I keep my knitted piece from twisting? TOP

The twisting is a natural result from using a twisted knit stitch on a round loom. To reduce the amount of twisting, wrap and knit of each peg individually instead of wrapping the whole loom, then knitting off all the pegs. Keep the wraps fairly loose; tighter stitches tend to exacerbate the tendency of the piece to twist.

How do I turn around when I want to make a flat panel? TOP

There are two ways to handle the end pegs on each side of the flat panel. One way, you use the end peg as a turning point. It gets wrapped once in a "U-turn" each time you come to it. As a result, it will be knitted off once for every two rows of knitting. This creates a nice chain stitch on the edge of your work.

The other way, you wrap the end pegs twice. This gives a tighter edge finish to your piece. To wrap them twice, wrap the first time and knit off to complete the row. Then start the next row in the opposite direction, wrap the last peg and the adjacent peg, knit off the adjacent peg first, then knit off the end peg. Knitting off the adjacent peg first keeps the tension snug when knitting off the end peg.

These techniques are illustrated in our Additional Stitches and More Loom Knitting Basics book.

How do I keep the side edges of my flat pieces from rolling? TOP

If you are using a knit stitch, put one or two purl stitches at the beginning and end of each row. If you are using a purl stitch, put one or two knit stitches at the beginning and end of each row. The alternate stitches don’t need to be the very beginning or ending stitches of the row; they can be one or two pegs away from the edge pegs. Pieces made in a pattern of purl and knit stitches do not roll at the edges. Also, yarns that are not made of acrylic won’t roll either.

How do I keep the beginning and ending edges of my flat pieces from rolling? TOP

Knit the first few rows at the beginning and end of your piece by alternating rows of purl and knit stitches (garter stitch).

How can I get both sides of my piece to look the same? TOP

There are several stitch patterns that will make both sides of your project look identical. They are garter stitch, ribbing, seed stitch, and moss stitch. Other patterns such as basketweave and chevrons can look identical or similar on both sides.

When I use two strands at a time, how do I keep them from twisting around each other? TOP

If you are doing an e-wrap stitch, wrap the entire loom with one strand, then wrap the loom with the other. If you are doing the flat or purl stitches, wrap each peg with one strand, then the other, then knit off. Keeping one skein of yarn on each side of you may help.

Why does most of the fur go to the inside of my piece when I use an eyelash or fun fur yarn? TOP

When you knit off an e-wrap stitch, the yarn that is wrapped around the peg gets moved to the inside of the loom. Then you wrap more yarn on the peg, holding the furry part of the yarn on the inside of the loom. When you knit using a purl stitch, most of the fur ends up on the right side of the piece. If you knit a tube with fun fur, you can turn it inside out when you're done to use the furrier side. You can also gently rub the knitting with your hook tool or a soft brush to bring the fur to the right side of the piece.

How long should a scarf be? TOP

Scarves can be just about any length. Narrow fashion scarves may be short enough to wear as a collar. Long colorful block scarves may wrap around the neck several times and still hang past the hips of the wearer. A guideline for young children is to make the scarf about the child’s height.

What is an I-cord, and how can I make one? TOP

An I-cord is a narrow knitted cord used for hat ties, hair ribbons, purse handles, draw strings, etc. You may have made them as a child using a wooden spool with 4 nails in it. To make an I-cord using a loom, wrap three pegs and knit off. Wrap the same three pegs, in the same order, and knit off. You will be bringing the yarn from the third peg back to the first peg on the inside of the loom. Tug on the knitted cord as you go to even out the longer stitch inside the loom. An I-cord makes an attractive edge when sewn around the border of a place mat or other flat piece.

How do I pick up a dropped stitch? TOP

The key is to study the pattern of loops the yarn makes, and remember the e-wrap stitch is a twisted stitch. Drop the stitch on the same peg, and let your knitting "run" down to where the skipped stitch is. Then you can use a crochet hook and "reknit" the chain in the ladder that appears. It's the same thing as picking up a dropped stitch with needle knitting. You might try this on a swatch to practice a few times before doing it on your project.

This technique is illustrated in our Additional Stitches and More Loom Knitting Basics book.

How do I add ribbon to my piece? TOP

When knitting the yarn, create spaces for the ribbon to be woven in. You can do this by creating eyelets (instructions are in our Stitch Patterns II booklet). You can also create a ladder by skipping a peg when you wrap the loom, or by dropping a stitch and pulling on it. Weave ribbon between the yarn rungs of the ladder.

How do loom stitches compare to needle knitting stitches? TOP

The e-wrap stitch on a loom is a twisted knit (stockinette) stitch on needles.
The flat stitch on a loom is a knit (stockinette) stitch on needles.
The purl stitch on a loom is a purl stitch on needles.

With needle knitting, the right side of the work faces you on one row, and the wrong side of the work faces you on the next row. On the loom, the right side of the work always faces you. So, for alternate rows, you will need to reverse the purl and knit stitches called for in a needle knitting pattern to get the same result on the loom. For example, for a garter pattern with needles, you knit every row. On the loom, you would knit one row, and purl the next.

Where can I purchase knitting looms? TOP
The Knifty Knitter looms, manufactured by Provo Craft, can be found at many major hobby and craft stores. Below is a list of some manufacturers of hand-made looms. This is most likely not an all-inclusive list, and we have not verified the quality, customer service, etc. of these companies.

Babes Fiber Garden Knitting Board
CinDwood Crafts
Crone-Findlay Creations
Decor Accents
Finniwig Studios
Frame Knitting
In The Attic
Kiss Looms
Knitting Board
Knitting Paddle
Loomtastic!
Markman Farm Knitting Looms
Old Fashioned Knitting Board
Pleasant Valley Toys
Provo Craft (Knifty Knitter)
The Knitting Loom Company