Make the most of your leftover yarn with these lovely knitting patterns using yarn scraps. Your yarn scraps can be turned into all sorts of things – from warm mittens and hats to beautiful sweaters.
What can I use yarn scraps for?
If you want to make use of your yarn scraps, the best idea is to focus on gauge and find a knitting pattern that you can follow.
If you have many small yarn scraps, it's a good idea to sort them a bit by thickness. If you have larger amounts, it's easier to work with. You can get inspiration for how to plan your scrap project in our blog post about scrap knitting here.
Good patterns for yarn scraps
Red Resterne Sweater (12 stitches per 10 cm)
The Red Resterne sweater is ideal for scrap knitting as it is knit with 3-4 strands of silk-mohair, creating beautiful color changes with frequent yarn swaps. Even small scraps of 15-25 meters can be used. The gauge is 12 stitches and 17 rows in stockinette stitch on size 8 needles = 10 x 10 cm. A creative and fun way to transform yarn scraps into a unique, oversized sweater!
Chloé Sweater (22 stitches per 10 cm)
A simple raglan sweater with a gauge of 22 stitches per 10 cm. It's easy to achieve this gauge if you have yarn scraps like thin wool, sock yarn, or merino, and you can use silk-mohair as a companion thread. You can use scraps of silk-mohair or other thin yarn to make stripes or keep a common companion thread throughout the project and make stripes with the 'base yarn'. Try using all your sock yarn and merino scraps.
Easy Peasy Basic Sweater (18 stitches per 10 cm)
If you're looking for a good basic sweater that's easy to knit from your yarn scraps, the Easy Peasy Basic Sweater is a great option. It's knitted in the round from the top, and there are no abbreviations in the pattern, making it easy to knit. A gauge of 18 stitches per 10 cm is "somewhere in the middle." Typically, you knit on size 4 needles, and it works well with medium-thick wool/alpaca blends and various wool yarns. Try knitting two thin strands of wool together to match the gauge.
Dishcloths
If you have cotton scraps, and possibly also linen/cotton blends, it's a great idea to knit dishcloths. We've gathered three patterns for Katrine Hannibal's favorite dishcloths. The dishcloths are knitted with garter stitch and brioche stitch, which make them great for soaking up water. Before using your dishcloths, it's a good idea to soak them in a bit of vinegar overnight.
How to knit with yarn scraps?
As with all knitting, it's important to know your gauge when working with scraps, so your project fits. Therefore, you should pick out the yarn you want to use and knit gauge swatches. Normally, you "test" your yarn with a swatch to see if it fits the pattern.
When knitting with scraps, it's the other way around:
FIRST, check the gauge of your yarn with a swatch.
AFTERWARDS, find a knitting pattern that matches your yarn.
Yarn scraps ideas
When you're trying to use up all those small and large scraps from old knitting projects that are just sitting there, it's good to have a plan. The cheapest yarn you can use is the one you already have!
You need techniques for scrap knitting that give great results. That's why we've gathered a range of tips and tricks on how to plan colors and yarn thickness when knitting with scraps in this blog post about scrap knitting.
Knitting with multiple strands
If you have both thick and thin yarn in your stash, and maybe also some silk-mohair scraps, you can experiment with how your yarn scraps work together. For example, you can combine sock yarn with two strands of silk-mohair on size 5 needles and then switch to two strands of sock yarn afterward. Try experimenting and find what works with your scrap knitting!
A really nice example of scrap knitting is the Spotsweater by Anne Ventzel. Check out #spotsweater on Instagram for inspiration on how you can combine colors. Another style of scrap knitting is, of course, Danish Lærke Bagger, who, with her colorful style and use of all those small yarn scraps, creates completely new things in knitting!
A companion thread can be used to adjust gauge, and you can make colors blend better with a companion thread. For example, if you have a lot of sock yarn scraps, you can knit them in sequence, but use one color of Önling No 10 in a neutral color to tie the colors together. Beige is always a good choice!
You can also take a companion thread like Önling No 13 through the entire project. No 13 is a thin companion thread that can be used to add structure to loose yarn or to create a continuous color. Check out the many colors of Önling No 13 here. 1000 meters is enough for a t-shirt up to size L, a sweater for size S, and 1600 meters is enough for a sweater up to size 3XL. Check out our popular knitting patterns here.