Author: Bethany

Knitting Needles 101

Happy Saturday guys! I figured I’d put together a little guide here to the knitting needles that I use in my patterns. I often have people asking where I get my needles, what length they are, etc. I’m hoping this will help everyone out!:)

There are so many knitting needles out there that it’s super easy to get lost in a daze of what in the world you should purchase. Many patterns will vary on whether you are going to need circular or straight needles. On the plus side, if a pattern calls for straight needles, you can use circulars and simply use them as if they were straights. I don’t often use circulars. Very rarely.

Wool and the Gang 25mm needles

I’ll start with the 25mm needles and work down. US these are a size 50. When I first started knitting, I ordered all of my yarn and needles from the Uk. I tend to call my needles by the mm sizing instead of the US sizing.

These needles are 12” in total length and have 11” of workable length.

These needles are typically my go to needles for my super chunky knits and my best selling patterns, The Lost Road Trip Cardi and The Winter Blues Sweater. You can actually fit quite a few stitches on these needles!

The best part about knitting with 25mm needles, is they make a project go super fast! You can seriously knit a sweater in no time at all. The reason I choose to use them for my chunky knits, is they show off the softness of the super chunky yarn. When you use smaller needles, the yarn is more compacted and hence, a bit more firm. I’m just not the biggest fan of that.

They do take a bit of practice to get used to but once you do, you’ll be in love with them!

My circular pair can be purchased from Loopy Mango here.

The straight pair can be purchased from Wool & The Gang here. I will also add, Wool & the Gang does also sell circulars in this size now.:)

We Are Knitters 15mm needles

My next favorite for chunky knits is the 15mm needles. I don’t knit big yarn with any size smaller than these. I sometimes use 12mm for ribbing, but not the main body of the sweaters. This is about the smallest size you can go and still keep the cozy soft feeling of the super chunky yarn.

These needles are 14.5” in total length, with 13.5” in actual workable length. Their website states differently, but I like squishing stitches as far as I can. 🤣

These needles are the ones I use for my All Smiles Tomorrow sweater and Feelin Like Fall Jumper patterns. They too also make for a quick knit!

My 15mm needles can be purchased from We Are Knitters here.

Wool & The Gang 12mm needles

Next up is the 12mm knitting needles from Wool and The Gang. These needles I tend to use mostly for ribbing. The Winter Magic sweater uses these needles for just a few rows. I believe my only full sweater knit with these needles is my Bring Me Coffee Cardi which kind of makes for the same concept as using my 25mm needles with the super chunky yarn. The texture and softness just shines through!

These needles are 13.75” in total length and have 13” in workable length.

You can purchase these needles from Wool & The Gang by clicking here.

Wool & The Gang 8mm needles

My 8mm, US size 11, straight knitting needles are one of the two sizes I use for knitting smaller yarns. I love using these needles for We Are Knitters petite wool, they’re the absolute perfect fit. I also love using an 8 with cotton and having them knit up a bit quicker and have more stretch and an airy feel to them.

These particular needles are 12.75” in total length and 12” in workable.

A couple of my designs using these 8mm needles are the Vintage Princess Cardi and the Candy Hearts Pullover.

We Are Knitters also sells size 8mm needles.

You can purchase these ones from Wool & The Gang by clicking here.

We Are Knitters 5mm needles

Almost every cotton design I knit is using these 5mm, US size 8, knitting needles. They’re the perfect fit for making cotton sweaters! Although they’re currently the smallest size needle I’ve used and take the longest to work up, the result is beautiful.

These needles have a total length of 14.5” and a workable length of 13.5”. You can easily fit many many cotton stitches onto these!

My favorite designs using these needles are my Zoey cardigan and Lorraine tie back tank set, as well as my Inez Summer Sweater pattern! Those are my summer staples and best selling cotton patterns.

You can purchase these needles from We Are Knitters here.

I hope that helps you out! I’ll update these page with other needles I use when/if I use others.:) Have a super fabulous weekend!

January 22, 2022
One Month until Valentines Day!

One month until Valentines Day! Who’s excited?! I looove Valentines Day. All the pretty pink and red and flowers and love. Everything is so cute and happy. I love spending the whole month before valentines day in the Valentine’s Day mood. I mean, why not.

The next month is going to fly by, so now is the perfect time to get started on your Valentines sweater! Wear it for your valentines coffee run, lounging around home, or date nights! Plus, if you’re lucky enough to be reading this now, the Candy Hearts sweater pattern is $4 for the weekend! 👏🏻 Get it here!

My candy hearts sweater pattern is one of my favorites that I always wear around Valentines Day. I’m actually hoping to have another new design up this year, we’ll see if I get the time! But for now, this one is the one I wear.

This is a beginner friendly and easy pattern. New knitters won’t have any problem working this one up! The “hearts” on the front are optional, but are just made using the duplicate stitch method. The remainder of the candy hearts sweater is knit in stockinette stitch and a couple rows of yarn overs with a knit two together. Like that’s it. You got this.

The colors and yarn I used for this sweater are We Are Knitters petite wool in “millennial pink” for the body pieces, and the We Are Knitters meriwool in “sprinkle fantasy” for the sleeves. The hearts were made using scrap petite wool colors.

If you’d like to make this sweater larger or smaller, it’s super easy to adjust. I would say this is an adult sized medium. For a larger size. simply add 8 stitches to your cast on and knit an extra 6 rows. For a smaller fit, deduct 6 stitches from your cast on and deduct 4 rows from the length.

Here’s a couple of the candy hearts sweaters that have been knit up by you lovely people!

@lilstitchesbylily on Instagram

@rosazielstra on Instagram

@knittingforniklas on Instagram

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

January 14, 2022
Balancing Life as A Mama and Knitwear Designer

I have had many people come to me with the question: Where in the world do you find the time to knit with 5 kids? I decided I’ll write a post to better help you all out, as much as I can.

Everyone’s life situation is different and mine is no exception. I have five children (almost six!), the oldest is 12 and the youngest is 3. I started knitting five years ago now, when my fourth youngest was ten months old. I am a full time mama to my kids, my husband works long days and has since my oldest was 2. I’ve homeschooled my kids since the oldest started kindergarten. We love traveling and do it as often as we can. My family lives in Minnesota, so that’s where most of my traveling is to. But we love taking random weekend trips and adventures here and there as well!

I’ll do another post on what my typical day looks like, although they vary greatly. But for the most part, where my knitting falls into place is always the same. I tend to leave my current knitting project on the kitchen counter during the day. It gives me easy access to sneak in a couple rows here and there. When the kids are eating lunch, I’ll do a few rows. If they’re all quietly occupied, I’ll do a few rows. Just a little bit when I can helps move it along.

Most of my knitting happens in the evening after the kids are in bed. I have way too much going on during the day to make good progress. Even though my kids are pretty good at doing lessons and playing together, I like to be present with them. Knitting takes focus and I can’t fully be present while doing it. Some can! I always hear of people who do other things while knitting and more power to them, but I just can’t do that. I can’t even talk to people while I knit, I need to pause! 🙈 I’ve messed up my work one too many times whilst trying to have a conversation while knitting.

So after the kids are in bed and I’ve done the evening cleaning, made my husbands lunch for work the next day, and switch laundry (it’s never ending!) then I’ll go back to my knitting. I typically get about one to two hours in during the evening.

When traveling, I rarely knit. If I’m in Minnesota, I might do a few rows here and there. But otherwise, I don’t knit on trips. Not even in the car. I love seeing the scenery and sipping my iced coffees when I’m the passenger, regardless of where we are. Sometimes I’ll try read a book, but there’s something I enjoy about having time to do nothing and just gaze out the window. I actually love driving, so I don’t spend much time in the passenger seat anyway!

Again, everyone’s life is different with different obligations. So the advice I can leave you with is this: knit when you can! Leave your project in an accessible spot so you can pick it up when you have a moment. If you like to knit while riding in the car, do it! Don’t stress about when you’re going to have time to knit, it’s not worth it. If I spend too many evenings in a row knitting, I end up getting burnt out. I’ll take off an evening or two and read a book instead. It helps a lot! It might be hard at first to know you need a break, the anxiety about finishing it will creep in, but in the long run, it’ll take faster.

Don’t compare yourself to the people who seem to whip out projects left and right. Their lives are different too. Do what you are able. Do what works for you. Life is meant to be enjoyed and fun!

January 9, 2022