Bind-Off Tips and Tricks
This tips in this section will be helpful when applied to any bind-off you do.
Neaten the Last Stitch of Your Bind-Off on Flat Knitting
You should be doing this easy bind-off trick at the end of every project. See the results for yourself below – I think you’ll agree.
This is a simple move to neaten the last stitch of your bind-off every time you finish a project.
It’s a little superstar trick that you do at the very end that will square up your edges, especially if your side stitches tend to get stretched-out.
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To Do the Neaten the Last Stitch of Your Bind-Off (Flat Knitting):
- Bind off all but last st. 1 st rem on L needle.
- Sl 1, find left side of loop beneath last st, pick up loop and place on R needle.
- Sl 2 loops back to L needle, k2tog, BO 1.
- Cut yarn, leaving a 6″ tail.
- Pull tail through rem loop, pull tight to finish.
Click image to play. If GIF doesn’t play immediately when clicked, wait 20-30 seconds. Click the GIF again to stop.
Neaten the Last Stitch of Your Bind-Off in the Round
This bind-off trick for knitting in the round totally changed by life. Make the last stitch invisible? It’s a no-brainer.
Every single time you’re binding off in the round, use this trick to make the join completely disappear.
No one will be able to tell where you started and where you stopped.
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To Do the Neaten the Last Stitch of Your Bind-Off (Round Knitting):
- Bind off all sts. 1 st rem on R needle.
- Pull the needle so the loop gets bigger – about 8″ long. Cut yarn at the top of the loop.
- Pull the ball of yarn so the working yarn comes out of the stitch.
- Thread the tail onto a tapestry needle.
- Find the 1st bound-off stitch, insert tapestry needle under the 2 loops of the stitch and pull the yarn through.
- Find the center of the last bound-off stitch, poke the needle through and to the back. Pull yarn to tension.
- Weave in tail on the WS.
Click image to play. If GIF doesn’t play immediately when clicked, wait 20-30 seconds. Click the GIF again to stop.
Fix a Too-Tight Bind-Off
A too-tight bind-off is the Achilles’ heel of the perfect knitted project.
Four Clues Your Bind-Off Is Too Tight:
- The edge of your garment looks narrower than the rest of it
- You can’t get your hand or foot or whatever it is INTO your knitted garment
- You tug the bind-off edge and it doesn’t have any give — if it feels like the yarn is going to break, or
- You can feel tension in your hands while you’re binding off, like you’re holding on and trying to keep everything together.
To Fix a Too-Tight Bind-Off:
| Avoid | Watch Out For |
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Count How Many Stitches You’ve Bound Off
To count how many stitches you’ve bound off, start from the right-hand edge of your work.
Working left, count the columns of stitches with no stitch above them on the needle, until you get to the one that has a stitch above it still on the needle. All the rest of the stitches have been bound off.
Tip: Don’t try to count the stitches while you are binding off. You might miss one.
How To Undo Your Bound-Off Stitches
If you don’t like the look of your bind-off, or if you did it too tight, you can always undo it.
Just work back, one stitch at a time, removing the bind-off and putting the stitch back on your needle.
This is a simple move that is based on un-knitting (removing your stitches one-at-a-time).
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To Do the Undo Your Bind-Off Stitches:
- Pull R needle out.
- Stabilize the stitch. Tug working yarn until stitch pops out.
- Insert L needle from front to back into closest st.
- Repeat steps 2-3 across sts to be undone.
Click image to play. If GIF doesn’t play immediately when clicked, wait 20-30 seconds. Click the GIF again to stop.
