Weaving in Yarn Ends

Any time you cast on, bind off, change colors, or start a new ball of yarn you will have a little ‘tail’ of yarn. Once you are finished with your knitting you will want to get rid of these tails by weaving the ends into your knitting.

While tying a knot and snipping your yarn close is tempting, DON’T DO IT! Even if you tie a knot (which is a faux pas in knitting, but that’s a story for another day), simply snipping the yarn close will not keep your knitting from unraveling. You must weave your ends through your knitting, helping the ends to ‘mesh’ with the rest of your knitting. After a little bit of wear your ends will become part and parcel of your finished item, no chance of them slipping loose!

Weaving in ends and sewing on buttons are always the last things I do for my knitting. I weave in my ends after I have blocked my knitting and done any sewing that needs to be done. So let’s get finished!

For this task you will need a darning needle. There are many types, but I like the kind pictured below, with a sharp point and a little bend to it. To begin weaving in your ends make sure the wrong side, or inside, of your work is facing you (if your item is reversible just pick a side and stick with it)

1. Thread your darning needle with your loose end.

2. Weave the yarn up and down through a ‘line’ of stitches, pulling your yarn through (but not too tightly) as you go. Do this for 3 or 4 stitches

3. For the last couple of stitches, split the yarn. This allows for a maximum ‘meshing’ of your end and your knitting. Do this for another 2 or 3 stitches.

4. Cut your end. Your weaved in stitches should look something like this

Repeat these 4 steps for all the ends in your work.

Thread your darning needle with your loose end

Weave the end through the stitch

Following the same line of stitches, weave the end down through the next stitch

Split the next stitch with your needle and pull the end through

This is what a woven in end looks like

Learning to knit or teaching a friend?  Check out The Simple Collection – a step-by-step learn to knit program with 8 excellent free patterns, and clear tutorials to guide you.  If you are a knitting teacher, we have created PDF tutorial layouts that you may find useful to hand out in your class.

Free Patterns from The Simple Collection: