Learn the value of knitting by taking a closer look at the different types of knitting needles that vary in style, appearance, color, size, length, usage, and benefits.
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Different Types of Knitting Needles
The 21st century brought forth a great wave of popularity in the world of knitting that further led to the creation of different knitting needle styles and types. These greatly varied in terms of appearance, color, size, length, usage, and benefits.
Take a look at the five most popular and common types of knitting needles that you are likely to find in most households in today’s times.
Straight Needles
These are single-pointed types of needles that are generally used for flat-knitting. This is also the most basic style of knitting needle that usually comes to mind when you think of knitting needles.
Straight needles are commonly used for flat knitting projects like scarves, dishcloths, and pieced sweaters, to name a few. Many refer to them as the ‘run-of-the-mill’ knitting needles that most of our grandmothers used to knit with back in the days.
In terms of appearance, straight needles look exactly as they sound; they are thin and straight and consist of only a single point at one end while on the other end, they have a kind of a stopper or a knob. These needles typically come in sets of two and are very easy and straightforward to use as beginner set of needles.
Circular Needles
As the name suggests, circular needles are typically used for knitting items that are round and have larger circumferences, such as hats, but they may also be used for knitting sweaters and wraps too. These needles are considered to be one of the most versatile types of needles and are said to be the most useful needles in your knitting bag.
Circular needles are quite similar to double pointed needles in terms of their appearance. They are basically two tapered needles with short pointed ends that are connected or attached to one another with the help of a smooth nylon cord. The cord is more like a fixed cable that joins the two needles together. The two needles are connected in a way that they almost look like a single long knitting needle.
Interchangeable Circulars
Considering the multiple needle sizes with the varying cord lengths of circular needles, it can be very difficult to choose the right measurements, especially if you are an avid knitter. However, there is a very handy solution for that – an interchangeable kit. This kit comes with different needle tips in a standard range of sizes. These tips can easily be attached to the varying cord lengths. So, in a single changeable kit, you get a size 16 needle, for instance, in at least three different cord lengths.
This means that you can buy the needle cables and needle tips separately and create any size combination according to your preference.
Fixed Circulars
In contrast to interchangeable circulars, there are also fixed circulars available that come in a single needle size with only one cable length. For instance, you can easily get a 9 mm needle with a 20cm cable. Considering that your knitting project calls for those very requirements, this particular fixed circular needle would come in extremely handy.
However, imagine that your knitting needs call for a 9mm needle, but with a 30 cm cable length. In such situations, you’ll definitely need to go buy a different size in order to meet your knitting preferences. This is one reason why fixed circulars are considered to be impractical, and most people prefer knitting needles with interchangeable circulars over these.
