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The 45-Minute Wrap – Free Arm Knitting Pattern

September 13, 2019 Leave a Comment

Yarn provided by Zen Yarn Garden. Opinions are my own.

The 45-Minute Wrap, a free arm knitting pattern made with Zen Yarn Garden's Big Up! jumbo weight yarn.

Arm knitting is a quick and accessible way to learn knitting basics, and it’s a fun way to mix up a stale knitting routine! Today, let’s embrace this larger-than-life craft with a free arm knitting pattern for the 45-Minute Wrap & learn about something rare in the arm knitting world: a COLORFUL jumbo weight yarn dyed on a chainette base.

The 45-Minute Wrap, a free arm knitting pattern made with Zen Yarn Garden's Big Up! jumbo weight yarn.

About Jumbo Yarn & A Mini-Review of Big Up!

Arm knitting has been a Thing for awhile now. The popularity of arm knitting in recent years has led to lots of interesting developments in the craft yarn world, not the least of which was the addition of Jumbo weight yarns* to the Craft Yarn Council’s Standard Yarn Weight System.**

*A.k.a. yarns that are so big, their gauge measures in at less than 6 stitches per 4 inches (10 cm).

**Interestingly there’s also a hand symbol that the Council has incorporated into their system, which is described thus: “The HAND symbol can be used to represent gauge for yarns that do not require hooks and/or knitting needles, including, but not limited to, loop yarns and arm/hand knitting and crocheting yarns. This symbol can also be used on patterns to note that tools are not needed to complete the project.”

The 45-Minute Wrap, a free arm knitting pattern made with Zen Yarn Garden's Big Up! jumbo weight yarn.

I’d given the technique of arm knitting a try in the past, and I think it’s really fun. It’s is great for teaching a first time knitter looking for instant gratification, and if you’re in need of a palate cleanser between challenging knits, arm knitting is a fun way to mix things up. So while the craft of arm knitting is pretty accessible, the hard thing is finding variety in jumbo yarns that are suitable for the craft.

There are so many amazing neutral options for jumbo yarn, but finding those interesting colors, let alone in multicolor versions, is challenging. Excitingly, the folks at Zen Yarn Garden have come out with their own take on a jumbo weight yarn, called Big Up! I was given a skein to try, and within 45 minutes, I had a wrap finished (ends woven in too!) Since this yarn is from ZYG, the amazing hand-dyed colors I love in their other yarns can be found in all of the one-of-a-kind skeins of Big Up! The base they dye on is a chainette, which helps make it more pill-resistant than a plain roving, which is cool and another common critique of jumbo yarns.

The 45-Minute Wrap, a free arm knitting pattern made with Zen Yarn Garden's Big Up! jumbo weight yarn.
A skein of Big Up! is about as big as my head.

The 45-Minute Wrap – arm knitting pattern

The 45-Minute Wrap, a free arm knitting pattern made with Zen Yarn Garden's Big Up! jumbo weight yarn.
If you sew the ends of your cowl together, it makes a very bulky cowl!

Skill level: Basic (If you’ve never arm knit before, I recommend giving Anne Weil’s tutorials a go!)

Supplies
1 skein Big Up! from Zen Yarn Garden (100% Merino Wool / jumbo weight / chain plied / 43 yds(39 m) / 500g(17 oz.) per skein)
scissors

Abbreviations & Terms
CO – cast on
sts – stitches
k – knit
BO – bind off

A note for traditional knitters: Since this is arm knitting, you are working flat, but not turning your work after each row, so as you arm knit, you are making a stockinette stitch rectangle as a result of the necessary lack of turning as you work each row.

The Pattern

CO 8 sts.
row 1. k8.

Repeat row 1 to desired length or until nearly out of yarn. BO all sts and weave in all ends to finish.

To join ends: An optional last step is to join the CO and BO ends of your Wrap. You can simply sew them together or use a more advanced seaming technique if you wish.

The 45-Minute Wrap, a free arm knitting pattern made with Zen Yarn Garden's Big Up! jumbo weight yarn.
The 45-Minute Wrap, a free arm knitting pattern made with Zen Yarn Garden's Big Up! jumbo weight yarn.

Yarn provided by Zen Yarn Garden. Opinions are my own.

Filed Under: Free Patterns, Knitting, Knitting 101 Tagged With: 45 minute wrap, arm knitting, free pattern, jumbo weight yarn, the 45-minute wrap, zen yarn garden

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad is a craft book author & content creator in love with primary colors & vintage vibes. She specializes in knitting, crochet, latch hook and macramé, and her first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is out now!

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Heidi Gustad from Hands Occupied / Craft Book Author and Knitting, Crochet, Latch Hook and Macrame Designer

Hi! I’m Heidi (she/her/hers), a craft book author & pattern designer specializing in knitting, crochet, latch hook & macrame. Really anything with yarn! ❤️  My work combines vintage and modern design elements, featuring bold colors and graphic motifs.

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Craft book author & pattern designer ❤️💛💙
knitting, crochet, latch hook & macramé
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Please email for pattern support. 🧶

Heidi Gustad 🧶✂️
When you have four big skeins of pretty 2 ply yarn When you have four big skeins of pretty 2 ply yarn, you immediately think sweater, right? 
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My wardrobe could use another handmade sweater - I’m thinking something simple, seamed and with a decent amount of ease for potentially wearing tucked in with jeans or skirts. 🤔 
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Yarn: @universal_yarn Fibra Natura Cobblestone in Antarctica and Dragon’s Breath, wound in thick skeins of 100% superwash wool that’s a light DK weight.
How to to knit throwing (a.k.a. English) style . How to to knit throwing (a.k.a. English) style 
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In knitting, there are a few common knitting styles. Most often you’re going to encounter continental style and English (throwing) style on your knitting journey. I recently had an old video teaching continental style get a lot of views. Based on the comments, it was clear the people wanted to also see a throwing tutorial, so here you go! 🧶
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Please note that there is a LOT of variation in knitting styles, and one isn’t necessarily better than another. Most often, I’ve found it comes down to two things: how you were taught and whether or not you’re really into colorwork knitting (which can involve a mix of styles). 
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Longer-term knitters who’ve made it this far: do you prefer one over the other? And why? 
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#handsoccupied #englishknitting #learntoknit #knitting #howtoknit #knittersofinstagram #knitting_inspiration
How to do a one-step provisional knitting cast on How to do a one-step provisional knitting cast on / a.k.a. crochet provisional cast on, scrap yarn cast on
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I read recently that tiktok and Instagram are being used as search engines more and more. 🤔 I thought since I’m going to all the work of making tutorials on YouTube, I should experiment with making a quick version of them for other platforms. There are obvious teaching limitations to vertical video, short-form content like this, but I think I covered the gist of this cast on in a minute. The YouTube version also covers how to unzip this cast on because there was time for it 👍🏻 L1nk is in my profile. 
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I’m very much looking for feedback as I continue to make instructional knitting & craft videos. Sometimes good tutorials are hard to find, and (ideally polite) feedback helps me improve. 
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#handsoccupied #provisionalcaston #knitting #knititngtutorial #knittersofinstagram #crochethook #knittingtutorial
For the first time in a long time, there’s a new For the first time in a long time, there’s a new tutorial from Hands Occupied! 🎉 The video is live on YouTube & the blog. 
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The post covers what provisional cast ons are & how they differ, and the video covers how to work a one-step provisional cast on using scrap yarn and a crochet hook. (This is a great one to save for future reference.)
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I learned several names for this method while researching this video & post. Crochet provisional cast on, one-step cast on, scrap yarn cast on - if you know even more names for this technique, please share! 
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#handsoccupied #provisionalcaston #knitting #scrapyarn #crochethook
Working on a sample for some upcoming videos. It’s an overcast day with intermittent sunshine & I have a scruffy little sidecar. 🐶 Can’t complain! 
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What’s on your needles this week? 
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Yarn: @debbieblissknits Cashmerino Aran 
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#handsoccupied #knitting #knittinglife
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