Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Knitting Needles Tips And More

By Gina Williams

Knitting needles are the basic tools necessary to cast and make stitches and actually knit any form of fabric in the first place. Although often compared with sewing needles, knitting needles are not that sharp and have different design features. Depending on the type of knitting one performs, up to eight or nine knitting needles may be necessary for the pattern: this is often the case with hats and tubular structures in general. How does one know which needle size is the right one for a pattern or another? First of all, let's begin by saying that the size of the knitting needles is measured not as much in the length as in the diameter.

The knitting needles size becomes important from the perspective of the required stitches: use thick needles for large stitches and thin ones for fine or small stitches. The only case when several knitting needles sizes are necessary for the same project is in the case of uneven patterns. From one manufacturer to another there are different sizing systems in use, but alternatives to the traditional long, straight format also exist. Circular knitting needles and double-pointed needles are the two main exceptions from the standard mode.

Circular knitting needles are linked together by a piece of nylon cord that allows for the stitches to be kept together with the risk of falling and losing them. For such cases, the needles at each end of the cord can be thinner, thicker, longer or shorter, with variations of the cord too. It is good to check the needle size before making any purchase as such. The, the double-pointed variety includes knitting needles with tapers at both ends; these are used to make socks and sweater sleeves most of the time. This kind of needles are required in sets of four or five with variations according to the knit item.

Wood and metal are the most common materials that knitting needles are made of, but in the old times the women in the aristocracy would also knit with tortoiseshell and ivory needles. Presently, such items are banned by law due to the fact that both elephants and tortoise species are endangered because of over-hunting. Aluminum, steel, wood, plastic, glass and casein are the modern materials used for the manufacturing of knitting needles, and their features are usually indicated on the product packages. The material is the one to influence the price of a needles set, but even for the most peculiar it remains affordable.

I hope you enjoyed this article on knitting needles. As always it is advised to research this subject more on the net.

About the Author:

0 comments: