Ok, so you’ve decided to knit yourself your very own sweater. You’ve picked the right sweater knit fabric, read a few books and watched a few videos on knitting and what not, but you’ve forgotten something… the needles!
While it’s often overlooked, choosing the right set of needles is essential if you want to do the best knitting job possible. In this article, I will introduce you to some of the different types of needles available so you can make the best choice.
First, you have your plastic needles. One of the advantages of plastic needles is that they are very light and flexible. Shorter plastic needles will bend if you use heavy sweater knit fabric or other heavy fabrics such as cotton. However, they will go back to their original shape when the pressure is off. While they can be great for intermediate knitters, beginners may have issues with plastic needles because wool tends to slide down on them.
Then you have your metal needles. Metal needles should be reserved to experts only. Metal needles, much like plastic needles, are very slippery and don’t hold fabric like other types of needles do. They are not as flexible as plastic needles, so they are a bit harder on the hands and joints, especially after long sessions.
Now let’s talk about wooden needles. Wooden needles are probably the best for beginners because of the way they grip the fabric. However, if you use very heavy sweater knit fabric and short needles, you run the risk of breaking them. So it’s very important that you choose the right size for the work. Bamboo needles are much more durable than ordinary wooden needles, but they’re also less flexible.
One problem with wooden needles is that they tend to have blunt ends that make knitting patterns a bit more difficult. Patterns that require a lot of back stitching might be harder to knit using those kinds of needles. However, wooden needles are easier on the joints and hands than plastic or metal needles.
And last, but not least, you have your laminated wood needles. They’re a kind of hybrid between wooden needles and plastic needles. They offer the rigidity of plastic needles with the grip of regular wooden needles. They’re also very easy on your hands and you can use them for hours on end without feeling any kind of discomfort. They also come with usually sharper ends than regular wooden needles, which make knitting intricate patterns a lot easier.
There are all kinds of needles on the market, but these are mainly the ones you should know about. So before you decide to go for a certain kind of needle, make sure that you choose the right one depending on your level of experience and the type of sweater knit fabric you’re using.

Recent Comments