My sister insists on wooden knitting needles. As she’s a genius knitter, I bow to her expertise when she tells me that wood is the best choice for working with real wool.
Lightweight yet strong, wooden knitting needles are naturally warm to the touch, which is apparently much nicer for those knitters who are troubled by arthritis. Or, I suggest, for those who just love the feel of smooth wood!
You can find some wonderfully tactile knitting needles made of wood these days – both the eco-friendly bamboo and the traditional hardwoods – at quite reasonable prices.
Do look for those that haven’t got a lacquer finish – if it’s just the natural wood, the natural oils from your wool and your fingers will keep them smooth and lovely – or you can just rub them down from time to time with a piece of ordinary waxed paper to touch up the surface.
Oh, and if your compulsion to knit your way through the evening TV fare is driving your roommates to distraction, there’s another reason to consider the wooden needle.
They don’t make that incredibly annoying click-click click-click click-click sound that lots of metal and plastic knitting needles make — that sound that reminds me of the metronome that ticked away on the top of the piano, during those long long hours of childhood torture when I was forced to practice the minor scales…But I digress.
We’re talking about a clever, original and relatively frugal gift idea here for the keen knitter in your life!
Think about it…
Package up a pair or foursome of lovely rosewood needles, say, with a skein or two of wool from one of the many fine indie spinners on Etsy, and perhaps a free knitting pattern from Tahki Stacy Charles that you’ve printed out on nice paper — and voila! You’ve got a unique gift on a knitting theme!
The women in Estonia use apple wood for knitting needles. It might be available overseas.
Grrr…. I have looked and looked why birch and not apple wood for knitting needles?