Knit a Basic Scarf

A scarf is an excellent project for a beginning knitter. It is useful, creative, and is sure to pull in a lot of comments! It's a very simple and versatile pattern that you can use again and again.

Steps

  1. Make sure you know the basics of knitting first.
  2. Find a good comfortable place to sit. It's a good idea to print out these instructions!
  3. Cast on 30 to 45 stitches on your needle, depending on how wide you want your scarf to be. This is assuming you will be knitting with worsted weight yarn and size US 8 to 10 needles.
  4. Knit the first row.
  5. Continue to knit until your scarf is long enough. It's easy to underestimate a comfortable length; try to knit more than you think you'll need. Keep wrapping the work-in-progress around your neck to get a feel for the length. If it is your first time, this may seem to take a long time.
  6. Cast off.
  7. Weave in your ends and enjoy your finished scarf!

Variations

  • Stripes! Buy balls of yarn in different colours. Knit in one colour, and when you want to change: break off the yarn with a little to spare, then tie on the new colour. When you have cast off, tidy up the ends a little by sewing the ends of yarn onto the side of the scarf. See Change Yarn for more instructions.
  • Make a fringe for the ends of your scarf. Make tassels, then sew them onto the ends.
  • Put pom-poms on the corners.
  • Try out new techniques when you feel like a challenge. Once you know how to purl, you can try ribbing, basketweave stitch, moss stitch, mistake ribbing, etc. for your scarf.
  • If knitting with needles seems difficult you may want to try knitting a scarf with a knifty knitter or loom.



Tips

  • Try to keep your tension consistent. This means making sure that your yarn is loose enough to slide over your needles, but tight enough that your work isn't full of holes (unless you want it to be).

Warnings

  • This sounds obvious, but do not leave knitting needles lying around. They are surprisingly easy to step on and it hurts!
  • Be careful that you do not drop any stitches along the way! This could lead to your scarf unraveling. Check every few rows by counting the stitches on your needle.

Things You'll Need

  • Knitting needles (size 4 - 6mm are good)
  • 3 - 4 balls of 8 ply yarn: any colour you like!

Related Articles

  • Knit a Wide Scarf
  • Knit a Scarf for a Man
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