The Easiest Way to Finger Knit: A Full Beginner's Guide

Finger knitting is a fun, productive way to spend your free time when you need something to do. When you're finished, you'll have a beautiful rope of yarn that you can use in many different ways, like a key ring, hair decoration, belt, or bag handle. It's simple and fun for the whole family!

How to Start Finger Knitting

Set up the weave by looping the yarn over and under the fingers of one hand. Repeat this process until you have 2 loops on each finger.
Pull the bottom loops over the upper loops on each finger. Then, press the existing loops down on your fingers.
Loop the yarn around your 4 fingers and continue finger knitting.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Setting Up the Weave

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Hold the yarn between the thumb and index finger of your non-dominant hand, leaving a short length of extra yarn (the "tail) at the end. Keep your thumb pressed against the side of your index finger in order to keep the yarn in place. Turn your hand so that your palm faces you.
With your palm facing you, take the "working end" of the yarn and weave it behind your index finger, over your middle finger, behind your ring finger, and over your pinky finger. During the weaving process, be sure to keep the tail tightly gripped between the side of your thumb and index finger.^{[1]
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Once you reach the end of your hand, loop the yarn around your pinky and continue the weave, this time in the alternate pattern. After it wraps around your pinky, the yarn will go over your ring finger, behind your middle finger, and over your index finger.
Wrap the yarn around your index finger and then repeat the original wrapping pattern: behind your index finger, over your middle finger, behind your ring finger, over and around your pinky finger, over your ring finger, behind your middle finger, over and around your index finger. Once finished, you should have two loops around each finger.^{[2]
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Part 2

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Knitting

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Starting with your index finger, take the bottom loop of yarn and pull it up, over (the top loop), and off of your finger. Once finished, the bottom loop should now be on the back of your index finger.^{[3]
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Pull the bottom loop up, over, and off of your middle, ring, and pinky fingers. Once finished, you should have one loop on each finger.
Using your dominant (free) hand, press the yarn down so that the remaining loops are closer to the bottom of your fingers and do not risk falling off.
Grab the tail (which should be between your index and middle fingers) and wrap it over your middle finger, behind your ring finger, and over and around your pinky. Continue the other direction by wrapping it over your ring finger, behind your middle finger, and over and around your index finger. Once finished, you should once again have two loops on each finger.^{[4]
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As with before, start with the index finger and pull the bottom loop up, over (the top loop), and off your finger. Repeat this for the remaining three fingers until you end up with only one loop on each finger.
Once again use your dominant (free) hand to slightly push the yarn down so that the remaining loops are closer to the bottom of your fingers, allowing additional room to continue the weave.
A nice, rope-like structure of yarn should form at the back of your hand, which will allow you to roughly gauge the length you've made. Don't be afraid to lightly tug on it to tighten it up as you go.

Part 3

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Finishing Off

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Once your rope is as long as you want it, stop with one loop on each finger, just after you've pulled over the bottom loops. Do not continue to weave.
Take the remaining loop from your index finger and flip it up and over, onto your middle finger. Now, pull the bottom loop up from your middle finger and over to the back of your hand.^{[5]
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Take the remaining loop from your middle finger and flip it up and over, onto your ring finger. Again, pull the bottom loop up from your ring finger and over to the back of your hand.
Take the remaining loop from your ring finger and flip it up and over, onto your pinky. Again, pull the bottom loop up from your pinky and over to the back of your hand. Once finished, you should have on loop on your pinky.
Be careful to not let the loop close once it is off your finger.
Be sure to leave a few inches of extra yarn at the end.^{[6]
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Tug it a few times to tighten the loop upon the new tail.^{[7]
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Return to the original tail and also give it a tug to tighten off the other end. If desired, you can even tie a knot to finish off this end.
If you want your yarn to make a circle (for a bracelet, headband, etc.), tie the two ends in a tight, square knot. If not, you're all done.

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Question

How can I take a break in the middle of knitting without restarting my work?

Community Answer

Slide the loops on your fingers onto a pen or pencil. Then, when you want to continue, just take the loops off the pen and put them back on your fingers.

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Why do my creations always end up very loose with lots of space?

LeahlovesGod

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If the yarn or string is thin, it will be more loose and stretched out between stitches. You can try using a thicker yarn, as well as pulling the strings on your fingers while you are working to keep them tight.

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What else can I finger knit with this pattern, other than a bracelet or headband?

Community Answer

Use green to make a Christmas wreath. Decorate it with red beads (for berries) and a ribbon. A really long one makes a pretty garland for the tree or mantle.

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Tips

It is much better to do this all in one sitting, or you might lose the rhythm and forget where you were. If you do take a break, slide a pencil through the loops where your fingers are to save your place.^{[8]
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Thick and soft yarn works best. Thin yarn creates big holes in the finished product because the "needles" you're working with - your fingers - are comparatively large.

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Try to wrap the yarn loosely around your fingers so it is easy to pull over.

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The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.

If you are just starting out on your finger knitting journey, make something small (like a bracelet) first.
You can change colors by cutting the string you were using and knotting a different color of string on.
You can also do this on two fingers—it's my preferred method because it makes longer strings faster.

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Warnings

If you pull on the yarn too tightly when it is on your fingers, it can cut off circulation. Remember to keep it loose.

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If you see loose loops in your rope, don't cut them. If the loop is close to your knuckles, just pull out the stitches back to the problem and redo that part.

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If you suffer from repetitive stress injury, remember to take frequent breaks.

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