Extra Tools for Knitting: Cable Needles

Cable needles come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. In this video, Jill Wright explores three common cable needles to help you determine which one is right for you and your next cable knitting project. She looks at the straight cable needle, straight with indent cable needle, and the J-shaped cable needle.

The straight cable needle is just a short double-pointed needle (dpn). This cable needle is ideal for small cables, like a 4-stitch cable. The advantage to using a short double-pointed needle as a cable needle is that it can be held parallel to the working knitting needle. This makes it easy to knit the stitches off the cable needle and back onto the working needle.

The straight with indent cable needle is a popular one to use. This cable needle is great for the projects where more control over the stitches is needed. This cable needle can be dropped to the front or back of the project, and the stitches will stay on the needle because of the indent at the center. Some knitters find it difficult to knit the stitches off this style of cable needle, so you may need to slip the stitches back to the working needle to knit them.

Finally, Jill looks at the J-shaped cable needle. The stitches are moved to the cable needle using the short end of the needle, and the needle can be dropped to the front or back of the work as needed. Because this style of cable needle has a longer end, it can be held parallel to the working knitting needles to knit the stitches back into the project.

Jill notes that it’s important to use a cable needle that’s approximately the same size as the knitting needles for your project. Which style of cable needle you use is up to you—it’s all about figuring out what will work best for you and your knitting.