Needle Storage

There seems to be a lot of discussion on the UKHandknitters list about circular needles. I'm a great fan, I use them most of the time, regardless of if I'm knitting in the round or back and forth. You get them in various lengths, various materials, with various points and the only drawback seems to be that the size is not printed on them (unless you buy Addi Turbos - hugely expensive but well worth it.) As a consequence of this you end up with a bag/box/drawer full of curly bits of plastic/wood/metal that could easily drive you up the wall.

I have tried different solutions but my favourite at the moment is this:



These are portable CD cases bought from Ikea a few weeks ago and finally stuffed full of circular needles.



Yes, they are coiled up - this is surely the nature of the beast. Yes, you do still have to make an educated guess as to circumference and then get out the needle gauge to check. You could, on the other hand, just do what I do and pick out a likely candidate. Everyone can tell the difference between a 9mm Addi Turbo and a 3mm metal "lace" needle with the wicked points, can't they?

I went to #1 daughter's Summer Concert yesterday evening. It's all to do with Warwickshire's County Music Service. They do a great job, though I am more than grateful that said daughter took up the flute and not the fiddle. There is nothing worse than a beginner on the violin (unless it's a group of beginners.) Thanks to the concert, I finished the first sock.

Here's a close-up of the gusset:



where you can also see the heel stitch. Heather, I think it was, asked what yarn I'm using. I'm sorry to say I haven't got a clue. It's some ACK-rylic I bought in Birmingham a while ago and I have lost the ball band. I found a ball band telling me it was Patons Fab but closer investigation seems to point to something else - Patons Fab doesn't appear to be variegated and this yarn certainly is. I like the way it has turned out. All I have to do now is make the other sock. In order to avoid the dreaded "Second Sock Syndrome" I have cast on immediately and have got 24 stitches on the needles at the moment.

Progress on the One Skein Wonder continues:



I am almost to the end of the increases and will shortly have to make a decision as to which needle size to use for the seed stitch borders round the arms and whether to do the borders in the round or back and forth and seam them. The latter is what the pattern recommends but, as I'm sure I've mentioned before, I don't do sewing. If it could be done in the round, it almost certainly should be done in the round.