How to Fix a Twisted Knitting Cast On

It happens to almost every beginner who tries circular knitting for the first time: you cast on, join in the round, knit a few rows, and then notice the fabric is spiraling around itself in a permanent twist. The cast on has a half-turn in it, and everything you've knit is now attached to itself in a Möbius strip. This is the twisted cast on — one of the most discouraging beginner mistakes, and unfortunately there's only one real fix.

What a Twisted Cast On Looks Like

A twisted cast on is easy to recognize once you know what to look for. After joining in the round and knitting a few rows, the cast on edge will spiral. Instead of sitting at the bottom of a tube that hangs straight down, the cast on wraps around the outside of the tube in a diagonal line. The tube itself looks like it has a permanent corkscrew at its base.

You cannot fix this by knitting more rows. The twist is structural — it was locked in when you joined the round. The fabric will never straighten out on its own.

Why It Happens

When you cast on for circular knitting and then join the round, all your stitches need to be oriented the same way — none of them should be rotated or flipped. The most common cause of a twisted cast on is that one or more stitches flipped during casting on, or the entire cast on row did a half-turn as it was picked up.

This is especially common when using a long circular needle on a small number of stitches. The cast on hangs loosely, and as you hold the needle to join, the stitches can spiral around the cable before you notice. It's also common when casting on a large number of stitches — by the time you've cast on 200 stitches for a hat brim and you're ready to join, the chain of stitches may have rotated without you realizing.

How to Check Before You Join

The safest time to catch a twist is before you make the joining stitch. Here's how to check:

1. Hold the needle with all the cast-on stitches in front of you. Let the stitches hang below the needle naturally.
2. Look at the bottom edge — the cast on edge. It should form a clean, straight horizontal line hanging below the needle, with all stitches facing the same direction.
3. Check that no part of the cast on chain has wrapped around the needle or cable. The entire cast on row should be below the needle, not partially above or looped around it.
4. An extra check: lay the needle flat on a table, forming the cast on into a circle. All the stitches should hang toward the center of the circle, not some inward and some outward.

If even one stitch has flipped, or if the cast on chain has wrapped once around the needle, you have a twist. Fix it now before you join.

What to Do If You've Already Joined With a Twist

This is where the bad news comes in: if you've already worked several rounds after joining with a twist, your only option is to rip back to the cast on and re-join.

Some online sources suggest that you can untwist by working a cut and re-joining, but this is only practical in flat fabrics and creates a seam. For circular knitting, especially for beginners, ripping back and starting the join fresh is the correct move.

To rip back: remove the needle, pull the working yarn to unravel all the rounds back to the cast on row, and place all the live stitches back on the needle in the correct orientation. Then rejoin — this time after checking carefully.

Yes, this is frustrating. It happens to experienced knitters too. The difference is that experienced knitters have learned to check before joining.

How to Prevent a Twisted Cast On

Prevention is straightforward once you know the techniques:

• Lay the needle flat before joining. Before you work the join stitch, place the entire needle on a flat surface and look at the stitches from above. Every stitch should hang below the needle into the center of the circle. If any stitch has rotated to the outside or over the top, fix it before picking up the needle.
• Count your stitches before joining. If your stitch count is wrong, you'll have to rip back anyway — do this check first, while the needle is flat.
• Join loosely. Many patterns say "join, being careful not to twist." The act of joining itself — pulling the working yarn across to begin the round — can introduce a twist if you're not careful. Hold the two needle ends level before working the first stitch.
• Knit 2–3 rows flat before joining. For beginners, this is the most reliable prevention: cast on, knit 2–3 rows back and forth as if working flat, then join in the round. The straight rows make it obvious which way the stitches face, and you'll see any twist immediately. You'll have a small seam at the join, but it's trivial to close later.
• Use a short circular or DPNs for small circumference. Magic loop and very long circulars on small stitch counts are more twist-prone because there's more cable for the stitches to spiral around.

Related Topics

• How to cast on — 5 methods for different situations
• How to join a new ball of yarn
• What knitting needle sizes mean

Still seeing a twist and not sure what went wrong? Send Emma a photo and she'll diagnose it →