Are you ready to try your hand at knitting in the round? Just about essential for socks, toys, hats, and so much more, learning to knit in the round is a great skill that will open up plenty of knitting opportunities. This quick guide will give you the gist so you can get off on the right foot with your circular knitting journey! Let’s hop to it.

There Are Three Needle Options

First things first: if you’re going to knit in the round, you’ll need the right needles for the job. Each of the three methods have their pros and cons but I personally have loved working with all three for various reasons. While one method may be better for certain projects than others, I’m a big believer that the joy is in the journey. Pick the one that jumps out at you and have fun!

DPNs

DPNs, or double pointed needles, are far and away the most common and popular method for knitting in the round. In case you don’t already know, you take four or five needles and use them to make a circle that you can knit with. While they do take some practice, they’re much easier than they look. DPNs are the best option for speed knitting (specifically metal DPNs) and anything really tiny like the top of a hat or small toys.

Two Circulars

If DPNs aren’t your cup of tea, two circular needles are a great option. Essentially, you’ll need two circular needles that are the same size. When you’ve finished knitting on the first needle, you’ll continue knitting on the second. Then you’ll go back to the first and etc. The downside of this is that you’ll need two circular needles in each sizes. That can be costly if you knit in a variety of sizes. But if you only knit in the round in one or two sizes, or if the cost investment isn’t an issue for you, this is an all around great method.

Magic Loop Method

If you enjoy working with circular needles, another great option is Magic Loop. With Magic Loop, you’ll take one very, very long cable needle and fold it in a loop. Your knitting will all be held by the one long cable. Pretty neat, hu? One of the benefits is that you only need one cabled needle for this to work and that one large cable can be used for a multitude of projects. The only downside is that it can be a bit fiddly moving all of your work around on the needle but I hardly think this is a big deal. Just something to be aware of. This is a cost effective method that can be a great gate way for people that aren’t ready to jump straight into DPNs.

Your Gauge Will Be Different

One of the magical things about knitting in the round (to me) is that purling is dramatically reduced. Because you won’t be purling as much, your gauge will change when you go between flat and round projects. So even if you plan to knit with the exact same yarn and needles from a previous flat project, your gauge will be different when you knit in the round. For me, my gauge comes out larger when I knit in the round because I’m a really tight purler. Over time, you may be able to guestimate so you don’t *need* to swatch every time but your mileage may vary.

You’ll Want A Stitch Marker

When knitting in the round, it’s much easier to lose your place because, well, you’re knitting in circles! When you knit flat, you have the edges of your work to let you know where you’re at in your pattern. This isn’t the case with circular knitting. A simple stitch marker clears this problem right up! With some stitch markers being so pretty and fun, I’ll take any excuse to add a few to my projects.

Flat Patterns and Stitches Will Need to Be Tweaked

So you know how if you knit every row on a flat project you get garter stitch? In the round you get stockinette. Pretty simple, right? Take a second to look over your flat patterns to make sure you’re converting them correctly for being knit in the round. If this sounds like a pain in the butt, don’t worry because there are hundreds and hundreds of projects already written for in the round knitting. But if you really want to, you can modify your flat patterns to be worked in the round.

Watch Out for Ladders!

Whatever method you choose to use, knitting in the round always comes with the risk of….dun dun dun….ladders! Ladders are these funny little lines that pop up where one needle meets the next in circular knitting. Ladders honestly aren’t that big of a deal and most of them come out with a good blocking. If they do bother you or if yours aren’t coming all the way out with blocking, there are ways to minimize them.

It’s Amazing, Fun and Addicting!

There’s just something so mesmerizing about going round and round and watching your project come to life. Because there’s no definitive “end” with a circle, it can be so easy to just knit a few more stitches. And then a few more. And before you know if, you’ve got a finished pair of socks and you’re up way past your bedtime!

Knitting in the round is a fantastic way to help yourself out of a rut; the zenning nature of going in a giant circle with your needles is often just what you need to get some progress going. And since progress is contagious, that circular knitting project might just be the umph you need to tackle a different task. Dishes, anyone? On second thought, maybe I’ll knit a few more stitches on this sock… 😛

What About You?

Do you have any tips for knitting in the round? Let us know in the comment section down below!

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