Long Tail Tubular Bind Off
The stretchiness of knit ribbing does not have to suffer the inflexibility of a taut bind off. This Long Tail Tubular Bind Off maintains the elasticity of ribbed fabric with a neat and pretty finish. It’s perfect for toe-up socks, cuffs, neckbands and anywhere else you end with a ribbed edge. Also, this bind off is the companion to the Long Tail Tubular Cast On, so be sure to check out that tutorial for those occasions when you start with a ribbed edge too!
Materials
- You will need a spare circular or double pointed needle, equal or smaller than your working needle and long enough to accommodate half your stitches. In this tutorial, my spare needle is the wooden double pointed needle and my working needle is the metal circular needle.
- You will also need a tapestry needle.
Note
- This technique works both for knitting in the round or flat.
- The example shown below is for a 1 x 1 rib. This method can be easily modified for a 2 x 2 rib. Before the set-up rows simply rearrange the stitches on the needle so that their order is in a k1, p1 pattern.
Work to one row before the desired finished length.
Set-Up Row/Round 1: Work across the row/ round, knitting the knit stitches and slipping the purled stitches purlwise with the yarn in front.
IF YOU’RE WORKING FLAT…
Set-Up Row 2: Repeat Set-Up Row 1.
IF YOU’RE WORKING IN THE ROUND…
Set-Up Round 2: Work across the row/ round, purling the purl stitches and slipping the knit stitches purlwise with yarn in back.
Next Row/ Round: Slip each stitch purlwise, slipping the knit stitches onto the working needle and the purl stitches onto the spare needle.
At this point you have half (or approximately half, if you are working over an odd number) of the stitches on each of two parallel needles.
Cut the yarn, leaving a tail that is approximately 3 times the length of the edge.
NOTE: I used a contrasting yarn instead of the tail for demonstration purposes.
Thread the tail onto a tapestry needle and use the Kitchener Stitch to graft together the stitches on the front (working) needle and back (spare) needle.
Now you have a tidy and flexible bind off for your ribbed edge!
Thanks for your instructions so clear and helpful!
Could this be done with a möbius cast on! Seems like it is basically the same principle. One would just be starting from the center and working out. Then would you not have to do the tubular cast off. Am I thinking right?
Thanks!
Hi Meredith!
Interesting idea! You’ve got me stumped – you should try it out and let us know if it works!
Thanks for your question, though!
Thomas
Thank you for these lessons. Always interested in learning new aspects of knitting.
For 2×2 rib . . . didn’t understand your directions. I’m guessing you just stop doing the 2×2 and follow the directions for the 1×1 rib as given. Is that right?
Hi Sue-
Here’s how you do it: during the last row of regular rib knitting (before the set up rows), do this rearranging row: *K1, LC1 (left cross of 1 knit stitch in front of 1 purl stitch), P1*
For the directions on the Right Cross, see this link (https://www.purlsoho.com/create/2013/09/27/cable/)”
-Thomas
Thanks so much!
I’m using this for the classic cowl pattern and at first my edging is perfect but as I continue it starts to lean left. I’m being careful not to tighten too much but it doesn’t seem to be helping. Is there something I’ve done wrong?
Hi Jasmine,
Thank you for your question. I can think of two possible reasons for the leaning in your bind off. This pattern has a large number of stitches and it is easy to lose track of all of them. Whenever I am doing a Kitchener stitch with over 100 stitches I always double check that I have the same number of stitches on both needles and every other stitch is on your spare needle. It is very easy to accidentally miss a stitch when dealing with this amount of stitches.
If your certain that your stitches are evenly divided and properly arranged than I can’t think of anything you could have been doing wrong. Sometimes with the Kitchener Stitch the ribbing can be pulled a little to one side. If it isn’t too dramatic you should be able to straighten everything out when you block it.
Hope this helps and if the problem persists feel free to email us photos of the problem at purlbee@purlsoho.com!
Jake
I’ve had the crowd done for over a month but am so intimidated by such a long bind-off using Kitchener stitch. Is there any other bind off that would work? I did do the long tail cast on.
Dear Jane,
Thank you so much for your question! You can do any kind of bind off for this project. You can view some tutorials for different kind of bind-offs on the Purl Bee; https://www.purlsoho.com/create/category/knit/tutorials-knit/bind-offs-tutorials-knit/.
The advantages of doing the Long Tail Tubular Bind Off is that it creates an edge that has a little more stretch so whichever bind off you do I recommend making it loose so it is able to stretch.
Feel free to email us with anymore questions you may have!
Happy Knitting!
Jake
Your link doesn”t work.
Thanks
Here you go!
https://www.purlsoho.com/create/category/knit/knit-tutorials/knit-tutorials-bind-offs/
-Adam
Could this and the long tail tubular cast on also be used for a seed stitch edge?
Hi Chana,
Great question! The tubular cast on and bind off would be a great choice for doing seed stitch. After you do the cast on (including foundation rows) you will want to go straight into the seed stitch pattern knitting knit stitches over the purl bumps from the previous row and purl stitches over the knits. This will give you very clean edges with a little more stretch.
Thanks for writing and don’t hesitate to write back with more questions!
Happy Knitting!
Jake
How do you handle that last extra stitch on the working needle when you have a K1,P1 rib that starts and ends with a knit stitch? Sorry, I’m not very experienced with kitchener.
Hello Adrienne!
Ideally you wouldn’t have a rib that starts and ends with a knit stitch if you cast on an even number of stitches. What type of pattern are you working on?
If you’d like to email us a picture and a link to your pattern, that would be the best way we could help you out. Contact us at customerservice AT purlsoho DOT com. Thanks for writing in! -Alyson
This is great. I’m always wanting to learn new cast ons and bind offs. One never knows when a new cast on, paired with it’s bind off partner can be used. I’m excited to try ’em out. Thanks for posting them.
Hello!
We’re glad that you find this useful! Let us know how it turns out! -Alyson
Hi!
I’m doing this bind off for the reversible rivulet scarf. The ribbing is p1 tbl, k1 tbl – I don’t understand how to rearrange it so that their k1 p1!
Thanks in advance!
Adrienne
Wait, nevermind. I think I get it. The rearrange directions are for the 2×2 rib. For setup rows 1 and 2, I’m just supposed to knit the knit stitches and purl the purl – so for this scarf, it just regular p1 k1. Onward!
Hello, Adrienne!
Thank you so much for writing in! We are delighted that you figured it out! If you have further questions, please reach out again. Happy knitting!
Best wishes,
Kumeko
Thanks so much for these clear instructions. I was so stuck on my neck edge on my raglan sweater and nothing else was helping. thanks thanks thanks!
Wonderful thank for the tips, Great help
Hi, I’m about to bind off the cap sleeve lattice top, and wanted to use a binding off technique with more stretch. However, the rib is k2p1. Is it possible to use this technique for that?
Thanks!
Hi Jane,
Thanks for writing in! I have not been able to find any reference to doing a tubular cast off for anything other than a 1×1 rib or a 2×2 rib. That is not to say that it is not possible, I am just nor sure how it would be done and my research through all of my reference material has not turned up any information.
However, when I want an extra stretchy bind off, especially in a situation such as this, I grab a knitting needle one size up from the size that I have been knitting with and use it to bind off.
I hope that this helps and happy knitting!
Cassy
Is it possible to use this bind off for the mini herringbone scarf?
Hi Pheng,
Thank you for the question! This bind off is usually used for 1×1 ribbing, so I don’t know how it would go on the Herringbone scarf. We also have two herringbone stitch scarves, so let me know which one you are referring to. For both those scarves, I do recommend binding off as the pattern states because the herringbone stitches are very dense. Let me know!
-Adam
Can this be used for a moss/seed stitch bind off? You do have a k1 p1 knitting. I am a novice but will not use the standard bind off for my projects. Many patterns start and end with moss knitting.
Do you know of any otheeer bind offs for moss stitching?
Thanks
Hi Rachel,
Thank you for writing us! This technique is normally used for 1×1 ribbing. I’ve never tried it on moss stitch, but there is no reason it wouldn’t work since moss stitch is a variation on 1×1 ribbing. Give it a go and let us know how it turns out!
-Adam
Would this work well as a bind off along a 2×2 rib button band edge (especially if I’m sewing in a zipper instead of using buttons) of a hooded sweater? I thought it might look tidier than a standard bind off but wonder if it would be too stretchy for the hood portion…can you do 2 different bind offs along the same edge?
Hi Erica,
Thanks for writing in! This bind off does not work for a 2×2 rib. The tubular method for the 2×2 rib is much different and we don’t have a tutorial for that. I suggest a normal pass over bind off, working in the 2×2 rib pattern as you go. Also, if you plan on sewing in a zipper, you’ll want a more stable bind off like the pass over bind off. The bind off will be facing the inside of the sweater when sewn so the look of the bind off won’t matter as much.
This sounds like an interesting project! Let us know how it goes and if you have any other questions.
All the best,
Adam
Oh the description above says it can be modified for 2×2 rib by rearranging the stitches. You’re probably right in that it would be too stretchy. Would EZ’s sewn bind off be stable enough do you think? It’s just a basic raglan hoodie for my 9 month old but I wanted to try a zipper instead of buttons since it’s easier to get on and off! The other option I was thinking was an Icord bind off but I don’t love the look of Icord for whatever reason.
Hi Erica,
Thanks for writing back. EZ’s sewn bind off is a good one but I still suggest the normal pass over bind off because it is more rigid. You’ll want this rigidity when sewing in the zipper. I do not suggest the i-cord bind off because it will be too bulky and will interfere with the way the zipper lays.
Best of luck and happy knitting!
-Adam
Hi – just used the tutorial to bind off the neck on my M Patmos crossover crew . It all seemed to work ok, looked tidy but was way to tight – can’t get it over my head! Is this an error on my behalf? Its in time out right now but once I unpick it, should I try again? Any suggestions welcome! Thanks, Clare
Hi Clare,
I would recommend using the same size needle that you worked the neck in instead of sizing down your needle. It might also help to knit at a looser tension on the last two rows before the kitchener stitch.
I hope this helps!
Carly
I already tried the tubular bind off 1×1 and 2×2, but I was wondering if 3×3 can also be done? I’m doing a baby hat that is 3×3 and would like to have that nice finish on the top of the hat!
That’s in advance for your answer!
Hi Patricia,
Thanks for writing in! I have not heard of a 3×3 tubular bind off. I’ve done a fair amount of searching and have not been able to find a tutorial or reference to it. That is not to say that it isn’t possible but it may be something that you can invent!
Best,
Cassy
I am so confused by this. I am making the Classic Cowl and almost finished and want to do the tubular cast off. These instructions look like you are moving half the stitches to another needle and sewing all the stitches together instead of binding them off? Maybe I should make a tiny replica of this but it appears you are sewing a seam down the two needles? Help…..
Hello Lynda,
Thank you for reaching out! You are using the kitchener stitch to bind your stitches off- This means that you are seaming your stitches together, but you are seaming your stitches to bind them off. This will maintains the elasticity of ribbed fabric with a neat and pretty finish. I think trying this technique out before using it on your project is a great idea. I always like to try out new stitches on swatches before using them for the real thing.
I hope this clears things up and let us know if you have any further questions!
Warmly,
Marilla
I have a k3 p1 ribbing on a toe up sock and wanted to do this bind off. I am thinking that I could just add one more set up row before the ones in your instructions and turn it into 2-2 ribbing, then follow your instructions for that.
when i went to do it, i saw that it’s much simpler! just need to do a k1 p1 round before starting this bind off. duh! nothing like needles on hand
Hello Jo,
Thank you for reaching out! Yes- you are correct! All that is required of this bind off is a 1×1 rib.
Happy knitting!
-Marilla
I LOVE this bind off. My ankles tend to swell, so I use this bind off on my toe up socks.
Am finishing a sweater that requires a tubular bind off. Will need to bind off 200+ stitches. Tail will need to be 120+ inches. Using a light lopi yarn that breaks. Can’t imagine pulling that length of yarn back and forth over all those stitches. Any recommendations? Thanks!
Hi Moira,
Thanks for reaching out! That cast off does not sound like much fun using a delicate yarn like lopi! It will help to twist your yarn periodically – if you are using unspun lopi, you can twist it either direction, but if you are using a lopi yarn that already has a bit of twist, make sure you twist in the same direction the yarn is twisted. This will add some strength to the yarn so it is less likely to break while working the bind off. You might also want to search for a bind off called “Jeny’s Suprisingly Stretchy Bind Off” – it doesn’t look like a tubular bind off, but it is quite stretchy and doesn’t require pulling a long length of yarn through all those stitches.
Best of luck and I hope that helps!
Julianna
Thank you so much for your advice. I will definitely look up the stretchy bind off you recommended. Do you have any suggestions as to what I should do if the yarn were to break during the tubular cast off. Thanks again!
Hi Moira,
If your yarn does break while working the tubular bind off, I would splice it back together easily using a Wet Splice. Lopi responds especially well to this type of join as it felts very quickly!
Best,
Julianna
Hi Julianna! Just wanted to let you know that I completed the tubular bind off on my sweater project. It turned out really nice and I’m so glad that I tried it. Had no problem with the yarn breaking, however, I did keep twisting it as you recommended. Thanks again for your advice and encouragement. It is my new favorite bind off!
Yay, you spelled “taut” correctly!
I’m working on a pattern that is instructing a tubular bind off on the bottom of my sweater.
There is not a rib finish. The last 4 rows are regular stocking knit. I can’t find instructions for tubular bind off on a knit finish. Can you enlighten me? Can I use your bind off instructions for single knit rib? I’m assuming they want the stretch feature.
Thanks
Hi Kathy,
Thanks for reaching out! I suspect your pattern means for you to use a sewn bind off. It is worked similarly to a tubular bind off, but is for stockinette stitch edges. We unfortunately do not have a tutorial for this bind off, but you can find several by searching for “sewn bind off.”
Best of luck and I hope that helps!
Julianna
So I’m 3/4 of the way through this step …. Row/ Round: Slip each stitch purlwise, slipping the knit stitches onto the working needle and the purl stitches onto the spare needle. ….and I’m wondering if I’ve done something wrong and wish there was a video. I am trying to use this stretchy bind off for the Mistake Cowl (working in the round with 92 stitches), as my first attempt at a regular bind off was too tight… so fI have about 16 stitches left to transfer and my circular needle was getting too tight, so I transferred the stitches to another straight needle and it’s still really tight getting these last ones off onto the two needles…one for the knit and one for the purls. It’s taking intense concentration and brute force with a fourth needle to transfer very carefully one stitch at a time. Is this normal?? I’m new to the stretchy bind offs. Thanks!
OK…I started to see what I was trying to do did not make sense. As I was working in the round, putting half of the stitches on a straight needle and keeping the other half on the circular needle was never going to work. I didn’t have another circular needle, so I worked all of my purl stitches off the straight needle onto a strand of yarn to act as a second circular needle. Just to confirm for next time though. When working in the round, you need two sets of circular needles for the final step?? So half the stitches (the knit ones) and on one, an half the stitches (the purl ones) are on the other?? I have the final Kitchener stitch up to do now, but it seems this is the way to go. Any tips for my next attempt at this will be welcome. Thanks!
Hi Sharon,
Thanks for reaching out! Yes, for any project knit in the round, you will need a spare circular needle for dividing the stitches – it will be much easier than trying to work off of a piece of scrap yarn! Also, since the Mistake Rib cowl is a variation of 2×2 ribbing, you will need to look up how to work a tubular bind off for 2×2 rib – the set-up is the same, but there are some variations to kitchener stitch that is worked at the end. Unfortunately we do not have a tutorial for a 2×2 tubular bind off, but there are quite a few available if you look up “tubular bind off 2×2 rib” in your favorite search engine.
Best,
Julianna
I didn’t understand how it works for the rivulet scarf, that is flat.
Hi Susy,
Thanks for writing in! The Long Tail Tubular Bind Off can be worked for either projects that are knit in the round or that are knit flat, and in fact, our tutorial pictures above are all demonstrating the technique on a swatch that was knit flat, like the Reversible Rivulet Scarf. In the third and fourth images above, the knit stitches from the flat 1×1 rib swatch have all been placed on one needle and the purl stitches on another, which does look a little like a tube when pulled apart. As long as you follow the instructions above, your bind off should turn out just like ours!
Best,
Julianna
Ciao everyone,
Great video as always!, I know this method as ‘italian bind off’, probably just because I live in Italy? . One tip if useful to anyone is to downsize your needles by half (i.e. 5 to 4.5) for a neater finish on the last wound before starting your binding off.
Happy knitting!
Ciao ciao
Dri.
Please help! I’m going crazy…
Firstly, thank you so much for your wonderful site and beautiful patterns. I live in Cape Town, South Africa so unfortunately can’t order any of your gorgeous yarn (import duties and shipping being prohibitively expensive) but I have family in New York and on my next visit I will definitely stop by your shop.
In the meantime I would so appreciate help with the tubular bind off for the reversible rivulet scarf. I am too embarrassed to say how many hours I have spent on this. But after a lot of unravelling and reknitting and thinking and finally reading through all the comments I have realised that I made a mistake in using the tubular cast on with a p1 k1 pattern instead of a k1 p1 pattern.
For the set up rows of the tubular cast off I know that this means I must simply slip the purl purlwise and knit the knit (instead of knit the knit and slip the purl). For the rivulet scarf must all of this still happen through the back loops of both the knits and purls? I think the back loop must still be important in order to keep the look of the ribbing the same as the rest of the scarf. However if you do both knitted knits and slipped purls through the back loop does this make for a double twist as you are effectively working over the same stitches twice?
The really confusing part of this whole thing is what to do with the Kitchener stitch. I’ve no issue once I get going but have enormous problems with the beginning. I’ve tried to think and experiment my way through adapting the pattern for slipping off the back stitch first but it never looks right.
I so appreciate your help. I’ve been at this for over a week and am too stubborn to knit a short test swatch so every time I think I’ve worked it out and it goes wrong I have to undo rows of 56 stitches. I’ve finally reached my wits’ end though and am torn between jumping off a bridge, unravelling the whole thing or, worst of all, sticking it in a cupboard forever.
Apart from all this, it looks great! I’ve knitted it in a DK merino wool in a lovely colour called claret and I wanted a double loop round the neck so it’s well over two metres long!
Many thanks for your help in advance.
Emma
Hi Emma,
Thanks for reaching out! To me, it sounds like you are on the right track! I would suggest following the tutorial instructions exactly as we show them to get the best look of the tubular cast on. If you still can’t get the hang of it then I would recommend switching to a basic Long Tail Cast On, the look will be a bit different but it will still look beautiful with the rib pattern and be a much easier process overall.
I also suggest checking out our Kitchener Stitch tutorial, we walk through step by step how to do the stitch and the correct order to follow for a clean finish.
I hope this helps and please let me know if you have any more questions!
Gianna
Hi Gianna
Thanks for getting back to me. I think my questions were lost in my rambling post! I have knitted the rivulet scarf already and want to do the tubular bind off.
1. The scarf is knitted through the back loop. Must I do the same for the bind off preparation rows? And must both the knitted and slipped purl stitches be through the back loop? Or will this mean that some are then double twisted?
2. My rib is p1, k1 which I now know is a mistake! How can I adjust the kitchener stitch to work with this?
Thank you for your time. It is much appreciated!
Emma
Hi Emma,
Thanks for clarifying! I knit up a couple of swatches to test out how best to proceed, and I think I’ve got some answers for you.
For the Tubular Bind off, you can still work the knits and purls through the back loop in the setup rows; that will give you the same twisted stitch leading into the Kitchener join.
As you mentioned, because you’re working with a P1, K1 ribbing, the finishing of this is going to be a little bit off; However, after working up my own swatches, I think the best way forward would be to work the Kitchener Stitch as written. You’ll want to follow the directions for the Tubular Bind Off, so that you have your knit stitches on the front needle and your purl stitches on the back needle. Your working yarn should be coming from the back needle with the purl stitches on them, and you can proceed with the Kitchener Stitch as usual. The end result will be a slight jog that curves across the top of the join, but it shouldn’t be too noticeable. If you’d like, you can write to us at customerservice@purlsoho.com and I can send you photos of the different swatches I made, so you can see the differences!
I hope this helps, and please let us know if you have any other questions!
Warmly,
Kelsey
You’re a star, Kelsey!
I’ll definitely drop you an email.
Enormous thanks for spending so much time on this.
Best wishes
Emma
I tried this bind off out and although it looks lovely, it has zero stretch! Is there something I could be doing differently for stretch? As far as I can tell, I followed the instructions exactly.
Hi Brigitte,
Thanks for reaching out, although I’m sorry to hear that your bind-off isn’t turning out as expected! This method of binding off should definitely be very stretchy, so it sounds like you may be tugging too tightly on the working yarn as you work the kitchener stitch. I’d recommend redoing this step, making sure that the tension of the stitches you create while grafting equals the tension of the original stitches (or is even slightly looser)!
All the best,
Lili