How to Make DIY Pom-Poms with Toilet Paper Rolls

✓Let the Interweave Knits Winter 2024 issue transport you to a winter wonderland of cozy knits! This remarkable edition features 14 extraordinary projects to immerse yourself in the uniqueness of specially crafted yarns.

There are some pom-pom–making machines out there that are pretty fabulous and make great pom-poms. However, if you don’t have a pom-pom maker and you want to whip up a bunch of poms, this is a great low-budget technique.

Featured above: Winter Winds Hat by Laura Ricketts

Pom-poms are a great addition to a cute hat, blanket, or shawl, and are easily removable if you change your mind!

What you’ll need:

Project yarn(s)
Two cardboard tubes (from toilet paper or paper towel rolls)
Scissors

DIY Pom-Poms Tutorial

Here’s how to make your own pom-poms, step-by-step. Use 1 color, or all the colors of your project. You can also experiment with yarns of different textures and weights! The basic technique will stay the same.

Step 1. Hold end of yarn between rolls.

Step 2. Wrap yarn around the rolls until you reach the desired thickness.

Step 3. Wrap one end of the yarn around the middle part of the yarn in between the cardboard rolls. Tighten as much as possible.

Step 4. Tighten the yarn wrapped around the middle and slide the yarn off the rolls. Tie the knot
as tightly as possible.

Step 5. Cut the strands in half all the way around.

Step 6. Continue cutting the pom-pom to shape it into the perfect size and shape for your project.

Step 7. Thread the long strings between stitches at the point of attachment.

Step 8. Turn the project inside out, tie the strings tightly (without breaking the yarn), and snip!

Voila! That’s all there is to it!

Check out this DIY pom-pom tutorial in video form our Interweave Yarn Hack series. If you need to make several pom-poms, look at this time-saving Yarn Hack on how to make lots at once! If you do have a pom-pom maker and want to get fancy with it, we have a tutorial for that, too!