Knitting Tips: Tools of the Trade

1. Darning Eggs
2. Interchangeable Needles

Joan Schrouder 1/25/03

My mom taught me to use a light bulb.

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Joan Schrouder 3/22/03 and 4/6/03

Like so many things, there isn't a simple answer for "which one is better?", since *better* is too subjective. At various time I have owned both. Each had advantages, each had disadvantages. Those had alot to do with the way that I knit; if you knit a lot differently, then my points would be moot for you.

Some things to consider, besides the cost -

1. Are ndl sizes 2-4 important for you to have? Calculate what you'd need to pay for those ndls purchased singley to see if you'd be farther ahead with the Boyes.

2. How loosely/tightly do you knit? (the cables on the Denise were thicker than the Boye; for smaller ndl sizes, the cables were pretty close to the same size as the tips. Tight knitters (moi) had to constantly skootch the sts along the cables. Looser knitters could/would note no problems

3. Some knitters use a fair bit of twisting motion when knitting, so unscrew the tips from the cables, on either set. The Boyes comes with a tightener which does seem to help alot, if you remember to use it. I did, but found that, on the smaller sizes, the tightening pin caused the softer metal of the cable connection to splay, eventually forming a snag that caught my tight sts.

Ideally you could try some out first to see how you like them. If your LYS carries them, bring your own yarn into the shop and ask to test drive them while you're on the premises. If you have to order them, find out what the return policy is. If they allow, you might even consider ordering *both* sets, then testing them over a short period, and returning the set you decide against.

A third set that's available: the bamboo set from Plymouth which goes from 5-9 and retails for ~$100, the most expensive of the 3. I broke one tip, and it was replaced. It's the smallest/most compact of the 3 sets. (The Boye is the bulkiest, and the Denise inbetween.) It's the set I still have. The problem with it, as with both the previous sets I had, is that I have lots of WIPs, so ndls tend to migrate from the cases into projects, and I never see them again.

All 3 sets couldn't make 16" lengths; the ndl tips are too long to bend arnd comfortably to use. ~20" was the shortest, usable length I could achieve with any of them. Of course, now that the "magic loop" technique is getting arnd, it's possible to use a longer length to knit shorter circumferences in circular knitting.

You can get additional mileage from any interchangeable ndl sets by screwing two differnt sized points onto the same cable. If you need to knit with a size 8, put that size in your hand that you knit with. Use a size 7 for the other hand. This will allow you to have two different size 8 ndls.

You can use your ndls this way to knit circularly. The sts will slip more readily off the smaller ndl, esp. if you tend to be a tighter knitter.

If you're knitting stockinette flat, and you have a tendancy to K and P at different tensions, then use this mixed ndl. Use the larger ndl end for the row you work more tightly, and the smaller ndl for the looser row.

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