We love our double pointed needles (DPNs) and you can often find at least one of the KnitPro team with a sock growing from a set. But we know that some of you feel a little intimidated by balancing four or five needles at once, so here are a few tips to get you started with DPNs.
KnitPro DPN sets come with five needles and you can work in the round using four or five. In this example we have used four, leaving one as a spare.
Start by using one of two needles to cast on as you would normally, so that all your stitches are on a single needle. Then divide your stitches evenly between three needles by slipping the stitches from one to another.
Form your needles into a triangle so that your first cast on stitch is the first on on the needle on the left side of the triangle, taking care not to twist your cast on.
Using your fourth needle start to knit the stitches from the needle on the left of the triangle. Don't worry too much about the other two knitting needles with stitches, they are unlikely to fall out.
Once you have worked the stitches on the first needle, rotate your work clockwise and use the needle that has just been freed up to knit along the stitches on the next needle.
From there you can continue rotating and knitting as set by your pattern. You will find that as your work a few rows, the DPNs and knitting becomes easier to hold.
Working on DPNs is useful for working on smaller circular items such as socks, gloves, sleeves and the crown of hats and many people prefer them to the magic loop circular needle method. It is worth trying out both to see which works best for you.
