Happy Friday, friends! The lovely folks at Knitters Pride sent me set of their new Mindful interchangeable needles to review and share about with you, so let’s take a look!
If you’ve been around for a while, you’ll know I almost exclusively work with metal needles (usually my Knit Picks interchangeables). Don’t get me wrong, I love wood needles too and they have their moment in the sun (they’re great for working with slippery yarn!), but I’ve always been a big fan of the smoothness of metal and how quickly the stitches glide off the needles. That being said, I always recommend wood needles for beginner knitters since the stitches are less likely to slide off than with metal.
For this review I’ll be comparing and contrasting the Warmth set to my current Knit Picks nickel plated interchangeables.
A big reason why I love working with interchangeable needles is that when I’m knitting in the round, I can use the needle size I need to get the proper gauge on the right hand, but a size or two smaller on my left hand. This helps my knitting slip around much easier while still receiving the proper gauge!
If you know me, you know I love knitting chunky beanies with super bulky yarn. Ideally I like to use a 16″ length circular needle for knitting beanies, but Knit Picks doesn’t currently offer a 16″ interchangeable option that ALSO goes up to US 15/10mm. Enter, the Warmth set from the Knitters Pride Mindful collection!
The first thing I loved about this set is that it is offered in such a wide range of sizes – US 2.5/3mm to US 15/10mm (compared to US 4/3.5mm through 11/8mm in the Knit Picks set). I was thrilled to see that these work with the included 16″, 19″ and 22″ length cords (perfect for beanies!). The needle tips are 4″ long.
As far as the needles themselves, they’re made of stainless steel and are very smooth. Compared to Knit Picks, the tips are almost identical – not too pointy that they split the yarn you’re working with, but just pointy enough. Each needle is engraved with the US and metric sizing, and each pair is engraved with an inspirational word, such as “Inspire”, and “Exhale” to encourage focus on the meditative aspect of knitting. They fit neatly into the included zip up case.
Okay but let’s look at these cords. Not only do they come in 3 different lengths, they come in two different types of cord (fixed and swivel) for a total of 6 cords. The swivel cords were new to me and I don’t see myself going back to fixed cords anytime soon. They swivel right where the steel connector meets the blue cord so that the cable always lays flat and the needles don’t untwist from the cord. The cords are made from nylon coated stainless steel and are quite flexible. Compared to my Knit Picks cords, they are a bit thinner and more flexible. They don’t seem to hold a kink when pinched, which is great for using with the magic loop method! The cords include little inch markings along the length so you can use it as a measuring tape in a pinch! There are also 2 cord connecters included with the set so you can attach two cords together to make a longer cord.
I had someone ask if the cords also work with Knit Picks interchangeable tips and surprisingly they do! I doubt it’s recommended to mix and match them, but it does seem to work.
In the small zip up notions pouch, there are a pair of cord connectors, 6 end caps to keep your WIPS safe, 4 cord keys (to tighten the needles onto the cords), a needle gauge, 2 darning needles, and 50 stitch markers of assorted sizes.
I’ve been using these needles exclusively for a couple weeks now to get a good feel for them. I was worried that the tips would feel too short in my hands but they haven’t at all! I’ve used them with the longest cable to finish up a sweater hem, the shortest cable to work on a sweater sleeve, and cranked out a chunky beanie in no time. The stitches glide around effortlessly and my hands seem to get less tired. All in all, I think they’re a great set, especially if you’re looking for something shorter for beanies in a wide range of sizes. You can find the Mindful collection at many local yarn shops, and I’ll link a couple of online options below:
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