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Would You Use Any of These Knitting Needle Alternatives?

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knitting on a large PVC pipeI came across this fun article at All Free Knitting where they asked readers to share stories about knitting with things other than knitting needles. They came up with an impressive list of knitting needle alternatives, from chopsticks to bicycle spokes (seriously, they use them in Peru).

Broomsticks, dowels and PVC pipe are mentioned for knitting big, while nails, toothpicks and even sewing needles (!) have been used to knit small.

I’ll have to admit I have considered knitting with my husband’s old drumsticks before.

Have you ever used any of these alternatives, or something else? I’d love to hear about it!

[Photo: Judy Allen via All Free Knitting.]

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Comments

  1. My grandmother used to do something called “broomstick lace”, and my grandfather pointed a piece of a discarded broom handle for her.

Have you read?

Book Review: Cable Knitting Stitch Dictionary

Stitch dictionaries are a fun way to learn new-to-you knitting stitch patterns or to take a deep dive into a particular technique. Debbie Tomkies offers 100 cable stitch designs and thoughts on how to incorporate them into projects in her Cable Knitting Stitch Dictionary.

Each stitch pattern is shown in a large swatch photo and with written and charted instructions. Any special stitches are included on the page. The stitches are rated on a difficulty scale of 1 to 3, and the pattern notes also indicate how many extra stitches you should add to a project if you’re going to work this cable (since cables pull the fabric closer together you need to compensate for that) as well as how many stitches and rows are in the repeat if you want to design a project yourself.

The cables are arranged into sections: classic cables, combinations, all-over panels, creative cables, motifs and panels and cabled edges and borders.

It’s fun to flip through the designs to think about projects you can add a single cable or two to or make with an allover cabled design. Or you could make swatches of different cables and sew them together into a pillow cover or a throw.

At the back of the book there’s a section on general cable knitting techniques, reading charts, working swatches and avoiding errors (though it mentions working the wrong number of rows between cable turns, it doesn’t share how to count rows between cables to avoid this mistake).

It also talks about how to design your own cables, combine cables in a project, choose the right yarn and needles and determine how many more stitches you need to cast on when working cables instead of stockinette stitch. There’s also a glossary of symbols and abbreviations you may find in cable knitting and other patterns.

The book provides a good overview of things you can do with cables, as well as some fun things you might not have tried like infinity cables and horizontal cables. It’s a great book for a designer who likes to work with cables or a knitter who wants to play with different stitches in their projects.

About the book: 176 pages, paperback, 100 stitch patterns. Published 2024 by David & Charles. Suggested retail price $26.99.