Quick review: Mini circulars

I must have been living under a rock (or perhaps just on a hill in the middle of nowhere) to not have noticed that mini circular needles existed. I kept looking at other knitter’s sock blogs thinking ‘gee that needle looks small’… And then subsequently thinking nothing more about it.
Then finally it clicked, I googled them, and read a few reviews. I loved the idea of a tiny circular, just the right size for socks, which I knit a lot of. The reviews said you either love the needle or hate it. So I bought a Hiya high stainless steel 9″ with sharp points. It came with a little stitch marker, which I thought was cute.

  
I was soooo excited to use it. And it turns out….
I hate it. 😦 ho hum. I tried so hard to like it, I really did. I persisted through inches of rib cuff and stockinette. And it did certainly get a bit easier as I progressed. But I felt like a big fat giant knitting in a dolls house. M laughed at me. He is, as I have mentioned previously, massive. It looked even more ridiculous in his hands.

  
It was kind of like knitting with two darning needles with a string between them. Because they are so short, you have to come up with a whole new technique. Which in itself isn’t bad if you are enjoying it, but I wasn’t. My gauge was far, far tinier, my knitting much slower and I kept getting hand cramp. Also I had to knit right under a lamp, squinting at it. I am a British style knitter, not continental, so this may also have something to do with it.
I’m glad I tried it, but for now it’s back to the double points for me. Speaking of, I recently received a belated birthday present, shipped all the way from Finland, how cool is this. Designed so you can throw your dpns in a bag and not lose stitches.

  
   
All recycled materials, this guy is awesome. Love his shop on Etsy.

B 🙂