Saturday, March 24, 2007

Skully Needles?

Here is a quickie tutorial on how to make your own Skully-type Knitting Needles. Aren't they too cute? You could use this tutorial to make all kinds of cute needles. Love the idea...
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5 comments:

Jaime said...

Those are adorable! Most of my handmade needles are DPN's, since my LYS is walmart and they only carry size 3's - d'oh! Next needles I make, though, I'm sticking skulls on them! :D

I do have a few tips, though, for anyone who wants to try to make these. I've found that painting the needles makes them a bit difficult to use. The yarn doesn't slide as well and it can make them uneven. If you're a tight knitter like me, it can be a problem. I usually sand mine and then rub them across the top of a candle and wipe them down with a paper towel to make them really smooth.

Old chopsticks can be substituted for dowels (yay for recycling!) and you don't need a saw to cut them. You can use scissors to make a dent, and then break the dowel/chopstick along the dent. It doesn't really matter if it's uneven since it's either going to be sharpened or hidden in the clay. :)

It's also a good idea to test out the points to make sure they're strong enough (and not too sharp!) If they're too weak, the ends can get all wonky and they can become hard to use.

And finally, there's also a polymer clay skull tutorial if you're interested in a cute, goofy-looking skulls. Anyway, happy needle making! :D

3/25/2007 12:41 AM
Unknown said...

Thanks J! I have never made my own knitting needles before. It would be a lot of fun to try. HUGS!

3/25/2007 10:25 AM
Jaime said...

No problem. :D It really can be a lot of fun and you can get some pretty nice results. In fact, my favorite needles used to be chopsticks. :D

I was also thinking that you could stain the dowels with wood stain rather than painting. I've never tried it, but it should keep them smooth enough for knitting. :)

3/25/2007 1:52 PM
pins&needles said...

Staining the needles sounds like a good idea. I love this DIY site! Not only did it have an excellent tutorial on the needles, but I'm quite impressed with other crafts on there.

3/26/2007 7:31 AM
MsFortuknit said...

How great Rhi'! I bet Rachels saying where were you before she spent an arm and leg on mine! hahah

Your page is really cool, I like the stuff your doing with it! Very cool!

3/26/2007 3:47 PM

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