Hi all! On Wednesday I had a play date and was able to pick my friend Jackie's brain about her many sets of quality knitting and crochet needles.
As we were talking about all the pro's and con's of each set we discovered that a truly perfect knitting needle would have the pointy but not too pointy tip of the Hiya Hiya, the beautiful, flexible cord of the ChiaoGoo and the "click and stay clicked" connection of the Addi Clicks. What do you think?
Okay, let's begin with the knitting needles. Jackie owns too many sets of needles to include them all in one post so I've decided to split it into two. The second post will feature straight needles, DPN's, and crochet hooks.
ChiaoGoo
This set is my personal favourite. I love the nice pointy tips but Jackie prefers the slightly less pointy tip of the Hiya Hiya.
The case this set comes in is very nice and well organized. Jackie purchased hers outright but I'm slowly collecting this set as my budget allows. When you purchase an entire set, of any good quality needles, you get the case, all the goodies AND usually save a nice bit of coin. The needles sizes are 2.75 to 8mm.
My only complaint about the ChiaoGoo set is the same as many of the circular needle sets, occasionally the cable will come loose. This is a pain if you don't catch it before you start your next row. But easily fixed.
We both own the complete ChiaoGoo Mini's. This set goes from 1.5mm to 2.5mm. I love them for socks and lace but, always a but, the 1.5mm needle is VERY sharp. I had to change the way I pushed the needle back through the stitches or I ended up with little holes in the tip of my index finger.
Hiya Hiya
This pretty blue case is home to a set of Hiya Hiya needle sizes 2-8mm. They are beautifully made and feel great in your hands. Jackie says the only con is that the cable isn't quite as nice as the ChiaoGoo's, yet it's soft and pliable just the same.
I haven't had a chance to use these needles for more than a few rows but I did very much enjoy them.
This is another set of Hiya Hiya. I never knew ANYONE offered a nice sharp version for those of us who use them. This set is the Sharp needles sizes US 2-8. These needles are excellent for pieces that have a lot of detail such as lace and shawls. While a sharp needle is great for picking up the stitches, it's been my, and Jackie's, experience that you have to be careful not let them slip back off the needles too.
I have never tried these needles but after handling them at Jackie's I'd say they seem very nice.
Kollage
These needles excite me! They are becoming one of Jackie's favourite needles. She's currently working on the Canada 150 blanket with them. She loves the way they feel in her hands and says they feel much less fatigue. She does however caution that because they slide differently, they are square, that at first your fingers will feel a little rough, almost like building up a callous. There are other brands who offer these square needles, but Jackie likes these the best! The needles in this basic set are sizes US 4 to 10.
I have yet to get my hands on these needles but they are on my "Fiberarts Bucket List". Being lucky enough to have them in my hands I compared the quality of all three of her sets of square needles and I think the Kollage are the nicest.
I must stress that when using any square knitting needles you MUST swatch for gauge. Often you'll need to use at least one size larger for your project.
Addi Click
Bamboo Click - sizes US 4 to 11 is yet another nice set of quality needles. We both agree the best feature is the "click". It's very rare you have to stop mid-row to fix your connector. These feel nice in your hands and well...they are Bamboo, which is smooth and warm to work with.
I have not knit with these needles but enjoyed playing with them. They are a quality set!
These are the Addi Click Rocket Lace Long Tip..... that was a mouthful. Beautiful, quality needles. Again the best feature is that Addi "click". When you're in the process of knitting large lace pieces the last thing you want to do is stop to fix your needle connection...or GOD forbid you've dropped your nupp and have to frog back.
These needles are quality! I could see a set of these in my future....when the price of Steem rockets!
Knitter's Pride Royal
This is a very pretty set. I see Jackie using them semi-regularly and many people rave about them. They do feel like good quality.
I'm the odd person out I guess. I have briefly tried them and they were NICE! BUT...always the but.... after my Knit Picks experience I'm not sure I trust these to last many years. It's not lack of perceived quality, it's the fact that those beautiful needles slip into a socket to connect to the cable. When these are a little off you can feel it in the way the wool slides over your needle.
In their defence, many of my knitting friends use these needles and just love them. They come in a very nice, organised box and are sizes US 4 to 11.
Takumi Combo Set By Clover
This set is hands down Jackie's favourite bamboo needles. Ranging in sizes US 3 to 15 they feel smooth and warm, the points are nicely sharp and the cable connection is smooth.
I haven't had a chance to knit with these needles but they are very nice. I compared them to the Addi click Bamboo and find they are a little lighter which in the long run would make them a little nicer to work with.
Denise
This set will always have a special place in my heart. This was the first set of needles that I purchased. They come in a great case that allows you see at a glance what's missing. Being made out of plastic, yes I said plastic, they are light and smooth. Just because they are plastic doesn't mean they are cheap...in fact the opposite is true. Like most other good quality brands they have a lifetime warranty..
The one reason I changed brands is that they just couldn't hold up to my active lifestyle. Kids running and blundering about, as well as constantly being packed to take on adventures, was just too much for this poor set. Breaking ensued.
I still have them and at times bring them out to use but I prefer my metal needles.
The second set is the Denise crochet hooks which I'll cover in the next post.
I hope you've enjoyed exploring interchangeable circular needle sets with me. Food for thought? I hope so. Please feel free share any of your thoughts in the comments.
Until next time friends.
Wow @fiberartists... I never knew there were so many types of knitting needles... I am intrigued by those square shaped needles as well : does that affect the shape of the stitch (in terms of tension) ? Can you knit the stitches in the same way ? I will look out for those just to try a 4mm size and compare to my normal...
I have to confess I kept on being distracted by that needle bed in the background. I am curious; is it a convertible knitting machine ? does Jackie also own many knitting machines ? 😍
The square knitting needles I haven't had a chance to use. It does affect the tension but a swatch with fix that. And yes...that's her knitting machine it's 150needles. And she only has the one. I don't know if it's convertible but I will ask her!
I never knew there were so many different types of knitting needles, also had no idea there were square needles... Just shows there's always something new to learn :-)
I love this post (perhaps because I love knitting and crochet tools) right now I will have dinner, but I hope to write more tomorrow or later ... But I had to say: I am a Addi click lace fan. Now Dinner ... and resteeming <3
They are so cute, I just want to hold them in my hand and look at them and look at them and look at them :D I have yet to find those round needles that have the flexible cord which does not break or fall apart :)
Wow, that is a lot of needles! I had no idea there were so many different types. I knew there were different sizes. Crazy that some are so sharp they poke holes in your finger tips!! If I ever get into knitting, I'll have to check out this post again to see what kind of needles I should get! ;)
LOL... it was a very tiny needle that poked me... Honestly I should have known better. Love your new quilt!
Thank you! I went to the shop today to make sure my quilt would work on the machine. They want me to learn how to use it first by practicing on a different quilt (makes sense). It slows my progress a little, but maybe I can get the test one done this week (old quilt top I made long ago) and then get Gwen's quilted soon. I think it will be much faster on their big machine than on my tiny sewing machine (that I've done plenty of other large quilts on...I just don't want to this time!).
Amazing collection 😨 wish I had just a couple of those. But maybe it's better to have only 2 pairs, less unfinished projects🤔
It's true...be we all have unfinished projects. But we all have fun experimenting. LOL Have a great day Ivan.
So now a little bit more answering. Lovely post! And lovely needles. Hiya Hiya and Ciaogoo are not very common here (but a growing number of shops start to stock them) so I have not tried them out. I am very curios to test the Chiaogoo with their self-swivelling joint. Very common are the needles from Knitpro (which I think is the same as Knitters Pride, because the needles look identical). I tested the multicoloured Knitpro wooden needles and they are too pointy for me and I learned that I do not like wooden needles at all, although they look so gorgeous. I knit much slower with them and I have the impression it is more tiring for me. I also tested the wooden square needles from Knitpro (named quattro). Again, I wanted to like them, but the edges press very uncomfortably into my hands. Some say these square needles even out the knitting, but I could not see a difference (@cryptocariad maybe this helps?)
Today the Addi click lace needles (long) are my favourites. I like their long-tapered tip and that they are not too sharp or blunt. I also like the ultra-smooth surface. Another pro is, they are made in Germany not in India like the Knitpro and you get a very good service if something is not ok with the needles.
As you see....I love needles, thank you for the lovely post.
I'd have to agree with you, I don't really care for knitting with bamboo needles either but because they seem to pick up dirt and oils from my hands much easier. Jackie told me the square ones knit very nice stitches but at first they are a little rough on your hands.
Addi of any sort are really nice! I would have gone with addi except my local LYS aren't official distributors. Here in Canada, many of the US company's don't want to deal with our exchanges. Not sure why but I have my suspicions. I purchased the Chiaogoo through Amazon. Thought I was being smart and saving a few dollars..blah. I had to hound US Chiaogoo to deal with me because the person I purchased through ISN'T actually a registered distributor. One needle had a burr that I couldn't do anything with. But, in the end they dealt with me and replaced the needle.
You're very right...Customer Service matters! Thanks so much for taking the time to weigh in on this. I loved your info.
Thanks @neumannsalva !
So informative. I think I need to make my own since I haven't seen any of the craft shops here selling these.
I knew a lady, year ago, who's husband made her knitting needles. If you make them I'd love to see how you do it and find out how they work for you. Thanks!
Very nice review/show and tell of all those knitting needles. I haven’t got into knitting enough to know about all of these brands and sizes. But from this post I do see that there are many to choose from. I love the cases they come in and the styles and designs.
One thing I do know is I also love working with bamboo. I have two big crochet needles that are bamboo and they are so comfortable for my fingers. I’m looking forward to your second post with the crochet needles ;)
Thanks @crosheille! I'll try not to disappoint. Have a great #needleworkmonday.
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Wow! That's an impressive review of your collection of needles. The square needles look more like something a wax sculptor or a painter would use.
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