The softest yarn, 0% scratchy, perfect for close to the neck: snefnug by camarosa! It's not a budget yarn but in my opinion it's worth it. I knit a cardigan with it last year and it has held up really well, I'm planning on using it again this autumn for a.neck warmer.
I´ve seen in another knitting podcast that this honey cardigan from Kutovakika is knitted in separate pieces and mended together at the end. I just wanted to mention it in case that´s not for you.
Hey there! It is my first time on your channel and then I hear about my sweet Riga! By they way, the yarn store you talked about-they ship around Europe.
I love working with Drops Air and wearing it, but in my experience it pills a lot, and this way pulls the fibers out of the tube so the yarn will get really thin in high friction areas like under the arms etc. Also in my case the tube is white (the yarn is teal) and it will show once the fibers start to get pulled out in those areas. So for accessories definitely YES, for clothes that I wear a lot, maybe not so great.
If you have yarn hanks, then a swift and winder is really useful, otherwise they are not necessary. Instead of needle holders, I use either short cable needles (if I have a lot of them in my stash that I inherited from my gran), or short cables of my interchangeable needles with screw-on stoppers, or (my favourite option) barber cord - thin plastic tubes that you can stick on the needlepoint and move over the stitches to put them on hold. Especially useful for trying on sweaters if you're not done with the body and sleeves, you just have to have long enough barber cords. Personal question - it says you live in Austria but to my ears you definitely sound like a native speaker (if I had to guess - Canadian?). I'm a very nosy person and would love to know the back story 😁 Hi from Bavaria btw 🙂
Thanks for sharing! Haha yes I get this question a lot! I am actually also Bavarian but have grown up in Asia then moved to Canada now I’m back in Europe! Good ear!! 🥰🥰
I’ve made a cardigan with it (crochet granny square) and I like it - it can be washed (but be careful the colour bleeds) and depending on crochet/knit it will be denser/ less dense!
It's nice to have stoppers when you are using the really long needles and are throwing it into a bag. Another thing thats nice for the really long needles is if you are showing someone how to knit, you can hold the long ends and do the motions so they can get the feel right at the beginning.
I try to get items that are multi purpose, I have a large wool mat for ironing, which I use for a blocking mat. I have a gauge square that also has a needle gauge, and some reminder items like the Kitchener stitch written out, and list of yarn weights with the standard gauge. A regular DPN can work as a cable needle. As you find your knitting style and discover what you like knitting, you find the tools you need. Then you put your money towards items that help improve your projects. I’ve been knitting for countless years and found the things that I want to spend money one. Personally I love project bags and have several. I get them from a local crafter, but starting out a good old fashioned ziplock bag works great, or clothes shopping bag.
The needle measuring ruler is amazing !! I have wooden needles and the size is written with a very low quality ink, I know at some point it's gonna become completely invisible, and a lot of these needles are small sizes that are difficult to sort ! I didn't know these rulers existed but now I can stop worrying for my needles haha On some needles the size is engraved and not written, I think these last longer ! So for anyone who wants to buy new needles this is a nice detail to look for :)
I do think the needle sizer is necessary, if you have more than one or two needle sizes in your collection. The reason is this: the print rubs off after a while. After a year or two- my more favorite needle sizes have all rubbed off. Even permanent marker rubs off. So it helps to keep a small needle sizer with your notions.
i am a big fan of tape measures, i have like 4??????????? i leave one in my tool bag (it's the bag that has my needles and scissors and hooks and stitch markers and things of the sort), one in my drawer in my desk, one in my sewing kit, i just leave them around because i reach for them so often. i also am constantly using row counters, especially if i'm working with a type of yarn that is difficult to see (velvet plushie yarn and black yarn, i'm looking directly at you) or if i'm working on something that has a lot of rows, i'm not gonna remember which row i'm in on a project that is 57 rows of straight up the same stitch, no increases or decreases, on the round. my memory is just not made like that.
I personally think if you need a project bag, make your own. Not only do you get another thing to knit (or crochet) but it's great for stash-busting :) I had a job in recent past where I attended quite a few conferences through the year and I have gotten quite the collection of freebies. My current notions bag is an eyeglasses bag, and my measuring tape was also free. I know not everyone has job situations like this, but getting clever with what we already have access to can be part of one's creative process!
A swift and ball winder is more so if you are using hanks of yarn. Usually indie hand dyed yarn is going to come in hanks and if you do not use these tools you will likely end up with a tangled mess and it will take hours to fix, and if your me it usually results in pulling out the scissors. I still love my ball winder as I rewind everything into cakes and use the center pull but you can absolutely just hand wind into a ball.
I use a lot of hand dyed yarn or yarn in hanks and love having a yarn swift and ball winder! You can go old school and have a friend hold the loop of yarn while you wind. It works just fine, especially if you are short on space or cash (or both!)
Def don’t need, but I would say row counter is really great. I use mine all the time. I don’t have a swift, but def have a yarn winder. I much prefer working from a center pull cake. Many things are just helpful to make knitting more enjoyable. But not needed.
I totally agree! I think it’s also fun to go out and buy something you’ve been substituting for a long time :) definitely don’t need everything right at the beginning though!
If you inherit long (jumper) needles, keep a few, as they are super useful once you get to more advanced, and you want to do italian cast on. The straight needle keeps the loops from twitching around the needle/cord of the cable needles
I use row counters for fingering or lace weight projects such as shawls with 40 row repeats and intricate patterns. So, they are not a must have, but they might come in handy 😃
Project bags are so overrated 😊. I collected a few trough the years, because they were part of a kit or promotion But before I used linnen (shopping) bags or toiletry bags for smaller projects. Or even ziplock bags I buy a lot of yarn that are in hanks, not in balls of yarn. My LYS will wind it in a ball if you ask them. But when you buy it from a yarn dyers webshop it’s not always an option or will cost extra I recently purchased mine and I’m soooo so happy! It saves me a lot of time and back pain. I used to put my yarn on the legs of the chairs and sat on the ground winding balls by hand for HOURS.
I agree! I literally use anything for project bags - usually a small shopping bag does the job :) Another comment below mentions this about the hand dyed yarn - I guess I have just never gotten an un-wound skein!
Hiya! I very much agree that the only must haves for knitting are the four items you mentioned. However, a ball winder and swift are useful if you frequently knit with hand-dyed yarn that comes in hanks which you can’t directly knit from, as they make turning that hank into a usable cake of yarn go so much faster. Also: honourable mention for nice-to-have goes to try-on-cords or Barber cords, those narrow, long silicone tubes which you can attach to the point of your needle and pull through the stitches of your sleeve or body when you want to place stiches on hold or try your garment on. Totally a convenience thing, but they speed up the process of getting the stitches off and back on your needles by a lot 😊
Thanks for sharing! Perhaps I will end up getting a winder once I get more into hand dyed yarn! It’s not super wide spread around here (sadly!).. I do agree with the binders too - to get the stitches off the yarn can be quite tedious haha!
I have been dreaming of the Kitovakika's top as soon as she released it and will certainly make it one day. Thank for this very interesting review and your suggestions
Stumbled on your channel and I like your vibe and your enthusiasm 🙂 I'm subscribing I own KutovaKika's book as well I hope to see you making more patterns from the book so I can be knitfluenced on what to make 😊✨ I wanted to knit the lighthouse beanie so this is perfect!!! 😊✨
Thank you! This means a lot <3 I definitely have some more projects of the book on my to-make list - I will of course share them here as I make them :) I hope you enjoy making the lighthouse beanie!
