Selecting Needles Part 2: Needle Tips and Different lengths for Different Techniques and Tasks

July 18, 2022| LindyBeir| 0 Comment | 8:48 am

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In my last post on knitting needles, I discussed the various options for needle materials and types of needles. Today, I will go over needle tips and cable lengths for circular needles.

Needle Tips:

Needle tips vary in both length and sharpness. The sharpness of your needle tip can be an important factor in how your knitted stitches turn out. For instance, it is easier to do knit lace patterns where you are doing increases and decrease with a needle tip that is fairly sharp. A sharp point is helpful when you are attempting to insert your needle into two or more stitches to make a decrease. Sharp points also work well for knitting cables. If you are using a yarn that tends to split when being knit, a blunter needle tip may be a better option than a very sharp one.

Now, if you are a knitter that uses your finger to push the left needle tip while transferring a stitch to the right needle – you probably won’t enjoy knitting with very sharp pointed needles. (Your finger will get quite sore as you knit. So, if you decide to use a needle with a sharp tip, you may need to alter your technique to avoid this problem.) The sharpness of knitting needle tips varies from brand to brand. In my experience, my Knit Picks needles have a sharp tip, while my Addi needles are less sharp. Likewise, the sharpness of needle tips can vary with different needle materials. I find my new Hiya Hiya interchangeable tips to be sharper than my Knit Picks needles. I have also purchased a few ChiaGoo needles and they have sharp tips. I actually poked a hole in my index finger while knitting with the ChiaGoo’s.

Needle and Cable Lengths:

The length of a circular knitting needle is measured from tip to tip – and includes both the needle and the cable. This is true of fixed and interchangeable needles. Most fixed circular needles have tips that are about 5 inches long. Interchangeable needle tips can be purchased in lengths from 2 ¾ inches to 5 inches. The matching cables come in lengths that result in the total length of the needle – i.e., if you buy a 24-inch cable for a 2 ¾ inch tip, the cable is actually 18.5 inches – but when you attach the needle tips the total length will be 24 inches. The length of the needle tips is a matter of preference, and you may need to try different lengths to determine what works best for you.

For general purpose knitting, a 24-inch circular needle will usually handle enough stitches for a project. I have several 24-inch cables in my collection and use them frequently. Shorter length needles work better for projects like hats, mittens, and socks. I use 16-inch circulars to knit hats most of the time. Some knitters love using 9-inch circulars for knitting socks – but I have not tried them.

Longer cables are good for projects with a large number of stitches (100+)– like shawls and large size sweaters. Longer cables are also needed when using the Magic Loop method for small diameter knitting. When using Magic Loop, I use either a 40-inch or a 60-inch cable. You can purchase cables for longer lengths from 30 inches to 60 inches.

If you prefer to use the Two Circular Needle method for small diameter knitting, 24-inch circulars work well. Some knitters like to use one needle that is longer than the other when using this method as it helps them know which needle to use for each side of the knitted item. Again, it is a matter of personal preference.

DPN’s and new options

I have a few DPN’s but I rarely use them. This is a matter of preference. Some knitters are devoted DPN users and don’t like to use magic loop or two circulars for small diameter knitting. Technically, circular knitting needles are double pointed needles. But I usually think of DPN’s as a set of double pointed, straight needles with either 4 or 5 needles. The information above regarding materials and sharpness of tips apply to DPNs also.

New options for DPNs are now available. These needles have a short flexible cable in the middle. They are used in the same manner as straight DPN’s. These include:

Hiya Hiya Flyers https://hiyahiyanorthamerica.shptron.com/p/8-0-us-2mm-bamboo-hiyahiya-flyers-pack-of-3?pp=8

Addi Flex Flips https://www.jimmybeanswool.com/secure-html/productExtraImages/80000/83483Large_5e89.jpg

I hope you found this information helpful. If you did please give this post a “Like”.

Hats for New GrandsonHats for New Grandson

February 8, 2010| Lindy| 0 Comment| 6:02 pm

My new baby grandson has a small head. This is a family trait, as both his father and paternal grandfather have small heads and this is always an issue when they are picking out new ball caps….

So, I have been making the little guy some smaller hats. I started out by checking on what the “newborn” head measurement is — which my references state is “14 – 15 inches”. I cast on the appropriate number of stitches for the gauge of the worsted weight baby yarn I was using — three rows in and I thought: “Too Big.”

After some experimenting, I got what looked like the right circumference and knit up a beanie type hat — one inch of 2 X 2 ribbing and then straight stockinette until the hat measured 3 1/2 inches. I used the standard K2tog decreasing to form the top of the hat. I guessed correctly, because the hat fit perfectly. The circumference of this first hat was 11.5 inches.

The new parents were impressed and asked me if I could knit up a few more in different colors so that they could use them to coordinate the baby’s outfits. Now, being a new grandma, I said, “Of course!” —

So — I knit 3 more hats — each one only took about 90 minutes to knit up and I varied them a little just so I wouldn’t get too bored with them. The bright green one and the baby blue one were knit using Berat Cottontots yarn and the aqua one was knit using double-stranded Baby Ull (Dale of Norway) washable wool.

BTW — I didn’t get a picture of the first hat — also knit with Bernat Cottentots yarn — but it was baby blue with a bright green stripe.

Site Make-Over CompletedSite Make-Over Completed

July 22, 2020| LindyBeir| 0 Comment| 8:00 am

I have not been actively blogging since about 2014. Life has a way of intervening from time to time, and I stepped away from the task of updating my blog and website to focus on other things happening in my life.

I just finished updating my website pages with a new theme and color scheme. I have also updated links throughout. As often happens links change over time or become inactive. I hope you find the updates pleasing and that you will continue to check in to my blog from time to time as I plan on making regular posts going forward.

My next post will be the first of a series of posts discussing swatches. Swatches are one of those things that you learn to appreciate over time and I will be sharing what I have learned as I have grown as a knitter.

My YouTube ChannelMy YouTube Channel

December 11, 2022| LindyBeir| 0 Comment| 1:50 pm

I am now a YouTuber. I have started making short videos on knitting techniques. My YouTube channel is Knitting with Linda. You can find it here: @knittingwithlinda_omaha

I recently started teaching classes for beginning knitters at my local yarn shop here in Omaha, Nebraska. So far, I have held two “Learn to Knit -Part 1: Getting Started” classes that covered the basics of casting on, the knit stitch, the purl stitch and the standard bind-off. To provide my learners with a visual set of references that they could access through YouTube, I created several video demonstrations of each of those basic techniques. I included videos on using the Continental Method and the English Method for knitting and purling. If you’d like to take a look at them, here’s a link to my “Learn to Knit” playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-PJ63Dj62PHglVIBZZpZ7X1xW8-x0Jut

If you find these videos useful, please give them a “Like”.

In January, I will be offering new sessions of “Learn to Knit – Part 2: Next Steps” which will cover two types of increases, two types of decreases, how to fix a dropped stitch and how to weave in ends. I will be adding videos on each of these topics to accompany the in-person class and these will then be available to anyone on YouTube. If you subscribe to my channel, you can receive notifications when they are available.

I plan to continue adding videos on various knitting techniques throughout the year. If you have a suggestion for a technique you’d like to have demonstrated, please leave me a comment. Thank you.