In the comments Dorothy asked:

I was looking at your sock and was wondering what length of circular do you use. I am using a 26″ well two of them from knit picks and I am not quite sure I like the length. For comfortable knitting I need the needle part to be at least 4.5 to 5 inches long. Any thoughts to help me along?

When I first switched to two circulars, I used Knitpicks needles in the 16″ length. Those worked pretty well for me, apart from one thing — the needles didn’t last long. After one or two pairs of socks, the joins lost their integrity, and I’d have to toss the needles out and get a new pair. The Knitpicks needles are dirt cheap, though, so this wasn’t too big an issue.

But I decided I’d be happier knitting my socks on slightly longer needles. I took a look at my 24″ Addi turbo needles and started a pair on them. Big mistake for me! The needle portion of those circulars is longer than the 16″: 5″ compared to a scant 3.5″ for the 16″ long circulars. Unlike Dorothy, I like the needle portion of the circular to be shorter.

But I found a good compromise for myself — Addi turbos in the 20″ length. They have the shorter needle portions like the 16-inchers, but an ootch more cord.

My one regret? Addi Lace needles apparently do not come in the 20″ length. They come in 16 or 24.

Dorothy, I’m not sure if you are wanting a longer or shorter cord on your needles, but if you are thinking shorter, I’m afraid you are out of luck! The shorter cords have the shorter needles.

Eye Candy!

Claudia recently put up for sale in the online Wollmeise shop some “grab-bags” of one-off colors. I bought one (sight unseen) and it arrived today. Check out these babies:

These colors could not be more perfect! Yum!

Meanwhile, Lucy pauses in her play with her Plague Rat to tidy up.

She started off with some happy wriggling.

This went on for a while.

But she did make time to critique my knitting.

This was apparently a very tiring chore, because she settled down for a nap after that.

But she woke up when the mail came, because there was a prezzie for her!

This is a “Plague Rat” and Lucy seems quite taken with it.

Lucy sez:

“Thank you, Quesselchens!”

Well, she would thank you if she were not too busy with her rat.