Since all the cool knit bloggers seem to talk about their favorite needles, I thought I would jump on the bandwagon.
My first needles were from a beginner needle kit so they were generic straight metal needles. At the time I was vaguely aware that there were needles without ends (aka double-pointed) but was unaware of the plethora of knitting needles available. One of my early projects (which did not go well so never quite got finished, user error on my part) was a spiral scarf, for which I purchased my first set of circulars - addi turbos. I loved them. I loved the idea of circulars and pretty much was ready to toss out my straights.
However, as I knit more and more, my hands started to hurt. And the typing and mouse usage at work seemed to make it worse. I self-diagnosed myself with tendonitis and determined that maybe metal needles were part of the problem. It was around this time that I saw the Needlemaster in a craft store. The idea of interchangeable needles seemed excellent, except that the needlemaster used metal needles.
After some web research I discovered the Denise Interchangeable Needles, which as it turned out was made by the same folks as the Needlemaster. (Check out the web site for that and the cutest story about the current owners and how they came to be such). I love them. I won't say I've never bought another needle, because I have (bamboos - circs and double-points) but I am now in fact the proud owner of two kits due to my starter-itis issues. (I'm working on it). And I'm debating getting the special breast cancer set. I know I don't need it....
