Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Fun With Knitting Needles

I have been sorting my spare knitting needles into lots to sell...I have some really really stunning ones...and I've ended up with some spares. I was just wondering what could be done with them when I stumbled upon Fooba Wooba's Etsy Shop...




My first try was with hot water but the plastic doesn't heat up enough so I turned to the oven. The plastic still didn't get hot enough - until the needle fell to the bottom element and got beautifully soft - only about 5 seconds to work with the plastic and I had a pretty good result.

Further experimentation with the oven : not so good!

Faux tortoiseshell needles burst into flame & melt easily (see discolouration in my pic - left)... others melted in places causing discolouration or bubbling. *Sigh* so I settled for a tea light candle which was semi-successful... every type of plastic needs a different treatment and care or snapping / burning / popping / fizzling etc occurs. I'm amazed that Fooba Wooba has managed to get hers so perfect because the plastic bends very unpredictably and with the possibility of scourching finger skin -- I suppose practice makes perfect (and by the look of the range of items she's made, she's had a LOT of practice!)...and then...a little later in the story...I found a better way to do it: With the help of Google ;)

I found these other hand-made knitting needles a while ago - also on Etsy & think they are wonderful! There are lots of fun ones in Demented Betty's range:


What to do with rogue metal needles? Etsy members have the solution as well! :


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1 comment:

Shelley Jane Ahrens said...

I want one! I LOVE these ideas Gins! You should start selling them too...they are awesome. Loving your blog, even though I haven't popped in all week. Worked hard all 5 days so have been a little pooped. So excited for your trip to Spain for you my friend! Want to know all about it. xx