How to make a scarf

1. Materials & tools

Materials (standard size)

• Main fabric (fleece, wool or double gauze) — about 110 cm wide × 60 cm (44 × 24 in)
• Optional: a second fabric for a double-sided scarf

Tools

• Sewing machine (or needle and thread)
• Fabric marker or pencil
• Ruler and scissors
• Iron
• Pins or clips

2. Make the pattern (auto-generated in Katagami)

With the Katagami pattern tool, you just enter the finished size and it drafts a seam-allowance-included pattern, tiled to print at actual size on Letter or A4.

1. Open the tool
   Open the pattern tool and choose “Accessories” → “Scarf” from the tabs at the top.
2. Enter the size
   Enter the total length and finished width. Presets cover child, standard and wide.
3. Set the seam allowance
   Use the slider at the bottom (beginners: 1.0–1.5 cm / about 3/8–5/8 in).
4. Print
   Press “Print (actual size)”, then in the print dialog set Scale = 100% and turn “Fit to page” OFF. Check the 50 mm calibration box on the first guide sheet with a ruler.

3. Cutting the fabric

1. Mark the measurements
   It is a rectangle, so mark it straight onto the fabric.
2. Straighten the grain
   On something this long, a skewed grain shows. Pull a single thread and cut along the line it leaves.
3. Cut
   Cut one piece for a folded scarf, or one of each fabric for a double-sided one.

4. Sewing

4-1. Sew the long edge

1. Fold the piece lengthwise, right sides together, and sew the long edge with a 1 cm (⅜ in) allowance.
2. For a double-sided version, place the two fabrics right sides together and sew both long edges.
3. It is a long seam — support the fabric with your left hand so its weight does not drag it off line.

4-2. Sew one end and turn

1. Sew one short end closed and leave the other open.
2. Turn through the open end. A chopstick pushed inside speeds this up considerably.
3. Roll the seam to the edge with your fingers and press.

4-3. Close the open end

1. Fold the remaining raw edges inward and close with ladder stitch, or topstitch 3 mm from the edge.
2. If you topstitch, do the other end to match.

4-4. Fringe (optional)

1. Instead of closing the ends, pull the crosswise threads out one at a time to make a fringe.
2. Stitch a line across at the depth you want first — 5–8 cm (2–3 in) — or the fringe keeps unravelling.

✏️ With fleece, most of this is unnecessary. Fleece does not fray, so cut a rectangle, snip the ends into a fringe, and you are done in fifteen minutes. That is the fastest gift on this site.

5. Tips & variations

• Length: roughly your own height gives you options for how to wrap it. About 120 cm (47 in) suits a child.
• Two-sided: different fabrics front and back show a glimpse of contrast as it falls.
• For small children: a neck warmer is safer than a long scarf around playground equipment.