Making your own knitting needles

[friedchickenonmyknitten]

Hey ladies,

Wonder if someone can tell me where to go get dowel rods. I went to Lowes and the selection was so poor I walked out empty handed, there was only about 5 different sizes and I already had them all. I was hoping for a larger selection.

Also, is there something to put on the bamboo needles to make them more slick without ruining the yarn. I notice it seems difficult to get my yarn up the needle, but admittedly I do knit a little tight. If there is nothing I can apply to the surface I might just focus my attention on aluminum needles.

Thanks in advance for your help!

[Jenelle]

I looked around a bit and found that Joann's has a nice selection of them, and Wal-mart has them too.

Also check at your local hard-ware stores.

[ekgheiy]

Check out Michael's or AC Moore for the dowels. I've seen some in Michael's, but I haven't seen any in AC Moore. But they sell basically the same thing ... sometimes different options.

Sorry - I don't know about the finishing of the wooden needles. But my guess would be to use some type of wood varnishing? :thinking: You can also buff them with fine grade sandpaper - that might get them smoother. But also keep in mind that that is a characteristic of wooden needles - they naturally tend to grip the yarn more than plastic, aluminum or nickles etc... :thinking:

[BinkyKat]

The tip I read the most is to rub your wooden needles with waxpaper to help slick them up a bit. I would be concerned with coating with varnish or sanding too much so as to not change the size of the needles.

[ekgheiy]

Oh hey - have you seen the video on making your own needles??

[carollovesyarn]

You can get paste wax from a hardware or home depot type store - put it on, buff it off and it'll dry hard and slick. This is what I use for furniture and my swift. No excessive sanding necessary.

[smartcat]

Try local hobby stores for larger selections of dowels. They stock more dowel sizes for models and such.