What's In Your Bag: Gadgets and Do-dads

Each trade has its tools. So it is for any hobby. The art of knitting is no different. Yes, one needs needles and yarn, but there's much more. And it doesn't help that I'm a sucker for crafty do-dads. Below is my knitting bag; its a makeup bag where I store my gadgets. There's always a pencil, a highlighter, a tape measure, a blunt needle, scissors and waste yarn--just in case. But there's more.
Needle Protectors:
I love those rubber tips! Noticed my sock knitting? Go take a look (sock link ). Those rubber tips stay on my needles ALL THE TIME. Go ahead: ask me why. 'Cuz I've actually lost needles in mid-knit. There's nothing more frustrating than picking up teeny-tiny live stitches that have unexpectedly lost their needle. The mere thought makes me cringe . . . :O

Crochet Hooks:
Handy for fixing mistakes and awesome for taming the dreaded curl of stockinette stitch. Right now I have two, but I'd like one more smaller size. Hard to believe I used to crochet. Mom and I made some lovely afghans and I still have the one lacy doily I made with crochet thread.

Safety Pins:
I've got regular safety pins and those plastic ones without the coils. They're handy for keeping track of increases and decreases. Regular pins are also useful for seaming.

Ring Markers & Split Markers:

Handy-dandy indeed! You can never have too many sizes or too many colours. I don't have any fancy ones, but still useful to mark off patterned section in your knitting.

By the way, notice the cute little plastic boxes where I store my pins & rings? They're from my husband who uses ear plugs. When he's done with the ear plugs, he gives me the little plastic box.

Row Counter:

Until I bought one, I never thought I needed one. I'd always used paper and pencil to mark the row I was on. But this gadget is very handy for counting rows as well as keeping track of pattern rows. I move the counter along so that I know I'm on row 4 of a 9-row pattern for instance. I switch back to row 1 when the repetition is complete.

What do I need now? How about a proper knitting gauge. I can't find one in town (should have purchased one when I was in a proper knitting shop). Perhaps I'll add one to my shopping cart next time I make an online purchase.

Happy knitting!