Inevitable
Sigh. I have knit two curls, two sizable curls on straight needles with no problems at all. I just bunched the stitches up (and eventually whacked a rubber band around the fabric to keep it smooshed together). It worked perfectly.
But that’s just not going to work for this one. The yarn is both astonishing fluffy and hideously delicate, and it just won’t take being smooshed too much. Stitches are popping off both ends of the needles, and I’m pretty sure if I tried to rubber band it, the band would chew right through the fabric like a chainsaw.
So I did the unthinkable. I actually bought circular needles. I feel dirty.
And of course, this pair had scuffed up tips, which I only realized after I transferred all several hundred stitches over. So I’ve moved them back to straights and am waiting for the new needle to arrive. Then we’ll see if I can actually bring myself to knit on circs. I expect I’m going to whine. A lot.
Edit: The second pair of addis also arrived with scuffed tips, so I switched to ChiaoGoo red lace needle and am having much better luck with that.
Once I switched to Chiaogoo I never went back to any other needle.
I love Knit Picks needles – they’re reasonably cheap, and the cord on the circulars is flexible.
Too funny (the part about the circular needles, not the part about the delicate fiber). I don’t even understand straight needles anymore. It’s really difficult to drop a circular needle (that’s what I love about them)
Welcome to the bright side – you will never go back to straights – and Signature circs are the BEST! (Chiagoo Red Lace is not bad – -have those also!)
I haven’t knit with straight needles in years. Haven’t tried ChiaGoo or Signature needles – I hear both are good. I love using HiyaHiya stainless steel sharp tip circular needles. I haven’t had a scuffed tip yet. Good luck with the new needles.
Lol. I’ve used circulars and I like both for straight knitting. I can’t stand circulars for knitting in the round, though. DPNs for me!
I don’t think I’ve knitted with straights in years. I even knit my socks with one 40″ circular and would not go back to DPN’s. I, too, love KnitPicks needles (be sure to use the little tool to tighten the join!), but I do love Addis and haven’t had the scuffed problem with them. Maybe a bad batch?
I wonder if the shop you bought the addis from had gotten a bad batch? I have both the addi lace click sets (short tips and regular tips), and use those for 90% of my projects; I love that they don’t come unscrewed like my KnitPicks and Knitter’s Pride interchangeables, and the tips are sharp without being deadly. Haha, I think the only time I use another brand is when the size addis I need are already in a WIP.
Weird that both sets of Addi’s came scuffed. Like others, I haven’t knit on straights in years. I mostly use 24 in circs and go up to 32 in when needed. I like the Addi Rockets and Signatures (although they are different feeling if you switch between them) and next purchase will be to try out ChiaoGoo red lace, as I’ve heard good things. Good luck with the transition! 😉 (sjn821 on Rav)
Possibly a bottle of wine will help with using circs! Myself, I prefer circs because long straights hurt my wrists. Which wine also helps with.
I didn’t think anyone used straights any more.
You could use interchangeables with a cable and cable cap on each needle and they would be sort of like really long straights.
Another convert to circs – I don’t think I’ve used a pair since the first time I knit a scarf on circs!
P.S. That would be a pair of straights, of course.
Once I switched to chiaogoo, it was like the heavens opened and angels were singing. They are by far the best needles I have used.
I got the interchangeable set for Christmas and I’m working on getting several pairs in each size for sock knitting.
I *LOVE* my ChiaoGoo needles. So much so, that although I finally had a chance to try out Signatures this year, the small jump in quality cannot justify the large jump in price, so I likely will never own a pair of Signatures. 🙂
I’m also one who knits everything on circulars. I have a few dpns for small projects, but the dpns are more often used as cable needles. 🙂
The major difference for me between circs and straights is the balance. I find that when I knit with straights now, I feel like I’m flapping my wings (and sometimes my elbows) and hitting my neighbors. With circs and dpns, I tuck my elbows close and knit with smaller motions. So I can see you being uncomfortable with the difference, too, because of the lack of counterbalancing weight at the ends. Do you tuck one of the ends of your straights into your arm pit in a lever knitting style? I’m trying to learn that, but the left needle still feels like a flappy wing.
And I agree that it’s harder to drop a circular needle in such a way that requires fishing between the seats or on the floor. 😉
I use circulars for everything! I have fallen in love with Hiya Hiya Sharps. Inexpensive, and fabulous. I tried some ChiaGoo but they have more texture on them than the Hiya Hiya, and I’m pretty accustomed to the smooth!
Don’t you be hatin’ on my favorites: circular needles!
I want to put my hand up for straights here. I have been known to use circulars when necessary but so prefer my straights and prefer 4 dpns to knit small stuff in the round.