Knifty Knitter Looms
I actually got these looms awhile ago with a 50% off coupon at Michaels but they got pushed away into the craft closet until the past few days. I've finished all my knit and crochet projects and decided to get these out and see what I can make with them. Some searching around the net led me to some Yahoo groups devoted to loom knitting and some free pattern sites.
This isn't a totally new craft for me and I bet it isn't for you either. Remember years ago the knitting sets, sometimes called corking (and I don't know why) and sometimes called Knitting Nancy (and again I don't know why). They may of had other names but those are the two that spring to mind. I dug further into the craft closet and found these ones that my daughters had used when they were young.
I even remember one made from a wooden cotton reel and some nails. And here it is complete with a face drawn on by one of the girls at some point in time.
But what did we ever do with that long, long tube of knitting that came out from it. By the looks of what I found in the craft closet it just got wound round and round. Sometimes it made scarves for a dolly and sometimes it got twisted into little carpets for doll houses.
But today the looms are more sophisticated and you can make all sorts of things with them. I'll probably start out with something simple like a hat and see how I like it. And then maybe I'll progress to something a little harder. I've been reading you can make socks on these looms.
Thanks for taking time to visit today. I hope you have time to say hi and leave a comment.
Hi Linda,
ReplyDeleteYes i remember the cotton thread reel and nails and winding the wool around the nails until a long tube of knitting emerged from the base of the reel! Must be similar vintage in yrs.!They were home-made but now everything can be mass produced and sold commercially!
You stirred up some fun memories, since we also had some soft of nail-on-wood tube looms as kids. I guess we coiled and stitched them into little circular mats too. Then the little plastic pom-pom making sets - they were even more fun.
ReplyDeleteI remember those too Linda ! wow .. a flash in the old memory pan : )
ReplyDeleteIt is 8 degrees out there with winds and rain .. i think we might get rid of some snow ? I caught a bit of a beautiful morning sky yesterday (thanks to hubby telling me I was missing the "show" while in the family room).. I'll publish a post later on today hopefully .. I have the old razor blades in the throat tick this morning .. ouch !!
Morning Linda
ReplyDeleteLovely serendipity again. The two year old grandson was here yesterday and took home one of my corkers to try and after he left I got out my smallest knitting loom thinking this would be easier for him. Then thought of making something even simpler with only two prongs. Now - I see your photo of a two pronged spool. How big is it? Are those nut tools in the top? Have you tried this? Did you get a lucet braid? And with regards to loom knitting - the scope is amazing as I learned from coming across two books on it in the library and then the Net. A friend made a dress which was featured in a fashion show. I love how we take 'memories' and expand on them. What fun.
Hi talesfromagarden, I bet we are close in age.
ReplyDeleteHi Garden Lily, I have the pom pom looms as well. It is amazing what things we keep stashed away in boxes.
Hi Joy, yep, lots of rain here too. Not much snow left at all. I'm thinking I'm glad it was rain as it would of be an awful lot of snow.
Hi Karen, my homemade corker has 4 prongs, they just may not be all that visible. I haven't done lucet braiding, but did look it up and it looks interesting. Do you have a lucet in your collection of interesting things?
Hi Linda. I guess great minds think alike, huh? I want to get the long ones to make sweaters and afghans. I have no idea how to knit so these are a great way to use up that yarn I have laying around the house. I want to find more patterns though. Socks would be cool to make too. I'm wondering if there's a way to modify the spacing that these looms create, I'd like some of my stuff to be more tightly knit together. So far I have made 4 hats. I was trying to figure out if I could manage to make some mittens with the smallest one too. We shall see what we come up with. I may have to go hunt out those forums and patterns you were talking about.
ReplyDeleteI love the looms!! I am knitting a shawl on the rectangular long blue loom right now ~great for those of us that can't knit the traditional way heehe!! ~Have fun knitting~ Heather :)
ReplyDeleteHi Linda!
ReplyDeleteI love my knifty knitters. I don't know how to knit with needles, so this was just my speed. I made hats for my nieces and nephew, and 3 of my friends for Christmas presents! I did manages one scarf on them as well.
Have fun with it!
Ah - went back and looked at the photo and now see the four prongs. Well, I'm glad I only saw two because I got out a corker and just used two of the prongs and was thrilled to discover that it does indeed make a lucet braid!!!! Very easily. Will be posting about this in a day or so. Thank you for your - inadvertent! - inspiration.
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