How to Knit a Scarf for Beginners
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Learning how to knit a scarf can seem hard if you’re a total beginner. There are two needles to move around, and yarn that looks like it could snag into knots. It looks intimidating!
But the truth is that knitting is like any other skill. It’s no different than learning how to ride a bike or how to cook. All it takes is some time and practice. And the upside is that unlike riding a bike or cooking, there’s no risk of skinned knees or charred fingers. Knitting is pretty safe. In fact, knitting has several health benefits!
All you need are your hands, some yarn, and a pair of needles.
Ready to Knit a Scarf?
Yeah? Woohoo! High five!
Learning how to knit a scarf is the best beginner project because it boils down to three simple steps:
Click This: For a refresher on the basics of knitting, check out The Ultimate Guide to Knitting, my detailed guide for new knitters.
Short, sweet and very do-able. These three steps make up your scarf journey. Get them under your belt and you can officially call yourself a knitter!
How to Knit a Scarf: Watch and Learn!
This video tutorial will show you how to knit a scarf, with a few extra tips thrown in. Follow along at your own pace and re-watch sections if you need a review. This video is also close captioned. (Press “CC” at the bottom of the video to activate).
Jump around the video chapters with these timestamps:
0:32 Choosing Yarn and Needles
2:16 Cast On
7:33 Knit Stitch
13:46 Next Row and Pep Talk
16:01 How to Hold Your Needles
18:31 Slipped Selvedge
19:34 Cast Off
24:29 Weaving in Ends
What About Yarn and Needles?
I was hoping you’d ask! You can use any yarn that takes your fancy.
BUT keep in mind that the bigger the yarn, the better. My ideal yarn for beginners is a chunky weight. This yarn requires needles that are between 6-8mm. Bigger yarns are easier to grip and manipulate than lighter yarns. They’re less fiddly and they also knit up quicker. Instant gratification!
BEWARE of light-weight yarns like lace or super fine yarn. Imagine knitting with sewing thread. That’s what knitting with lace is like. Do not do it. Not if you’re a beginner. Not only will it take light years to finish your scarf, but lighter yarns require smaller needles. And smaller needles are, in general, harder to control.
So make things easy for yourself and choose a yarn that’s at least a medium weight if not larger.
Click This: my post on the yarn weight family
What about needles? Once you’ve chosen your yarn, look at the yarn label. It will give you a recommended needle size. Use this as a guide for choosing your needles. I typically go within 1mm of the recommended needle size. This means if the yarn label suggests a 5mm needle, I might also try out a 4mm or 6mm needle.
What I Used for My Scarf
- Yarn: 2 skeins of TJOCKT Martta the Merino in color Pearl (200 grams, 140m/153yds per skein)
- Similar yarns: MillaMia (2-ply merino), Lana Grossa Ragazza (1-ply merino), Malabrigo Rasta (beautiful hand-dyed 1-ply), Wendy with Wool (acrylic-wool blend, budget option)
- Needles: US 15/10mm knitting needles (similar)
Finished Scarf Measurements: width is 9.25″ and length is 65″
Making Mistakes + Helpful Links
Along the way you’ll make mistakes. It’s okay. Mistakes are part of the journey, so expect them. Embrace them. You need to make mistakes to get to your final destination (which, in this metaphor, is your scarf!).
If you drop a stitch, keep moving forward. Don’t look back. At first, the goal is to get the basic steps of the knit stitch down. Once you’re comfortable with the knit stitch, your hands will naturally settle into the rhythm of knitting and you’ll make less mistakes. Think of your first ten rows as practice.
“One who makes no mistakes makes nothing at all.” – Giacomo Casanova Tweet This
Once you’re knitting comfortably, consider ripping back your work and starting your scarf fresh. You’ll be a lot more confident, and your scarf will have less mistakes in it. Don’t think of your practice rows as “wasted.” It’s the practice that makes the perfect!
Here are some helpful links for your knitting journey:
- How to Knit
- 3 Beginner Mistakes and How to Fix Them
- How to Join 2 Balls of Yarn
- The Yarn Weight Family
Grab a Friend, Knit Together!
Learning is more fun with friends! Do you have friends who are crafty or who want to learn how to knit a scarf? Maybe you know someone like Liz Lemon who takes up knitting every two years for … a week. Help a friend out! Share this video and knit together. As the saying goes, sharing is caring!
🙂
Davina, I hope you post more videos. You are just an awesome teacher! I’m a newbie in the knitting world and just learned (and still learning) from you videos. Your instructions are so clear and the tips are amazing that I can actually follow you while watching!
Thanks Katherine! I plan on adding more videos in 2017 specifically for beginners, so do keep watching the YouTube channel! Any knitting project or technique in particular you’re eager to try?
I would love to try to make a snood or cowl on a straight needle next. And would love to try to do other pattern like the fisherman’s rib and the herringbone stitch. Can’t wait for your upcoming videos! ?
I didn’t get the knit stitch at all! Could you make another one bu slowly. If you can that would be great. Also I just started today so this is a little okay a lot difficult. So any way can you possibly help me?
Hey Michael!
This video might help you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zhrl7cQvwjc It’s all about the knit stitch. I would recommend muting the volume so that you can concentrate on the video only (the music is kind of loud and rambunctious). Then re-watch and/or pause the video as many times as you need.
As a total beginner, it will take time – ten, twenty, even thirty times trying to push in the needle, loop that yarn around and pull it through. Try to watch and then re-watch that knit stitch video so that you get the general idea of where the needle goes, and where the yarn goes, and then how the yarn loops around etc. At first, just watch. Don’t try to do it on your own yet.
When you feel sort of confident, like you can anticipate what’s going to come next in the video (“Okay, the needle just went in, so next the yarn is going to loop around”) then take out your yarn and try to follow along. It’s absolutely overwhelming at first, so just take it slow. Watch the video once, twice, three times, try to anticipate what’s going to happen in the video. When you can, then try your hand at it. Don’t get discouraged. People think that you can pick up knitting in one sitting, but like riding a bike, it takes time! The good news is that it gets easier the more you try, and once you get the hang of it, it’ll stay with you for life.
This whole “How to Knit” series may help also: https://sheepandstitch.com/learn/how-to-knit/
Good luck!
If I use one of the chunky Lion Brand yarns mentioned above, will I need the same amount of yarn as the Martta the Merino yarn you used in the video? Thank you.
Yep, the Lion Brand Thick and Quick is pretty comparable. It might be *slightly* thinner than the Martta. I used about 300 grams, which works out to about 220 meters/240 yards. I’d recommend getting a bit more to compensate for the fact that the yarn is a bit thinner. You can also use a slightly larger needle to make the fabric of the scarf less tight. Less tight = looser = longer. Good luck!
I just got interested in knitting and was so happy to find your site/youtube channel, but I see you haven’t posted anything for quite some time. I hope you continue. I’m a teacher. I can spot good teaching from a mile away. You are an AWESOME teacher. If more teachers taught like you, this world would be a much better place. Wishing you all the best.
You are so sweet! Thank you! And I love your photo!
Egads! Didn’t mean to post such a big photo. Delete at your pleasure! 🙂
Hi. How do I add my next ball of yarn in? Just used up my first ball. This is a great video!! Enjoying knitting my scalf
Hey Kirsty, here’s a video on how to join a new ball of yarn: https://sheepandstitch.com/joining-a-ball-of-yarn/ Hope that helps!
Hi Davina – love your videos. Is it still possible to purchase the Martta the merino yarn through your site? Thanks
Hi Nancy, unfortunately I’m no longer selling the Martta. I think you can still purchase it through the tjockt.com website. Or you can substitute another super bulky yarn like Malabrigo Rasta or Lion Brand Thick and Quick.
This is just amazing video – perfectly detailed for beginners. My interest to Knit has increased top knotch. I will soon knit a scarf and post it here!
Thanks
You are great! My new hobby for my new milestone 60th birthday!
I really want to make this scarf for my friend but am in the UK and currently unable to get hold of TJOCKT Martta the Merino wool. Can anyone suggest what I could use instead that would produce the same result?
I love this video!!! I am a brand-new knitter, and this video took me from absolute clumsy I’ve-got-sticks-and-string-in-my-hands! panic to being able to knit a scarf that actually looks scarf-like! (And doesn’t have too many gaffes after the first few rows lol.) And more important, my hands now know what to do with those sticks and string. Your instructions and demo are extremely clear, complete, and well-paced!
(I only wish there were a comparable video that moved on to the next step: Project PURL! There are lots of others out there, and some of them are good, but I got spoiled by the best the first time out…
Hey Beth! Aw, you’re so sweet! It’s great that your hands have developed that muscle memory for knitting. Once it’s set, it’s like riding a bike. You’ll never forget it!
If you’ve got instagram, I’d looove to see your progress! Just tag me @sheepandstitch so I can cheer you on!
As for a purl video – you’re so right! I made whole series on how to knit here: https://sheepandstitch.com/how-to-knit/ and yet I didn’t include a purl video – Doh! I’ve got to add that to my to-do list!
anyone knows a pattern for a quick scarf
I have lost a pattern
I used to knit around 15 rows then cast of and pull it to a large scarf please help me if anyone knows the pattern thanks
Hi Davina!
This was the first thing I knit when I picked up knitting and I loved your tutorial! I then ended up making another one for my friend! I love your website and your youtube channel and you are doing a wonderful job <3
Embarking on something new. As a guy who taught himself how to crochet, I figured why not knitting? I enjoy learning new things. Including things that aren’t normally considered “manly” activities. Your site is one of the best tutorial and teaching sites I have found across almost any subject. I can tell I will reference your content a lot! Thanks!
Thanks Eric! I know a lot of guys who knit! For one, there’s Olympic diver Tom Daley who’s been rocking it lately with his new yarn and knitwear line!
I did this! At 50 I learned (well, you taught me) to knit! Unfortunately my brother liked it so much he took my scarf – some things never change. Time to knit another. Your site is fab. Thanks again.