How to Knit an Infinity Scarf on a Loom
by jessyratfink in Craft > Knitting & Crochet
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How to Knit an Infinity Scarf on a Loom
This infinity scarf is a quick and easy knitting project that you can do on a rectangular or round loom - whatever you have around!
I've been working on this pattern for a couple weeks, and now I've streamlined the process enough you should be able to have a totally finished infinity scarf in 3-4 hours. The scarf pictured here came in just under three hours, but I think I've gotten super quick at it since it's the third one I've made in a week. ;)
Head to the last step to see more photos of finished infinity scarves!
P.S. I've also got up an instructable for making a knitted hat on a loom - check it out here!
Materials Needed
- 2 skeins of chunky yarn - I used Lion Brand Hometown USA yarns for these - the yarn pictured here is Cheyenne Wild Iris
- knitting loom with at least 20 pegs (this is the set I'm using!)
- yarn needle
- loom hook
- scissors
- measuring tape
The scarves shown in this instructable are made on 15 pegs and are 40-50 inches of knitting long.
If you choose to use variegated yarn, you'll have just enough for the scarf with two skeins - around 130 yards of yarn. If you choose a solid yarn you'll have closer to 160 yards of yarn per two skeins, so you can increase the number of pegs to 20 and keep the length of the knitting between 40-50 inches to make a thicker scarf.
Anchor Your Work With a Slipknot
This will depend on the sort of loom you have.
Either place the slipknot on the horizontal peg on a round loom, or on a vertical peg to the left or right of where you'd like to knit on a rectangular or straight loom.
Loop the Pegs Twice
Going to the left or right of the peg with the slipknot, (whichever feels best for you - I'm left handed so I'm going to move to the left!) loop 15 pegs twice each.
Hold the yarn taut when you reach the end.
Bring the Bottom Loop on Each Peg Over the Top
Start from the last peg you wrapped (while holding the working yarn!) and bring the bottom loop of yarn over the top one until all pegs just have one loop of yarn on them.
Start Your First Row of Knitting
This will be just like regular loom knitting, with one difference. Whenever you start a new row of knitting, you'll wrap the first peg in the row so the yarn is just going in front of the peg, while the rest of the pegs are wrapped back to front.
If you start from the left, you'll wrap the first peg counterclockwise, and the rest clockwise. Bring the bottom yarn over on each peg.
If you start from the right, you'll wrap the first peg clockwise, and the rest counterclockwise. Bring the bottom yarn over on each peg.
Except for that one difference, just keep wrapping the pegs and looping the bottom yarn over!
For a more in depth explanation of loom knitting, see my "how to knit a slouchy hat on a round loom" ible.
Remove the Slip Knot From the Peg You Placed It On
Once you've knit a few rows, pull the slipknot loose. Leave the yarn tail hanging free.
Leaving it intact will make the finished knitting hang off the peg, which may warp it!
Knit and Knit Some More
Keep on knitting - go until you hit the end of the yarn!
As you knit, the scarf edges will begin to curl. Let them do what they want - it makes the scarf look nice in the end. :D
Adding the Second Skein of Yarn
When you've knitted far enough that you're left with a tail of yarn that's not long enough to finish another row, you need to add in the second skein of yarn.
There are loads of ways to start a new skein, but I'm choosing the do this the super easy way: by tying a knot! Because I'm using a chunky yarn it's not as obvious as it would normally be.
Just tie the end of the current working yarn to the beginning of the new yarn skein using a granny knot. Pull it as tight as you can - if the knot is still moving around, keep pulling it tight until it's stationary! Once it's as tight as you can get it, cut the yarn tails off.
Knit Until It Reaches 40-50 Inches
40 inches will leave you with a snugly fitting infinity scarf - 50 inches will be a bit more loose. You can awkwardly try it on while it's still on the hoop to see what works for you.
End with your yarn on the left side to follow the next steps in the easiest way!
( But don't blame me when someone walks into the room and finds you trying to wrap the scarf around your neck twice and not smack yourself in the head with the hoop. I'm pretty sure my boyfriend caught me but was too nice to say how weird it was. D: )
Loop the End of the Scarf Back Over the Pegs
Much like the brim of the knitted hat I did, we're going to bringing the very beginning of our knitting back over the pegs.
Pull the beginning of the scarf through the hoop as shown above. Make sure it doesn't get twisted!
Now you'll want to bring the loops at the very beginning of the scarf over the pegs. It might take a couple tries to get a loop on each peg - they can be tricksy!
Keep in mind that one of the loops is a little hidden on the end next to the yarn tail from the slipknot. You might need to use the loom hook to get that one. (see picture three to see which loop I mean)
Loop Over the Bottom Part of the Scarf
Once you have all the loops placed on the pegs, bring the bottom loops over the top so you've only got one loop on each of the pegs.
Now we'll cast off!
Casting Off
This is the best way I've seen to finish your loom knitting so it's nice and neat! We're essentially going to work on two pegs at a time, looping and removing the loops to the right as we go.
I highly recommend checking out this video by the awesome Sophia Burns to see it in action. It might help my photos and explanation make better sense. :)
Here are the basic steps:
- Starting from the left, wrap the first peg counterclockwise and the second peg clockwise.
- Bring the bottom loops over the top loops on both pegs.
- Take the loop from the second peg and put it on the first and pull the thread so it's not as loose.
- Bring the bottom loop over the top one.
- Take the lone loop off the first peg and transfer to the second peg.
- Wrap the third peg clockwise.
- Bring the bottom loop on the third peg over the top loop.
- Transfer the loop on the third peg over to the second peg and tighten. Loop over.
- Bring the loop left on the second peg to the third peg.
- Repeat the wrapping, looping and transferring to the right until you're left with one peg.
- Wrap once more and bring the bottom loop over the top one.
Now you can grab that last loop and pull it off the loom. Keep the loop between your fingers so you know where it is. We'll tidy it up on the next step!
Check out that sweet seam you just made!! So professional. :D
Secure the Loop
Pull at the loop so it becomes a little bigger, and slip the working yarn tail through it and pull it tight.
If you lucked out and ended up with the slipknot tail and the tail from the working yarn on the same side, knot those together.
Weave in the Loose Ends and You're Done!
Now you'll need to weave in the loose ends with a yarn needle - both the working yarn tail from the middle seam and the short tail from the slipknot we made first thing. Thread a yarn needle with the end of the yarn and weave it into the scarf.
Try to make sure you aren't bringing the yarn through to the front of the work - keep it on the back side and make lots of tiny stitches. Tie knots when you're done - just wherever they'll be less obvious. If you have a yarn you can untwist, divide it into two sections and tie it off.
Enjoy! You just knitted a super warm and awesome scarf!
More Photos of the Scarves
Just because I'm really proud of them :D
The black, grey and purple scarves were made 15 pegs wide, the cream scarf was made 20 pegs wide.