Expensive knitting needles

They would probably say she was making mountains out of molehills. LOL Shirley

Faberge made jeweled knitting needles for ostentation. Some had the size color coded by the large solitaire diamonds or rubies or emeralds set on the end -- but, most of the real hand knitting in those households was done by craftsmen (and servants) using steel needles. (Turns out that gold, silver, platinum, and ebony do not really make great knitting needles. Turns out that it is not all that handy to have rocks on the end of your knitting needles. Or, brass medallions LOL)

These look less impressive than the Faberge jewels. If you must show off, do something that will put those mere duchesses in their place! Buy a set of the Faberge! They do come up at auction every so often.

I will stick to my steel needles, thank you very much. For real, working, wooden knitting needles, I like dogwood.

Aaron

For large sterling silver knitting needles, you end up making a tube, hard soldering it to a solid tip, and then work hardening the tube. Silver is better than gold because it is lighter and stronger. Platinum is stronger but very heavy, so the walls of the tube must be very thin. Then, the solid tip makes everything out of balance, and you have to set a big stone on the other end to get the balance right. : )

Don't Ask!

Aaron

Gold weighs too much, but silver has been used. Platinum is just silly. OTOH some people whose websites I've read swear by their ebony sock needles.

=Tamar

If I am correct, the Victoria Secrets sales are more or less all aimed at the "Hot and Heavy breathing", kind of get togethers, LOL Those knitting needles may look smashing in a alluring hair do, so maybe those knitting needles are not to be usesd for knitting at all....LOL

Els

It certainly brings things rappidly to a head.

Els

I have knitted (a few stitches) with platinum SPN made by Faberge and set with (large) emeralds. Platinum was required for the strength of the setting to hold the stones. At the time, one of my professors in jewelry and metal work was the curator of the Faberge exhibit in the university's art museum. In that class, I made a full set of silver SPN set with pearls as a Christmas gift for the mother of the girl that I was dating at the time. Those knitting needles represented significant technical metal working challenges. That professor graded me very well for overcoming such technical challenges. On the other hand, the needles were really failures as either jewelry or knitting tools.

The Faberge needles were successful jewelry because of the need of his clients to project great wealth and status. I mean, if you were a princess wearing a diamond tiara, and you are sitting there talking to a duchess and a countess, you do not want to take out *wooden* knitting needles. Your status demands you have something better than whatever the duchess or the countess have. That means the most expensive Faberge needles set with large gems. Large gem settings require the high strength of platinum so big emeralds do not fall out and shatter on the tile floor. So in those days, and for Faberge's royal clients, platinum knitting needles were not at all silly. They were a serious statement of status. On the other hand, they were not practical knitting needles either. We need to think about the needs of the people in their time and circumstances. Today, there might be knitters out there that need brass medallions on the ends of their knitting needles to maintain their status at knitters guild meetings.

(I once tried to make ebony and silver SPN but could not get the joint between the ebony and the silver both smooth enough and strong enough to meet the professor's standards, so the bits of ebony and silver went on to be other things. I did not know about sock needles in those days. And, since I have discovered dogwood, I do not bother with any other wood for DPN.)

Aaron

I have some gorgeous handmade glass knitting needles from

The best knitting needles I ever used were tortoiseshell. My mother had them when I was a child, and they were absolutely gorgeous. Alas, they were destroyed when her house burned down, and, since they are illegal now, I guess I'll never own my own.

Higs, Kather> I have knitted (a few stitches) with platinum SPN made by Faberge

You spun a FINE yarn Katherine,

LOL, Never say Never, dear friend! I know where some are, it may take me awhile to contact the person who posesses them.... Noreen who DOES have a tortoiseshell crochet hook....

-- I am not young enough to know *everything*...

Hi Fay,

As for making them from a really exotic wood (I don't know how exotic the GB wood is), I can do that myself. I've already made one set of DPNs for myself from a $1.20 red oak dowel, and it only took me an hour of labor doing everything by hand, including point shaping by hand, all the sanding from coarse to fine, and rubbing in oil and then adding a tiny bit of wax to the points to make them extra slippery the way I like. I imagine making KNs with a lathe would be much easier, and then sanding would also be faster, so it's not like you're spending that many hours working on them, so even if they say the cost is in the the labor it's way overpriced IMO. I also have plenty of the same dowel left to make another set of KNs, even though I also made myself a crochet hook from the same dowel (also took just an hour of hand carving the head, sanding, and finishing with oil and wax).

Leah

Needles at this price should be kept in a safe , not used,,,, mirjam

And ... if the price weren't enough -- those limited sizes -- only 11,

I find that bamboo needles are fantastic for slippery yarn ... whereas the metal needles are better for the wool-contact and less slippery ones.

The lighter in weight the better the needles are for me mirjam

Weight and size are not the same thing though.

I like a sturdy needles to work with, material that will not bend beyond return or break in my hands. I knit with whatever needle is needed to get the pattern and piece I am knitting going. However I am not a sophisticated knitter at all. I am totally impressed and awed by most patterns discussed here.

Els

On Wed, 14 Jun 2006 15:09:20 GMT, Els van Dam spun a fine yarn snipped>

Sophisticated schmophisitaded, Els, ALL knitters are FINE knitters! I think you don't give yourself enough credit.

Els, you can DO it! Anytime you want to try one, just DO it, we'll be your cheerleaders!

Hugs, Noreen

I think that any knitter that makes at least one person happy through their knitting is a good knitter.

Aaron

In general, I agree, particularly when knitting in the round and a delicate fabric must support the needles.

However, I find that in very fine needles, plastic and other very light materials do not provide enough "heft" to provide tactile feedback about the needle in my hand.

Aaron

I think is a very personal matter that relates to one`s muscle abilities .. the lighter the needles the easier i can knit . But i also like light shoes light bags etc,,,, mirjam