"Handy" Knowledge.

While enjoying our Thai feast the other day, my favorite stylist and I found ourselves discussing "hands." Probably not such a stretch given that she makes her living with hers and I distract myself via my hobbies with mine. She noted the following with regard to my hooves:

They are quite small

They are shaped funny

...but not so's you'd notice.

I do have a couple of issues with regard to the shape of my hands that factor into certain knitting decisions. Nothing serious, here! We're at full mobility and all. I also suspect that others have similar "issues" which, while having no real impact on day to day stuff, may become more noticeable with certain tasks. Here's what I have to work with:

The charmingly bent thumb that my doctor insists on referring to as a "birth defect." I prefer to think of it as a "unique feature." Either way, its pretty stiff...

Fingers in a state of "perma-flex." This is as flat as my hand will go.

Not a big deal. Honest! But I do tend to get hand strain and fatigue a bit sooner than others do. Thus, I listen with interest to the ongoing discussions out there in the blogoshpere with regard to that elusive creature: "the perfect needle."

Now, I fully understand that this concept means something different to everybody. What works for one will be the bane of another's existence. Pointy vs. dull, four inches vs. eight inches, bamboo vs. solid gold, hand-forged by wood elves in the Black Forest...the debate will rage on well past our span on this big, blue marble, I'm sure.

But I'm out! I have found it! The double point of my dreams. As you can imagine, I've tried quite a few. They've ranged from the "cheapies" to the "o-my-god-you-spent-how-much" variety and I've always ended up going back to my grandmother's old aluminum needles. They weren't quite "it," but were as close as I was ever gonna come.

Enter April.

In a recent goody bag that exceeded my wildest dreams, she included a set of Crystal Palace size 2 dpns. And there you go. Smooth finish that isn't overly slick, pointy, but don't draw blood and they are a nice eight inches. They flex a bit, but not enough that I feel I'm going to snap one. They're also within a working Sheep's budget. I have been knitting on these pretty steadily for a week now and the "wrist clicking" that has so plagued my sock completion rate has been silenced. I'm sure that everyone out there has a favorite, but, golly gosh, this is the needle for me!!!!! And if I found a pair of size 1's on Ebay last night for five bucks...well so much the better, wouldn't you say?

And speaking of "hands," sometimes they're for helping. Our blog buddy Noolie is asking for some support in helping out the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society through Light The Night. Go visit her and then skip over to the donation site if you can. It's a great cause.

And there might even be a prize in it for ya if you follow the directions!

SA