Make a Drop Stitch Scarf with a Circular Knitting Machine

When you first get a circular knitting machine there are a few classic projects that everyone seems to make, and one of them is a dropped stitch scarf.

It’s easy to see why, because this is a really simple project that’s quick to make and it’s fun to see how the scarf grows as you deliberately drop stitches after the knitting is done.

The reason this works is that dropping the stitches loosens the stitches around them, making the stitches that remain elongate, thus making the scarf longer.

I experimented with a couple of different lengths on a couple of different machines, and I came up with what I would probably consider a child or teen size scarf and one that’s more adult sized or for people who like a more drapey look.

The smaller one can be wrapped around the neck twice and is relatively snug, perfect for cooler weather, while the longer one can wrap three times, or twice with a longer section draping down. It just gives you more options and is a style I’d probably wear more in different seasons.

Dropping all those stitches also makes for a lightweight and breathable scarf that you can wear even when it’s not that cool outside. I didn’t make one on a little 22 stitch machine, but I’ll bet if you did you’d come up with something more like a necklace than a scarf.

You can grab the pattern and read about my experiments over at Our Daily Craft. If you’ve made one of these I’d love to hear how long you made it.

Also, if you’re not a circular knitting machine person, you can do this exact thing with knitting needles. Just cast on 40-48 stitches, work in the round for however long you like, and before you bind off drop every other stitch off the needle. Then you can drop those stitches back to the cast on edge and sew it into a loop or not as you like!

Circular Knitting Machine Hat Knitting Patterns

A Shawl to Knit to Get through the Current Calamity

Fall will be here before we know it, and that means there are holidays coming right behind where we might be entertaining at home. It’s always fun to have a hand knit touch in your home for other people to see, and if you’re going to be in the kitchen all day you might as well have some nice knit dish cloths to use.

I love this little plaid hand towel from Darling Jadore. Use a little bit of leftover cotton yarn from another project for the plaid portion. It looks like the horizontal stripes are worked as you knit and the vertical stripes are done with duplicate stitch, making this a quick and easy project even newer knitters can make.

Combine garter stitch and an easy eyelet pattern worked sideways to make the Annette Dish Towel from Cluck Cluck Boots, which is meant to be reminiscent of flour sack towels. It calls for DK weight yarn and you can work it in one color or two (or even three!).

Add a little more texture with this set of kitchen towels from Whileberry Creative. They’re mostly worked in garter stitch with borders in easy knit/purl patterns, and you can work them in sport or worsted weight yarn.

Two of Wands Shop has another cute allover knit and purl pattern they call the Seersucker Textured Tea Towel. It’s an easy repeating pattern worked in worsted weight yarn, and there’s a chart in the pattern you can use, but don’t have to, if you want to practice knitting from a chart.

The Classic Cloth dish towel from Handmade Home by Connie is another one that can use a little leftover yarn in a contrasting color, or you could color block it our use stripes throughout the pattern. This one uses worsted weight yarn and another easy repeating knit purl stitch pattern.

If you like to hang your towel on the oven handle or elsewhere but it’s always falling off, try the Stay Put kitchen towel from Fancy Step Knits. This project is worked in garter stitch and includes a hole partway through so you can pull the towel through itself over a rod or handle. Stripes are optional but a nice addition.

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