3 points about knitting needles to make lace edging

Last week we saw that the choice of a thread can go hand in hand with the choice of knitting needle size to be used. That leads us into this week’s bit-size tutorial about choosing knitting needles for making your lace edging.

Quite simply, there are 3 general points I consider in choosing the knitting needles to use for a lace edging project. (In fact, other than the first point below, the remainder apply to lace in general.) Remember that these are generalizations, and ultimately your personal preferences will reign (as well as possibly what needles you already have available in your knitting tool arsenal).

1. Since lace edgings are often very narrow, consider using short straight needles.

I’m not normally a straight needle kind of person (I prefer circulars in most cases). But if there are only going to be a handful of stitches on the needles, I grab a couple of double point needles and use those.

If it bothers you that there is an extra point on the other end of the double point needle that you don’t need to use (or you fear your stitches will fall off), just cap that end with a point protector or piece of cork or whatever. Be inventive!

2. The needles for knitting lace are usually relatively large compared to normal knitting with similar weight thread/yarn.

Don’t be afraid of trying a range of needle sizes.

Fortunately, lace edgings usually have so few stitches, that a 3 to 4 inch length sample size takes hardly any time to make. The needle size YOU need to make a fabric with the degree of desired firmness vs drape will depend on the item to which the edging is being attached and its use.

And of course, personal preference comes into play here. In fact, remember that word “PLAY”. There’s no right or wrong here. Just what works for YOU.

Same thread, same edging pattern, same number of repeats. Just a different needle size. Don't be afraid to "play".

3. The material the knitting needles are made of can make a difference.

Stainless steel vs. aluminum vs. wooden etc. makes a difference. How your stitches slide or grab can affect both your tension and your joy of knitting.

Too slick and you can feel like you are skating on thin ice. Too grabby and it will slow you to a crawl and tire you out too quickly. Like Goldilocks and the 3 Bears, there is a point at which the porridge is ‘just right’. Only you can know that.

If you are going to be working a mile of lace edging, sample and make sure you are comfortable with how the combination of yarn and needles feels while you are working. Fortunately, all of our projects for Bits of Lace will be relatively small, so you can get experience under your belt while still creating some pretty things.

The missing point?

Some of you may have realized I didn’t mention how pointy the knitting needles need to be so they can be used for lace? Well, it just is not something that I require to knit successful lace. This is why: I don’t like to puncture myself or work too hard, lol. I personally feel that if you need to use extra-sharp needles for your lace, you might instead want to consider loosening up your tension. The looser tension also helps you not work so hard and tire your wrists and hands (or worse problems in the long term). But again, this can be a preference that you yourself will have to ultimately decide upon.

The main point of all of this is to have fun. These are just guidelines and suggestions so that you can find your own happy zone for knitting bits of lace.