The Knitter’s Notions · Vol. I · Lovely things for people who knit

Chapter 05 · Practical guide

Knitting tools & accessories

The best knitting tools are often small: the marker that does not snag, the row counter you can find, the scissors that stay in the project bag and the blocking kit that makes finishing less fiddly.

What to look for

  • 01Smooth at every join, because you touch it every row.
  • 02Quiet in use — clicks and rattles get old fast.
  • 03Small enough to live in the bag permanently.

What actually belongs in a useful knitting notions kit?

The boring little things are usually the most useful: small scissors, a tape measure, stitch markers, a darning needle, something for counting rows and a way to rescue a dropped stitch. They are cheap individually and maddening when the one you need is somewhere else.

After that, buy for the kind of knitting you actually do. Cable needles, blocking kit, yarn winders and chart holders are brilliant when they solve a real recurring problem; they do not need to become compulsory clutter.

Section 01

Everyday knitting essentials

The little tools that earn their place in a project bag because they get used constantly.

Clover Kacha Mini row counter
Counting

Clover Kacha Mini row counter

A compact click counter for keeping track of rows and stitches without reaching for a phone.

Why it helps

Small enough to live in the notions pouch, and purpose-built for the one job you need it to do mid-row: remember where you are.

Around £8View→Ad
Asdirne embroidery scissors — set of 2
Cutting

Asdirne embroidery scissors — set of 2

Two compact stainless-steel sewing scissors in 3.6-inch and 4.5-inch sizes, with fine pointed tips for thread and yarn ends.

Why it helps

A useful little pair for the project bag, with a spare for the knitting chair or another notions pouch.

Around £9View→Ad
Large-eye sewing needle set with wooden cases
Finishing

Large-eye sewing needle set with wooden cases

A mixed 28-needle set with self-threading and large-eye hand-sewing needles, supplied with two wooden storage cases.

Why it helps

The larger eyes make yarn ends less of a wrestling match, and the little wooden cases stop loose needles vanishing into the bottom of the bag.

Around £7View→Ad
WINTAPE 2-piece measuring tape set
Measuring

WINTAPE 2-piece measuring tape set

A 150cm / 60-inch dual-sided retractable tape plus a second soft tape, both marked in centimetres and inches.

Why it helps

The retractable one lives neatly in a notions pouch; the spare soft tape is handy when you want to measure a larger piece without fighting the case.

Around £4View→Ad
Clover swatch ruler & needle gauge
Measuring

Clover swatch ruler & needle gauge

A compact multi-purpose gauge for checking knitting-needle sizes in metric, US and Japanese standards, with a swatch ruler built in.

Why it helps

Useful when a mystery needle has escaped its packet: check the size, then use the same tool to measure stitches and rows across a swatch.

Around £10View→Ad
Prym 135mm steel stitch holder
Stitch holding

Prym 135mm steel stitch holder

A spring-steel stitch holder with a rounded tip for parking live stitches safely while another section is worked.

Why it helps

Simple, sturdy and much less alarming than trying to keep live stitches on a spare needle while the project is being shoved back into a bag.

Around £15View→Ad
KnitPro aluminium cable needles — set of 2
Cable knitting

KnitPro aluminium cable needles — set of 2

A pair of aluminium cable needles in 6mm and 8mm for holding stitches to the front or back while working cable patterns.

Why it helps

A compact, sensible pair for bigger cables without buying a whole box of near-identical tools.

Around £5View→Ad
Silicone needle point protectors — 10 pack
Needle stoppers

Silicone needle point protectors — 10 pack

Ten soft silicone point protectors for capping knitting needles when the project is put down.

Why it helps

They stop live stitches sliding off in the bag and make sharp needle tips a bit less enthusiastic about stabbing everything nearby.

Around £5View→Ad
KnitPro repair hooks — set of 3
Repairs

KnitPro repair hooks — set of 3

Three laminated-birch repair tools with a hook at one end and a needle point at the other for rescuing dropped stitches and small fixes.

Why it helps

Tiny, easy to stash and genuinely useful when a dropped stitch decides to head south several rows before you notice.

Around £8View→Ad
NBEADS numbered stitch markers — 20 pieces
Stitch markers

NBEADS numbered stitch markers — 20 pieces

A set of numbered locking stitch markers marked 0–9 in two colours, for counting repeats, sections and progress without relying on memory.

Why it helps

The numbers make these genuinely different from ordinary markers: useful when you need to label rows, repeats or sections rather than simply mark a point.

Around £5View→Ad
NBEADS sheep stitch marker kit — 12 pieces
Stitch markers & needle stoppers

NBEADS sheep stitch marker kit — 12 pieces

A 12-piece set with ten sheep-shaped locking stitch markers and two matching knitting needle stoppers.

Why it helps

The locking markers handle repeats and section points while you knit; the two stoppers keep live stitches on the needles when the project goes back in the bag.

Around £6View→Ad
KnitPro Mindful point markers — 100 pieces
Stitch markers

KnitPro Mindful point markers — 100 pieces

A 100-piece pack of blue markers from KnitPro's Mindful Collection for keeping track of positions and sections as you knit.

Why it helps

A 100-piece pack means enough markers for projects with lots of repeats, plus spares for the inevitable few that migrate into bags and sofas.

Around £10View→Ad
Namner stitch markers — 300 pieces
Stitch markers

Namner stitch markers — 300 pieces

A large 300-piece set of colourful locking stitch markers in ten colours, supplied with blunt sewing needles for finishing work.

Why it helps

Ten colours make it easy to colour-code sections or repeats, and 300 markers is enough to leave a handful in several project bags.

Around £5View→Ad
PLIGREAT sewing tool charms & stitch markers — 12 pieces
Stitch markers

PLIGREAT sewing tool charms & stitch markers — 12 pieces

A 12-piece set of knitting and sewing themed charms that can be used as decorative locking stitch markers.

Why it helps

A more giftable, characterful marker set for knitters who like their notions to have a bit of personality rather than looking purely utilitarian.

Around £5View→Ad
BEEFLYING cat stitch markers — 13 pieces
Stitch markers

BEEFLYING cat stitch markers — 13 pieces

A set of 13 cat-themed locking stitch markers for marking stitches, sections and repeats while you knit.

Why it helps

They work as everyday locking markers, with enough cat-shaped silliness to make a useful little present rather than just another packet of notions.

Around £8View→Ad

Section 02

Blocking, finishing & knitwear care

For the bit after the knitting: shaping, drying, tidying and making the finished thing look properly finished.

KnitPro lace blocking wires — set of 8
Blocking & finishing

KnitPro lace blocking wires — set of 8

Eight stainless-steel blocking wires, each about a metre long, for pinning out long straight edges, lace and shaped sections more evenly.

Why it helps

A genuinely different tool from blocking pins: thread the wire through an edge and you can straighten a whole section without placing a pin every few centimetres.

Around £25View→Ad
Soak no-rinse laundry wash — 375ml
Finishing & care

Soak no-rinse laundry wash — 375ml

A concentrated no-rinse wash for hand knits and other delicates, suitable for wool, cashmere, silk and everyday fabrics.

Why it helps

Useful for the final wash before blocking and for looking after finished knits afterwards — with no extra rinse stage when a wet jumper already weighs approximately a small Labrador.

Around £20View→Ad
Philips fabric shaver GC026/80
Knitwear care

Philips fabric shaver GC026/80

A battery-powered fabric shaver with a large shaving head, three mesh-hole sizes and a height-adjustment cap for removing pills and bobbles.

Why it helps

Hand knits are meant to be worn. This is the maintenance tool for making a well-loved jumper look considerably less well-loved.

Around £15View→Ad
OXO Good Grips folding sweater drying rack
Finishing & care

OXO Good Grips folding sweater drying rack

A folding mesh drying rack that supports jumpers and other knits flat, with fold-in legs and a frame that folds for storage.

Why it helps

It lets air circulate around a wet knit without sacrificing every clean towel and every horizontal surface in the house.

Around £30View→Ad
APWJPQ blocking pins — 20 pieces
Blocking & finishing

APWJPQ blocking pins — 20 pieces

A set of 20 comb-style blocking pins for holding larger sections of knitting evenly in place while it dries.

Why it helps

These do a different job from ordinary T-pins: each comb holds a wider section at once, which makes straight edges and larger pieces quicker to pin out neatly.

Around £15View→Ad
Mardili blocking mats for knitting — 9 pack
Blocking & finishing

Mardili blocking mats for knitting — 9 pack

A nine-pack of extra-thick blocking boards with grids, 100 T-pins and a cork holder for the pins.

Why it helps

A full blocking setup in one box: useful for shaping finished knitting neatly and keeping measurements consistent while it dries.

Around £30View→Ad
IRSTBL sock blockers & drying rack set — 3 pairs
Sock blocking

IRSTBL sock blockers & drying rack set — 3 pairs

Three pairs of stainless-steel sock blockers in small, medium and large sizes, designed for shaping and drying hand-knitted socks.

Why it helps

A different job from flat blocking mats: these give hand-knitted socks their finished shape while they dry and cover three common sizes in one set.

Around £20View→Ad

Section 03

Yarn handling

Swifts, winders and tension helpers for making the yarn itself easier to manage.

KnitPro natural wooden yarn swift
Yarn management

KnitPro natural wooden yarn swift

A smooth wooden yarn swift in laminated and natural birch, designed to hold a hank so it can rotate freely while yarn is wound.

Why it helps

The civilised alternative to making another human stand there with a hank looped around both hands while you wind it.

Around £50View→Ad
Caydo electric yarn winder
Yarn management

Caydo electric yarn winder

A compact electric yarn winder with adjustable speed and a dual-spring tension system for turning loose yarn into neat centre-pull cakes.

Why it helps

Takes the repetitive hand-cranking out of winding yarn into cakes, which is particularly welcome if you wind several hanks at a time.

Around £40View→Ad
INTAJ rosewood yarn winder & swift set
Yarn management

INTAJ rosewood yarn winder & swift set

A matched hand-crank ball winder and umbrella swift made from rosewood, with both pieces clamping to a table for winding hanks into centre-pull cakes.

Why it helps

Everything needed for hank-to-cake duty in one set, and considerably nicer to leave within sight than a pair of plastic contraptions.

Around £75View→Ad
Adjustable yarn tension rings — 10 pack
Yarn management

Adjustable yarn tension rings — 10 pack

Ten adjustable zinc-alloy yarn-guide rings in different designs, intended to help guide yarn across a finger and maintain more consistent tension.

Why it helps

Ten adjustable rings give you room to experiment with yarn position and finger fit before deciding whether a tension ring actually helps your knitting.

Around £6View→Ad
Coiled yarn guide tension rings — 4 pack
Yarn management

Coiled yarn guide tension rings — 4 pack

Four stainless-steel coiled yarn-guide rings in small and medium sizes, with twin guide slots for separating strands.

Why it helps

This is the style Lou actually uses: particularly handy when managing more than one strand for colourwork without turning your fingers into a small yarn traffic jam.

We use these
Around £5View→Ad

Section 04

Planning & notions storage

Useful for keeping charts, notes and the tiny bits together instead of losing them into the sofa.

JOZEA vintage floral notions organiser
Notions storage

JOZEA vintage floral notions organiser

A compact double-layer zipped organiser with elastic loops and mesh pockets for the small tools that otherwise roam loose around a project bag.

Why it helps

Exactly the right scale for scissors, repair hooks, needles, markers and other tiny essentials — one pouch to grab instead of six tiny searches.

Around £10View→Ad
Magnetic knitting pattern & chart holder
Planning

Magnetic knitting pattern & chart holder

A foldable 7 × 10.2-inch chart holder with a magnetic ruler and four magnets for keeping a paper pattern upright and marking the current row.

Why it helps

Much easier than repeatedly finding your place on a chart that has quietly slid under the sofa cushion.

Around £10View→Ad
Vogue Knitting Project Journal
Planning

Vogue Knitting Project Journal

A guided knitting journal for recording yarn, needle sizes, project details and alterations, with space for both straightforward and more involved project notes.

Why it helps

Useful for the information you always swear you will remember and absolutely will not remember six months later.

Around £15View→Ad

Section 05

Beside the knitting chair

Not strictly knitting tools, but very good at making a long knitting session easier.

Glocusent rechargeable neck light
Beside the chair

Glocusent rechargeable neck light

A hands-free rechargeable neck light with three colour temperatures, six brightness settings and independently adjustable flexible arms.

Why it helps

Dark yarn in evening light is a special form of punishment. This puts the light where the stitches are without occupying either hand.

Around £15View→Ad
Adjustable tablet & phone floor stand
Beside the chair

Adjustable tablet & phone floor stand

A weighted floor stand with a flexible gooseneck and rotating holder for phones and tablets from roughly 4.7 to 13 inches.

Why it helps

Keeps a digital pattern, tutorial or audiobook controls visible while both hands remain busy with the actual knitting.

Around £15View→Ad
Hands-free illuminated magnifier
Beside the chair

Hands-free illuminated magnifier

A 5× hands-free magnifier with a 10× auxiliary lens, adjustable neck support and integrated LED lighting, usable around the neck, on a desk or handheld.

Why it helps

For tiny stitches, dark yarn or fiddly repairs when brighter light alone is not quite enough.

Around £20View→Ad
EKO Fandy mini table bin — 1.5L
Beside the chair

EKO Fandy mini table bin — 1.5L

A tiny 1.5-litre swing-top desktop bin that sits neatly beside a knitting chair for yarn ends, snipped threads and other miniature debris.

Why it helps

Not remotely a knitting product, which is exactly why it is useful: all those little yarn ends finally have somewhere to go other than your jumper, the carpet or your tea.

Around £10View→Ad

If you buy one thing here, make it the stitch markers. Bad markers ruin good yarn.