Basic Bind-off – How to Bind Off Knitting

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Learn to Knit

Before you can bind off, you first need some stitches on your needle. Here are some tutorials to get you started.

Knitted cast on

When I’m teaching in person, this is the cast-on method I usually use. It uses a slight variation of the knit stitch to add more stitches to your needle. Since it’s so similar, it’s a great introduction to the knit stitch itself. Learn the knitted cast-on in this tutorial.

The knit stitch

The swatch I used in this video is just a few rows of knit stitches. Knitting every row, back and forth, makes a bumpy pattern called garter stitch. Learn the knit stitch in this tutorial.

Basic Bind-Off

Scroll down for the video tutorial.

Any Knitting Style

The images in this tutorial all show right-handed, English-style knitting. But this bind-off works the same way for every style of knitting I can think of, whether you are left or right-handed.

First 2 stitches

Knit the first 2 stitches however you normally would knit. You should now have 2 stitches on your working needle.

Using the tip of the other needle, pull the first stitch up and over the 2nd stitch, and off the needle.

You now should only have one stitch on your working needle. The stitch on your needle is now coming up through the one before it, securing it in place.

Remaining Stitches

Knit the next stitch. You now again have 2 stitches on your working needle. As before, pull the previous stitch up and over the current stitch and off the needle.

Repeat this process for each stitch across, until you are left with only one stitch on your working needle, and your other needle is empty. It’s easy to make this bind off too tight, so be sure to keep your tension fairly loose as you go.

Fasten off

Cut your yarn, leaving a 4-6 inch tail to weave in later. Pull up on your working needle, so that the one remaining stitch gets bigger, until the tail eventually comes all the way out.

Your basic bind-off is complete! You should now have a smooth row of “V” shapes along the top edge of your work.

Basic Bind-Off video tutorial

Watch this video on YouTube

Try it out!

With this technique, you can now finish and secure your knitting projects! Combine the basic bind-off with the knitted cast-on and the knit stitch to make this beginner Garter Stitch Headband pattern.

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