Loom Knitting Patterns for Beginners

I’ve kind of fallen into a loom knitting rabbit hole lately. Long story short, I got burned out a needle knitting, so I figured loom knitting would be similar but not the same, and I am enjoying it, although it is slower than knitting with needles for sure (that might also be a good thing right now).

Most people start their loom knitting adventures making a hat (Marching North has a great basic beanie pattern that’s sized from preemies up to large adults, depending on the size of loom you use) or a scarf, where you just knit in rounds until you have a piece long enough to be a scarf, the sew the ends closed.

But there’s a lot more you can do, even as a person who is new to loom knitting, so let’s check out some more fun loom knitting patterns.

The first thing I made when I picked up a loom again was a couple of knit pumpkins. This is a super simple and fast project, and if you know me, you know I can’t get enough pumpkins (they are everywhere in my house this time of year!).

If you want to add a little cuteness to your loom knit hats for kids, check out the fruit hats from 5 Little Monsters. These don’t include a pattern but you can use your regular hat pattern and add the details.

Knitting looms are typically used in the round, which makes a stitch that looks like stockinette stitch, but you can also work flat and use a purl stitch to make fabric that looks like garter stitch. I want to try this garter stitch scarf from Loom a Hat (which I’m sure has lots more great projects you can try!).

And once you know how to purl you can also knit ribbing, so you can make projects like this loom knit coffee cup cozy from Good Knit Kisses. It reminds me of my Halloween coffee cup cozy, and since it’s knit flat you could duplicate stitch a face or anything else you want on there.)

Another easy flat knit project is this twisted headband from Marching North. It’s worked flat then joined into a loop, twisted and seamed. There are good photos in the post to show you what to do. And because it uses super bulky yarn it works up super fast.

Every time I went looking for loom knitting patterns I would run into this loom knit pickle pattern from One Little Project, so you have to see it, too. This would be a fun one if your family does a Christmas pickle ornament, though it’s worked with blanket yarn so it comes out pretty big.

When my daughter was in early elementary school we were at Joann together (RIP) and she picked out some variegated pink and white blanket yarn for me to knit a blanket for her bed. Now probably 10 years later, it’s one of her favorite possessions. I note this because the blankets we give to little ones might seem simple on the surface, like something they need to keep warm, but they can turn into so much more.

Take the Pocketful of Love Blanket from Purl Soho. On the surface this is a pretty but also easy to knit blanket for a little one. It’s worked in garter stitch stripes using sport weight yarn (the sample is a superwash wool, but this would also be nice in cotton or a blend) and available in a crib or small throw size. Though of course because it’s garter stitch, it’s pretty easy to make it any size you want.

But what makes this blanket extra special is the little details. The slip stitch selvedges and I-cord bind off give it a crisp look that’s perfect with the garter stitch of the body.

And then there’s the pocket.

This is a big pocket. At 10 inches wide and 12.25 inches tall (that’s 25.4 by 31 cm) for the crib size and 12.75 by 14.25 inches (32.4 by 36 cm) for the throw, you can easily fit a favorite stuffed animal, toy or book into the pocket.

I love how even though it uses the same striped garter stitch pattern as the blanket, it’s stitched down so the stripes run the opposite way (horizontal when the blanket stripes are vertical), though of course you can match stripes if you’d rather.

I think this blanket has the potential to be greatly loved by the little one its given to, and by the knitter look for an easy, pretty baby blanket with a little extra useful twist.

Grab the free pattern from Purl Soho.

[Photo: Purl Soho]

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