Hi,
Here I am with yet another question. I am planning to knit some mittens, first time ever. I am going to use the mitten knitting tutorial I found on knit picks site. The videos are really straight forward and seem quite ‘easy’. I have used circular needles before for hats but have not used them for magic loop knitting but looking forward to a new technique.
The videos talk about using a length of 32" to have enough cable, my question for those of you who have done this technique before, can you use shorter lengths, such as 24" or 29" or is it it determined by your project? I know when I knit them for me I would need a longer cable to have enough room for the stitches but I will be knitting the first pair for my 14 month old and they would be a much smaller circumference.
Again just excited to do the project with what I have but if I need more needles i’ll just ‘have’ to buy new needles
And the ‘pattern’ on the video just gives a general amount of stitches for the pair she knits for herself, how do I determine the amount of stitches needed for my little one? Especially considering trying the mitten on as I go is always a little hard with someone so squirmy.
Any help is appreciated.
TIA
Joan
Especially for mittens you can use the 29" length though you might have better luck using the single loop variation where there’s only one loop. And that would let you knit the ones for yourself on the same needle too. The 24" doesn’t ML well, the cord is too short even for mittens, it’s okay on the single loop, but still a little short. Yes, there’s a minimum number of sts/size where the shorter needles are a little more difficult to do either.
I have used a 24" cable to make baby sized mittens using the Magic Loop method (although I have the KnitPicks Options interchangeable set and the cables are very flexible) … it is possible, but like Suzeeq says it will be much easier and more comfortable to use a 32" cable if you have one.
If you only have a 24" cable and you’re not looking to buy more needles at this point, then you could give it a try. If you already have a longer cable, or if you’re going to be buying a needle for this project, then definitely get the 32" cable … it will be easier to work, and it will be more versatile in the future when it comes to other projects.
Thanks for the insight both of you.
I have a 29" circular that I can use for my lo’s mittens and see how it goes. I will probably invest in the 32" as I go since I want to add doing mittens to what I can make for family. Although I do seem to have trouble getting that length around here for some reason. I will have to check out my lys from back home when I visit or order online.
I would love to check out some of knitpicks stuff but not sure if they ship to Canada.
The 29" should work okay for your mittens, just use the Single Loop instead of Magic Loop with it.
Knit picks does ship to Canada, but there’s a duty.