Learn to Knit Kit, New + Improved
Our new and improved Learn to Knit Kit makes your first foray into the world of knitting fun and fulfilling. With clear instructions, beautiful materials, and an inspiring project, we want you to start you off on the right foot. After all, this could be the start of a lifelong pursuit-slash-obsession!
Our at-home-knitting-school walks you through every lesson of basic knitting, from winding a skein into a ball to knitting your very first scarf. Learn all the basics with our step-by-step instructions, how-to photos, and corresponding video tutorials, then choose from three basic scarf patterns to put your new skills into action!
An update of our original Learn to Knit Kit, this one has improved instructions, photos, and tutorials. We also refreshed the palette with gorgeous new Super Soft Merino colors, including gentle Honey Pink and enigmatic Trout Brown.
If you love the yarn used in this project, you’ll love all of our other yarn, too! Explore our 35+ lovingly created yarn collections, in nearly every natural fiber and spectacular color you can imagine… Only available here at Purl Soho’s online yarn shop!
Because knitting should always be inspiring, our Learn to Knit Kit is thoughtful, thorough, and totally beautiful. Pick one up and cast on!
UPDATE: NOW A 2024 WIRECUTTER PICK
SEPTEMBER 2024
For the second year in a row, we are so proud that New York Times Wirecutter has picked our Learn To Knit Kit as one of the best fiber craft kits for adults! Since 2003, we have turned thousands of people into lifelong knitters, and every bit of that experience went into creating our Learn To Knit Kit, from sharing our time-tested methods of teaching to choosing yarn we know beginners will love.
UPDATE: NEW LEARN TO KNIT A COWL KIT
SEPTEMBER 2024
Our new Learn To Knit A Cowl Kit is the sibling to our best-selling Learn To Knit Kit. You can start out as a true beginner with either kit, and both come in a charming pink tube packed with 2 skeins of Super Soft Merino, clear and thoughtful instructions, and everything else a new knitter needs. While our original Learn To Knit Kit shows you how to knit a scarf “flat” with straight knitting needles, the Learn To Knit A Cowl Kit teaches you to “knit in the round” on circular needles (and explains what that means!). In the end, new knitters will have a beautiful, soft, and squishy cowl that they will feel really proud of!
Share your progress and connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoLearnToKnitKit, and #PurlSohoSuperSoftMerino. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Materials
Our Learn to Knit Kit comes in a fresh palette of nine colors. Each one includes…
- 2 skeins of Purl Soho’s Super Soft Merino, 100% merino wool yarn. Each skein of this bulky weight yarn is 87 yards/ 100 grams; approximately 174 yards required.
- A pair of US 13 (9mm) birch knitting needles
- A tapestry needle for finishing
- A full-color Learn To Knit Pattern,which includes how-to-knit instructions and three scarf patterns
Pattern
If you already have some chunky weight yarn and corresponding needles, our Learn to Knit Pattern is also available on its own as a hard copy or PDF download.
LEARN ABOUT SUPER SOFT MERINO + ALL OUR BEAUTIFUL YARNS
The best reason to use Super Soft Merino for this project is because it is the dreamiest, cuddliest, toastiest yarn you can imagine! A single ply of 100% merino wool, Super Soft Merino has a nice, loose spin that shows off the softness of its fiber and keeps it nice and lightweight. Its gauge ranges from a chunky/bulky-weight to super bulky-weight (2.75-3.25 stitches per inch), making it a great choice for quick (and beautiful!) hand-knit gifts. And more… Super Soft Merino comes in over 30 amazing colors, too!
More Free Knitting Patterns
- Be sure to explore our vast collection of (mostly free!) Super Soft Merino knitting patterns and cast on!
More Chunky/Bulky + Super Bulky-Weight Yarns
- Shop our entire collection of chunky/bulky weight yarns
- Shop our entire collection of super bulky-weight yarns
- If you want to use a different yarn, be sure to take the time to get the correct gauge. Need help? Check our All About Gauge Tutorial!
More Yarns With Similar Fibers
- Shop merino wool
Looking for more inspiration? Explore all of our free knitting patterns and knitting tutorials, buy one of our many knitting kits and yarn bundles, and shop for beautiful yarn. We have over 35 gorgeous natural fiber yarns in 100’s of magnificent colors, designed to bring integrity, beauty, and joy to your next knitting project and only available at Purl Soho!
Do you have sock patterns? Thanks
Hi Judy,
Thanks for writing in! We do have a variety of sock patterns and they can be found here: https://www.purlsoho.com/create/category/knit-accessories/knit-accessories-type-socks-slippers/
Best,
Cassy
I am left-handed. Will the instructions work for me?
Hi Rhonda,
Thanks for the question! Whether you hold your yarn in your right or left hand the working yarn is always coming from the right needle. The action of knitting and purling are the same and you’ll wrap your yarn counter clockwise as in the instructions. Let me know if you have any other questions!
-Adam
Please send scarf and hat patterns
Hi Diane,
These patterns are for purchase. Click here to buy them.
Best,
Adam
Great kit. Can you please tell me how to add a purl or knit slip stitch to the seed stitch pattern? I want to neaten the scarf edges. Thanks so much,
Faith
Hi Faith,
Thank you so much for your kind words! If you would like to add a slip stitch on the edges of seed stitch, you will slip the first stitch purlwise with the yarn in back and count this as the first stitch. One the Seed stitch, this will be the knit stitch. You will slip the first stitch and then purl the second and continue on in pattern!
I hope that this helps!
Cassy
What age do you think the kit would be best for?
Hi Natalie,
Thanks for reaching out. This kit was designed with ages 8 years old and up in mind! Thanks!
Kindly,
Anna
Does the kit include instructions for English and Continental knitting? I knit Continental and want my brother to learn that way, too.
Hi Melanie,
Unfortunately the kit instructions are in English not continental.
Sorry,
Melissa
I knit German or Continental style. Do you have any instructions for those who knit this style?
Hello Charlotte,
Thank you for reaching out! All of our tutorials are done using english style. I’m also a continental knitter and I have found that once I got used to watching videos in english style they were simple to translate into continental as you are ultimately achieving the same thing. However, if you are still feeling lost I have found that a quick google search should result in many continental instruction videos.
I hope this helps and please let me know if you have any further questions,
Happy knitting!
-Marilla
do you sell the rib stitch pattern separately?
Hi Diane,
Thanks for writing in! All three patterns (stockinette, ribbed and seed stitch) come in this lovely pattern. You can purchase just the pattern instead of the whole kit with all three patterns included!
Best,
Cassy
Hi there! I am almost finished with this lovely kit. I appreciate that you encourage new knitters to use nice yarn for their first project; I’ll actually wear this when I’m done!
I chose to do seed stitch. I’m having a problem with the yarn getting twisted between the ball and the needles. It seems to be more an issue with the second ball. I just rerolled the ball in hopes of fixing it because trying to get it out by just twisting the knitting wasn’t working. This problem makes the yarn look less fluffy. I’m not sure if I’m describing it well. Basically, imagine what would happen if you twisted some yarn in your fingers until it started to curl up on itself, and that’s what is happening to the yarn that is coming off my ball.
Is there something I am doing that could be causing this? The way I rolled the ball? The way I’m handling the knitting? I know you can’t see what I’m doing, but I would appreciate any insight. Thank you!
Hello Amelia,
Thank you for reaching out- I’m so happy to hear you are enjoying your project! I just want to clarify if there is a distinct deference between the two balls of yarn and did you wind them in deferent ways? My first thought is that the ball was wound to tightly which could cause it to have a less “fluffy” look to it. Does the end result look deferent as well?
I hope I can help!
-Marilla
When I was winding the second ball, the skein got really tangled somehow, so I had to spend some time carefully undoing all that. Otherwise, I don’t know of any differences, but as you know, I am a beginner!
The section knitted with the twisted yarn just seems less fuzzy and fluffy as the first part.
I have found that the twisting problem diminished once I started alternating what direction I turned the project once I reached the end of a row. Previously I had just been turning it the same way every time, which I think is how I put so much tension in the yarn, or at least one of the reasons.
Hello Amelia,
Thank you for the clarification! This sounds like because you were turning your work the same direction every row the working yarn was becoming over twisted between the ball and your needles. I’m happy to hear the yarn has re-gained its fluffy-ness!
-Marilla
I see the kit contains three scarf patterns – but is the wool provided sufficient to create three scarves, or just the first one? Thanks in advance!
Sorry – one more question: what are the dimensions of the scarves?
Hello Kim,
Thank you for reaching out! This kit comes with enough yarn to complete one of the three scarves. The dimensions of the scarves are as follows;
Garter Stitch Scarf – Finished size: Approximately 6 inches wide x 53 inches
Rib Stitch Scarf – Finished size: Approximately 5 inches x 60 inches
Seed Stitch Scarf – Finished size: Approximately 6 inches x 56 inches
I hope this helps and happy knitting!
-Marilla
My sister likes knitting and my mom is planning to give her a needle kit for her birthday. It was explained here that she may need a tapestry needle to finish the product. Furthermore, it’s recommended to go to trusted shops when considering having a needle kit.
Hi Gillian,
Thanks for reaching out! Fortunately, our Learn to Knit Kit does include a tapestry needle, along with all the other high-quality supplies she will need to learn to knit. I think this would be a fantastic birthday gift!
Best,
Julianna
I am a beginner knitter. I love the beginner scarf kit with soft Merino Wool yarn. I live in Sacramento, CA and the weather is mild to hot with short winters. Could I substitute the soft Merino Wool for something less heavy and not so warm? If so, what do you recommend?
Hi Jackie,
Thanks for reaching out! Although we can’t substitute the yarn in the kit, all of the materials are available separately so you can build your own kit! For a warm weather scarf, I would suggest using Blue Sky Worsted Cotton on a US 10 needle. Since the yarn is a bit thinner, you will need to cast on 22 stitches for the Garter Stitch Scarf, 26 stitches for the Rib Stitch Scarf, or 21 stitches for the Seed Stitch Scarf. Other than that, you can follow all the other how-to instructions in our Learn To Knit Pattern to create a lovely cotton scarf!
Happy knitting!
Julianna
Hello – I just finished the garter stitch scarf and love it – what soft and comfortable yarn! I did have a very frustrating issue and wonder what your thoughts are. I wound both skeins of yarn into balls using the center pull method. All went well with the first ball, but the yarn was very twisted coming out of the second ball. I actually had to cut the yarn several times because I was unable to untwist it sufficiently. I see below someone had an issue with twisted yarn and finally realized they were turning the project the same direction at the end of each row and the problem resolved once they alternated how they turned it……this does not seem to apply in my situation. Please advise! I very much want to avoid this problem on my next project. Many thanks.
Hi Pat,
Thanks for reaching out and I’m sorry to hear that you had some difficulties with the wound yarn! Since our Learn to Knit kit only includes instructions for a regular hand wound ball, I can’t say for sure what might have gone wrong. Personally, I always prefer to work from the outside of a ball because there is a smaller chance of tangles clumps of yarn showing up than there is when working from the center, but for future projects, you can always ask in the order notes for us to wind the yarn for you. We use a ball winder that creates a neat and tidy cake of yarn that is quite easy to pull from the center.
I hope that helps!
Julianna
Love the kit and knitting! I’m nearing the end of the first ball of yarn, using garter stitch. My project is already more than half the expected length (about 38 inches) of the scarf, 53 inches. Should I stop knitting around 53 inches or is the scarf going to shrink down to that length and I should knit through both skeins? Thanks! I couldn’t find where anyone else has asked this question so now I think I might have done something wrong, but I think it looks good.
Hi Tricia,
So exciting that you’re working through the kit and enjoying it so much! People tend to knit with different tensions so if you knit really tightly, your projects might come out a little smaller than the finished sample size, and vice versa if you knit loose. It sounds like you might be a bit of a loose knitter, which is why your project is so much bigger than expected by this point. That’s okay! Especially since this is a scarf.
As you progress through different kinds of projects I recommend knitting a test gauge so you can see if you need to go up or down a needle size to match a pattern’s measurements. We’re hoping to have a tutorial for that on the way! In any case, you can knit the scarf until its as long as you want (it shouldn’t shrink down when you’re done). 53 inches is fine and if you have extra yarn left over you can always test swatches with it.
Happy knitting!
Zha Zha
Hello! I would like to use the kit to make a wider scarf, not 6 inches, but 12-16 inches. Can I do that by doubling the number of stitches and adding additional skeins of yarn? Please advise, and thank you!
Hi SP,
Thanks for your question! Absolutely, you can adjust the width of the scarf to your preferred amount by increasing the number of stitches cast-on. How much you would increase depends on which pattern from the kit you’re working with (Garter, Rib, or Seed Stitch) as well as if you’d like the width to be closer to 12 or 16″. I would divide the number of cast-on stitches as listed in the pattern by the finished width to find the number of cast-on stitches per inch and go from there!
I hope this helps! Have a great day!
All the best,
Cat
Hi, will I get the updated kit (Learn to Knit?) with the book?
thanks
Hi Cathy,
Thanks so much for your comment! Our Learn to Knit Kit does include the pattern booklet as well as all the materials you’d need for this fun scarf project (the yarn, tapestry needle, and straight needles). The kit now comes in many more colors as well! The Learn To Knit Pattern can also be purchased separately and is available as a hard copy or PDF download. I hope this helps clarify things!
All the best,
Cat
I volunteer at a Memory Care Center. These kits would be perfect for the residents who participate in the weekly knitting activity if only they used medium-weight yarns that were washable. Do you plan to offer any kits in the future with that option? Thank you.
Hi Sharon,
We don’t have plans for that, but we do sell the Learn To Knit Pattern on its own, and it could be used with a different yarn. Lovebird would be a beautiful choice! We made it in collaboration with Manos del Uruguay, who employs women’s cooperatives in Uruguay to spin and hand dye their gorgeous yarns. Lovebird is a bit thinner than the yarn included in our Learn To Knit Kits, is machine washable, and comes in glorious colors!
Thank you so much for asking, and please let us know if there’s anything else we can do!
Best,
Whitney