A few of my favourite things

As everyone knows there are a couple of things you can't knit or crochet without:

• Knitting Needles or a Crochet Hook
• Yarn

And....well.....that's basically it!

If you're anything like me then you'll have noticed that not all yarn, needles and hooks are made equal, and I certainly have my favourites!

For knitting I LOVE KnitPro Symfonie Interchangable needles (KnitPicks in the States) - They look awesome (very important!) and are so lovely to hold and work with. Also being interchangable and circular you'll never need double pointed needles or straight needles. They can do everything!

I buy mine from Art of Yarn online as the wonderful Trish has the whole selection at great prices and the customer service is amazing.

My love for my Knit Pros is making me tempted to try their Crochet Hook range, even though I love my Clover Soft touch hooks, and have a big selection of them! I find them really comfortable to hold as the handle is flat and wide and has a nice rubbery bit! I have loads of hooks, most are the smaller metal type, and when I use them I find the raised lettering that says the needle size hurts my finger after a while. Clover hooks solve any problems like that.

There are SO many yarns on the market that I'm not sure I'll ever find a favourite as I get through SO many.

But for Amigurumi I ten to stick to basic Acrylic in DK weight. The colours available are great, it's hard wearing yet feels quite soft and is really affordable. Hayfield Bonus DK is what I have the most of in my stash, although for UK readers Wilkinson do lots of different colours too!

If you;re new to knitting or crochet then I'd say the best thing to do is go for cheap and basic in needles, hooks and yarn, you'll soon find out what it is you like/dislike about what you have and can go from there when you're ready to invest more in your new hobby!