October 25, 2005
Another Australian Knitblogger friend asked me to flash my needle stash. It was harder and more time consuming than I thought. I never had any idea that I have so many needles!!
Lets start at the beginning.
My straights. These very rarely see the light of day. I had a big clean out of them a while back, but I kept some. My Grandma taught me how knit when I was around 5 or so. I vaguely remember my mother teaching me to cast on and off, that was probably around the same time. (She died when I was 8). My sister taught me to purl, although she swears now that she doesn't even know how. I remember taking some knitting to my Grandma when I was quite young, upset that I couldn't work out rib. I was teaching myself, but I was taking the yarn over the needle instead of under it as I went from knit to purl.
Anyway, my point is that most of these were my Grandmothers or my Nanas. The tortoise shell and the anodised ones are years old. So I keep these for sentimental value.
My wooden straights. I don't use these often either, but more often than the other straights. For some reason I like to knit baby clothes on bamboo straights. All my scarves are worked on wooden straights, usually my Lisa G needles.
Aren't they pretty? I have another pair, currently holding my poor Branching Out scarf which is desperately seeking my attention.
Oh, and Em's needles. The vast majority of these were mine.
That's an Imogen doll from AK Traditions in the background. She came with a kit to knit her a wardrobe. Last Christmas. Well, at least it's summer again and she isn't getting cold ;)
Em has more of my needles, but they're under the bed.(Insert ominous music). They'll never see the light of day again ;)
Em doesn't like circs!
Moving on.
Sock needles! 2mm Crystal Palace bamboo (minus 1), Clover bamboo 2.25mm, Tulip bamboo 2.25mm and Pony Pearls 2mm - 3mm visible here. I also have
2mm Rosewood DPNS holding Lorna's sock number 2. And
2mm Crystal Palace (full set) and 2mm Brittany Birch (minus 1) holding the Vanalinn glove. I like the Brittany Birch, but I break them. My favourite sock needles are currntly the Rosewoods, but I like the Crystal Palace too.
All my other DPNS. I have every size DPNS from 2mm - 8mm. Some have never been used, but I picked up a big bundle of the plastic ones as a pack on eBay.
Circs! Every size from 2mm - 12mm, except 2.25mm and 8mm. The Addi bamboo is the current favourite. Favourites are generally the Addi's, but I do like bamboo needles. Oh, and there is another one on the Mystery Shawl 2.
I think that's it! I love needles, can you tell? I'm going to teach myself 2 socks on 2 circs sometime soon, so I'll probably buy more then ;)
Despite the number of needles I have, I still find there are ones I don't have, as evidenced by the Feather and Fan shawl. But yeah, I have a few.
So - share your needle stash!! Leave your links in the comments :)
Comments
That's a great collection of needles. I love the tortoise shell straights! I've never seen any like it. I'll let you know when I take a picture of my needles.
Posted by: wool winder at October 25, 2005 11:39 PMFun to see your needles. I do love the Lisa G needles that you sent me!
Posted by: Wendy G at October 25, 2005 11:55 PMI still have all my old, original faux tortoise shell needles from the 70s too. While mine unfortunately aren't actually my Nana's, I did buy them in memory of her. :) Tortoise shell needles were her preferred choice as she always said they were much easier on the hands than the metal ones were. Discovering that they are no longer available was a major shock for me when I went looking for needles for the jumper I knit as my first project when I started knitting again in mid 2003 after a really long break.
What a collection!! I don't even have half as many needles as that!! Wow! Then again I don't even have one complete full set yet. I'm such a newbie. *lol*
Posted by: Samantha at October 26, 2005 01:59 AMWOW!!! No wonder you had to go and hunt them all down. Those needles are incredible. I love the Lisa G ones.And there are so many different ones there I have yet to try out. Can I just come to your house and play with your needles?? :P
Posted by: Needle stalker at October 26, 2005 09:07 AMHoooo Boy - Donna, That is the stash of a serious knitter! As opposed to my needle stash that consists of vintage ones inherited from my elderly aunts, Nanna and Grandmother, that mostly are too brittle to use. Very sad! I'm also a compulsive collector and have a rather large lot of vintage straights. They are all yummy frivolous colours, not like the real workhorses you have. My needle stash speaks of a knitter who like how it all looks more than actually doing it... lol...I'm still keen for Macarthur Square BTW but just haven't had a suitable window. Maybe I'll save it for a fortnight or so when the new shops open. :-)
Posted by: the stripey tiger at October 26, 2005 07:22 PMJust noticec you asked us to share our stash...I'll get to that soooooooon.....
Posted by: the stripey tiger at October 26, 2005 07:22 PMholly molly!!! that's alot of needles!!!!
Posted by: Michelle at October 26, 2005 07:23 PMJust posted a picture of my needles.
http://woolwindings.blogspot.com
I might have about that many--but most of mine came off ebay. :) I even have some vintage circulars with the woven metal cable instead of the nylon one. I think they're from something like the 40s, but could be mistaken. I tried them once--the join was very snaggy. Most of the rest are straights (I like the 14", but I have some 8" and 10" as well), DPNs (sizes 1-10.5 US, incomplete collection), and circulars I actually use, mostly Inox and Susan Bates, but the Addi Turbos are really nice, too. Have a wonderful day!
Posted by: Cathy at October 27, 2005 10:10 PMi love your needles. and the lisa g needles are almost enough to make me want to knit with straights again. thanks for the birthday wishes for my not so little one!
Posted by: marti at October 28, 2005 09:21 AM
Thats really alot of needles! I wonder if I will have that many needles few years down the road... lol
Posted by: kessa at October 25, 2005 10:15 PM