How Stretchy is Stretchy? Comparison of 12 Bind-off Methods

UPDATE 2020-08-27

There's now a new version of this post comparing 20 different stretchy bind-off methods!

Trying out all the different stretchy bind-offs in these two tutorials brought out my inner scientist. Which of the stretchy bind-offs is the stretchiest? How stretchy is stretchy exactly? Can stretchiness be quantified? Yes, it can!

And here are the results: 12 bind-off methods ordered by stretchiness, starting from the least stretchy and ending with the most stretchy bind-off of them all. And because stretchiness is sometimes associated with the unwanted side effect of flare, I also measured how much wider the bind-off edge is when not stretched. (If you're interested in how I did the calculations, the details are at the end of this post.)

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#12 Baseline: Standard Bind-off

I used the standard bind-off as a baseline against which all comparisons were made. As you can see, the standard bind-off is not completely without stretch: the bind-off edge measures 11.5 cm relaxed and 16 cm stretched, a stretch percentage of 39%.

#11 Suspended Bind-off

In the book Cast On, Bind Off: 54 Step-by-Step Methods, author Leslie Ann Bestor suggests that this is a good bind-off for knitters who have a hard time binding off loosely. Turns out this is not the case. The Suspended Bind-off doesn't have any more stretch (nor flare) compared to the standard bind-off.

#10 Lucy Neatby's Modified Conventional Bind-off

Not much improvement with this method: the Modified Conventional Bind-off has a stretch percentage of 52% with 4% more flare compared to the standard bind-off.

#9 Lace Bind-off

The Lace Bind-off performs just a little better: a 57% stretch percentage. It also produces a minimal amount of flare (4%).

#8 Icelandic Bind-off

Now we're starting to see some improvement. The Icelandic Bind-off has a 65% stretchiness with only 9% more flare than the standard bind-off. But because this bind-off methods gives a bumpy edge, it's not ideal for all projects.

Bumpy edge produced by the Icelandic Bind-off.

#7 Standard Bind-off with Larger Needles

All other bind-off tests were done using the same needles but for this method I went up two needle sizes (1 mm).

I've always put down using larger needles to bind-off your work as a lazy method that just makes looser stitches with not much stretch. How very wrong I was! This simple trick actually produces quite a good stretch (65%) but only minimal flare (4%) compared to the standard bind-off.

#6 Lori's Twisty Bind-off

Lori titles her tutorial video "Extra Stretchy, No Flare Bind Off" and she is exactly right! This bind-off has a considerable amount of stretch (70%) with absolutely no flare compared to the standard bind-off.

#5 Elastic Bind-off

My favorite bind-off for toe-up socks, Russian a.k.a. Elastic Bind-off, shows up at the middle of the pack. It has a generous amount of stretch (91%) but also quite a bit of extra flare (13%).

#4 Simple Stretchy Bind-off

The Simple Stretchy Bind-off is exactly same as the elastic bind-off, only worked in pattern (that is, knitting the knit stitches and purling the purls). And it stretches even more: a 100% stretch percentage means the bind-off edge stretches to double the width of the swatch. This bind also has the same amount of extra flare as the elastic bind-off (13%).

#3 Jeny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-off

Now we're getting into Top 3! The third stretchiest bind-off is Jeny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-off with a generous 109% stretch percentage but only 13% more flare. Definitely a good one to use for those sock cuffs.

#2 Elizabeth Zimmerman's Sewn Bind-off

The second best: Elizabeth Zimmerman's Sewn Bind-off. It gives the same amount of stretch as JSSBO but only a measly 4% more flare. Stretchy and attractive!

#1 Yarnover Bind-off

And the number one spot goes to Yarnover Bind-off. This bind-off method produces a whopping 126% of stretch, meaning the bind-off edge can be extended to more than 2.25 times the width of the original swatch. But using this bind-off comes with a caveat. The Yarnover Bind-off also performs the worst in terms of flare: 22% more than the standard bind-off.

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So what do these results mean? What is the best stretchy bind-off? It depends on what you're knitting. Here are my suggestions.

• The Ultimate Stretchy Bind-off: Yarnover Bind-off. Use this one when your finished project must be stretched and blocked aggressively, such as for lace shawls.

• Best Bind-off for Toe-up Socks: EZ Sewn Bind-off or JSSBO. Both are very stretchy but with a bit of flare.

• Good All-rounder: Lori's Twisty Bind-off. Not quite as stretchy as the top alternatives but it's pretty. Great for sleeve cuffs and hems where you don't want any flare on the finished object.

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For those interested in math and methodology, here's how I calculated the stretch and flare percentages.

I used the same swatch throughout the tests, changing only the bind-off row. I measured the bind-off edge relaxed (unstretched) for the flare percentages and stretched as far as the swatch would go for the stretch percentages.

Standard bind-off was used as a baseline against all comparisons. To calculate the percentages, I used these formulas:

Stretch % = (comparison bind-off edge stretched - standard bind-off edge relaxed) / standard bind-off edge relaxed × 100%

Flare % = (comparison bind-off edge relaxed - standard bind-off edge relaxed) / standard bind-off edge relaxed × 100%

For instance the measurements for Jeny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-off were 13 cm relaxed, 24 cm stretched. This yields the following stretch and flare percentages:

Stretch % for JSSBO = (24 - 11.5) / 11.5 × 100% ≈ 109%

Flare % for JSSBO = (13 - 11.5) / 11.5 × 100% ≈ 13%

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