How To Make A Pom-Pom (And Attach It!) - Whistle And Ivy

Happy Fall! I’m not sure why I never thought about posting this how to make a pom-pom tutorial before. I’ve recently had several readers leave comments wondering how to make a pom-pom, which are the perfect finishing touch for crochet hats and scarves. Although I have a Clover pom-pom maker, and I find it’s a very useful tool, it’s not necessary to make a pretty one! This tutorial will show you how to make a pom pom and almost as important: how to attach a pom-pom to your finished project.

I do use my pom-pom maker, but you really don’t need to make yarn pom-poms. In fact, I have a yarn pom-pom maker and I prefer this method for large, or very small-sized pom-poms. It’s very useful to know, so grab a skein of yarn, some scissors and lets start making pom-poms!

[convertkit form=711319]

HOW TO MAKE A YARN POM-POM (AND ATTACH IT!)

What you need: – Yarn scraps– Scissors– Sharp Darning Needle

You’re tired of sifting through complicated tutorials and patterns that leave you feeling overwhelmed. Let me help. PICTURE THIS: Instant access to a library of modern, easy-to-follow patternsGifting your handcrafted treasures to your loved ones. Feeling accomplished by your beautiful makesIt’s time to make your crafting experience as joyful as it should be.

Learn more

STEP ONE:

Start with your preferred color of yarn. Take the end and snip a 12″-24″ length and set it aside.Start wrapping the yarn from the the ball around your fingers. 3 or 4 fingers makes a regular, adult-sized pom-pom for a hat, but you can make a few and decided which size you like.

Wrap it many times. In fact, wrap it more times than you think you need to. You want your pom-pom to be nice and full and it requires more yarn than you realize.

Keep in mind, the bigger you want your pom-pom, the more times you need to wrap it. When you leave the yarn long on the pom-pom, it spreads out more, making it look less full. So if you are using the widest part of your hand, keep wrapping!

STEP TWO:

Once your pom-pom is as full as you need it, pull it off your fingers, holding it firm so you don’t loose any loops.

STEP THREE:

Take the yarn you cut previously, and tie it around the middle. You might need a second pair of hands here as you tie the knot because it’s very important that it’s tied as tight as possible. If it’s loose at all, the yarn pom-pom will easily come apart.

STEP FOUR:

Once the knot is tied, cut all the loops. The yarn will fall into a haggard, overgrown pom-pom shape.

STEP FIVE:

Finish your pom-pom by giving it a nice, round haircut. Don’t get carried away! It’s easy to go crazy and cut a side too short. This part takes practice, once you make 2-3, you will get the hang of it. (For easier clean-up, you can do this part right over the garbage can.)Make sure you leave the two ends of your tie piece long.

HOW TO ATTACH A POM-POM

A floppy, unsecured pom-pom happens when you simply use the two ends to sew it to your crochet piece. To attach a pom-pom more securely, use a yarn needle and one of the attached ends of the pom-pom, push the needle through the top of the hat. This hat is gathered at the top, so I am working around the gathering.

Then, push the need up through the hat.

Then, take your needle up through the bottom of the pom-pom, right up the middle.

Next, go down through the middle of the pom-pom, and again down the hat. You will work in a circular sewing pattern around the top of the hat, but will always go straight up and down through the middle of the pom-pom.

Once you have sewn a circle around the top of the hat, (6 or 7 stitches) pull both ends of the yarn through to the inside of the hat and tie a sturdy knot on the inside of the hat (or underside of your project).

This will keep those beautiful pom-poms in place!

And check out my tutorial for DIY Fur Pom-Poms, you can make those yourself too! And once you learn how, you will wonder why you haven’t been doing this the whole time!

Want a hat to put these pom-poms on? Try these:

xoxo,