How to French Knit

Co-authored by Jessica Gibson

Last Updated: August 29, 2021 References Tested

If you'd love to learn how to knit but struggle with using the needles, start with a knitting dolly. To French knit, you simply wrap yarn around a hollow dolly that has pegs at the top. Work the yarn around the pegs to create a long knit cord that comes out of the bottom of the dolly. It's a great introduction to knitting that will give you the confidence to try larger projects.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Setting up the Knitting Dolly

1
Gather your yarn and knitting dolly. Buy a knitting dolly that has 4 pegs at the top. You'll also need yarn that is thin enough to pass through the center of the knitting dolly. Place a darning needle, crochet hook, and scissors at your work space.^{[1]
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- For a multicolored effect, choose variegated yarn where the color fades and changes in a single skein.
- If you want to make your own dolly, stick 4 push pins around the edge of a spool of thread.
2
Tie a slip knot at the end of the yarn. Hold the end of the yarn and twist it into a loop. Leave a 6 to 8 inch (15 to 20 cm) tail at the end of the yarn. While you hold the ends of the yarn, use the fingers on your other hand to pull the loop about 1 inch (2.5 cm) wide. Bring the yarn that's connected to the skein through the loop about halfway. You'll see a loose knot form.^{[2]
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- You won't need to secure the slip knot onto 1 of the pegs, but the knot will make it easier to pull the yarn through the dolly.
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3
Thread the yarn through the center of the dolly. Lower the slip knot down through the center of the knitting dolly and snag the slip knot with the crochet hook. Use the hook to pull the yarn completely through the dolly, so about 4 inches (10 cm) of yarn comes out the bottom.^{[3]
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4
Hold the dolly with 1 hand and the working yarn with your other hand. If you're right-handed, hold the knitting dolly with your left hand. Take your right hand and hold the yarn that's coming out of the top of the dolly. The yarn will still be attached to the skein, so you may need to unroll the skein a little so you have some more yarn to work with.^{[4]
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- If you're left-handed, hold the dolly with your right hand and use the left hand to hold the working yarn.
5
Wrap the yarn clockwise around each peg. Keep the tail yarn secure on the table or hold it in your left hand so the working yarn is taut. Take the working yarn at the top of the dolly and wrap it around 1 of the pegs clockwise. Pull the yarn over the the next peg that's counterclockwise. The yarn should pass through the center of the dolly. Continue to wrap each peg in a clockwise motion before moving to the next peg.^{[5]
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- Once you've wrapped each peg once, you're ready to begin French knitting.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Knitting the Cord

1
Wrap yarn around each peg again. Make a second loop of yarn around each peg by wrapping the yarn around each peg again. Remember to wrap the yarn around each peg in a clockwise motion before moving on to the next peg.^{[6]
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2
Lift each loop over each peg to make a row of stitches. Take a pick or darning needle and lift the bottom loop of a peg onto it. Lift the loop up and over the other loop on the peg so the stitch drops into the center of the dolly. Move counterclockwise along the dolly, making a stitch for each peg.^{[7]
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3
Wrap another round of loops around the pegs. Take the working yarn and wrap it around each peg in a clockwise motion. Remember to work once around the dolly in counterclockwise direction. You should now have 2 loops on each peg.^{[8]
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4
Lift the loops to make another row of stitches. Use the pick or darning needle to lift the lower loop over the top loop. Drop the stitch through the center and work around the dolly counterclockwise. You'll start to see a stretchy, 4-sided knitted tube come out of the bottom of the dolly.^{[9]
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5
Continue to French knit until the cord is as long as you like. Keep making loops and stitching them through the center of the dolly. You may need to pull your stitches tight by tugging the yarn tail that comes out of the bottom. When you're ready to cast off, leave a single loop on each peg.
- The cord will extend out of the bottom of the knitting dolly as it becomes longer.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Casting Off

1
Lift a single loop from 1 peg directly onto the next peg. To begin casting off, lift the single loop from a peg using the pick or darning needle. Lift it off the peg and drop it onto the next peg that's counterclockwise to it. This peg will now have 2 loops while the original peg won't have any.^{[10]
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- You should now have 3 pegs with loops and 1 peg without loops.
2
Make a stitch and transfer the remaining loop on the next peg. To cast off, use your pick or darning needle to lift the bottom stitch up and over the stitch on the peg. Drop it through the center, so only 1 loop remains on the peg. Lift the remaining loop up and onto the peg that's next to it counterclockwise.
- You'll now have 2 pegs without stitches.
3
Cast off to leave a single loop on the last peg. Tug on the bottom of the cord to tighten the remaining loop on the peg. Cut the yarn to leave a 5-inch (12.5 cm) tail and thread your darning needle on it.^{[11]
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4
Tie off the last loop and weave the tail through the center of the cord. Take the yarn on the darning needle and lift the remaining loop onto the needle. Pull the yarn tightly to knot the loop so you can lift it off the peg. Insert the darning through the hollow center of the cord and pull it back out about 2 inches (5 cm) from the bottom. Trim the yarn so it's flush with the cord.^{[12]
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5
Use your French knit cord. For quick jewelry, sew the ends of the cord together. Use the circle to make bracelets or necklaces that you can embellish with beads, sequins, or crystals. You can also sew the cord together to make swatches of fabric for doll's clothes or simple hats and scarves.
- Remember that you can sew together several French knit cords to make larger knit items such as blankets or sweaters.

Community Q&A

Question

What can I do if the loop falls off?

Community Answer

It's pretty easy to spot a fallen loop, so you can just hook it back on.
Question

How would I join two pieces of wool?

Community Answer

You can just tie the ends together. The tied ends will go inside the knitted tube, so that you don't need to worry about hiding them like you would on a flat piece (ie: a scarf or sweater).
Question

How do I make the mat from the French knitted braid?

Margaret Burr

Community Answer

Make it in a circle by wrapping it around itself, using crochet thread, a yarn needle or matching yarn. Sew in the stitching of the cord; sometimes you need to sew in the same stitch as the circle gets bigger.