One of the more unusual sock-knitting needle styles that I have used is a set of needles bent into a permanent U-shape. They’re called the Neko Curved Double Pointed Sock Needles. I first tried them out at H&H Americas a few years ago, where they looked like a novelty item. I’m always curious enough to try something new, though, so I gave them a go.
They were definitely unusual, but I could see where they might be a good fit for certain knitters. They’ve been on my mind ever since. Eventually, I decided I needed to track some down, give them a proper trial, and write a full blog post.
In today’s blog post, we are going to look at how these needles work, who they’re a good fit for, and what their pros and cons are.
What Are Curved Double Pointed Sock Needles?
For most knitters, when we start learning to knit in the round, we work with double pointed needles, circular needles, or some combination of the two. Double pointed needles are really common for very small circumference knitting, like socks, and for closing up smaller areas of larger items, like hat crowns. However, they are straight and rigid, which causes some frustration for some knitters.
With these curved double pointed needles, we can solve one of those frequent sources of frustration, which is that you need to use a lot of needles at once. With double pointed needles, you need to use a minimum of four and sometimes five needles to knit your project comfortably. These curved double pointed needles, on the other hand, allow you to knit a very small circumference with just three needles.
Unlike another popular solution, which we will look at later, these needles are rigid all the way around. That means they have a permanent bend into that curved shape.
My First Impressions
Like I mentioned above, the first time I saw these sock needles, I thought they were a bit of a novelty. The people demonstrating them at their booth had a few sets available for us to experiment with, so I knit a few rounds on a sock that they already had in progress at the booth.
As with any new method, it felt a little fiddly at first. I had trouble figuring out how to position my hands, and I wasn’t quite sure whether I should stretch my work along the full length of the needle, or have it bunched in the curve
And yet, it didn’t take that long to get the hang of this method. Once I managed the mechanics, things started to flow pretty nicely. Overall, I’d say these are relatively easy to get the hang of and learn to use competently in a short amount of time, even if they don’t end up being your favorite method that you’ll use regularly.
How the Curved Double Pointed Sock Needles Actually Knit
Once I bought my own set of these needles, I was able to knit with them for a more extended period of time and get a better sense of how they fit with my usual knitting style. I am primarily a 9-inch circular user, but I switch to double pointed needles for the heel and toe of each sock.
One thing I found challenging is that these needles make the circumference of your sock pretty rigid. Unlike other DPN alternatives, like FlexiFlips and Flyers, these needles don’t have a segment that is bendable. The entire needle is rigid instead. Because you are only using two needles to hold your live stitches, that also means you only have two points of transition between the needles where your work can wiggle a bit. This can be attractive for some knitters. For me, I like a little more flexibility to manipulate my work.
The stiff bend in the needles also means you need to be thoughtful about moving your stitches along the needles. Stitches more easily get stuck in that rigid bend. Stitches will glide more smoothly across a straight DPN, and I have found that they also glide a little more easily along FlexiFlips.
Finally, I found that I had to pay extra attention to my hand positioning at the beginning and end of each needle. That’s because the curves of the needles make it harder to align needle tips in the way I usually do with straight DPN’s. This can lead some some laddering if you’re not mindful.
Again, these are all fairly easy things to adjust or work around. They certainly weren’t fatal to my sock knitting experience.
The Plastic Material: Pros and Cons
These particular needles are made out of plastic. I will be upfront and say that I am not generally a fan of plastic knitting needles, both because they tend to lack the slippery surface that I prefer in a very smooth metal needle, and because they feel kind of flimsy in my hands. I am a very tight knitter, so I can’t even use bamboo needles for sock knitting.
But these needles might be an excellent choice for you if you are a looser knitter whose work tends to slide off the needles or you are a knitter experiencing hand and wrist pain. The plastic material of these needles is ultra lightweight, so it won’t put additional strain on your joints.
The plastic also means that it comes in fun, whimsical colors, and the manufacturer uses different colors for different sizes. That’s a great benefit if you’re like me and tend to jumble all your needles together in one large container.
Needle Tips and Stitch Control
If you prefer a really sharp needle tip for your sock knitting, these needles may not be the best choice for you. That’s because, no matter how sharp the tip starts out, plastic needle tips are going to become dull more quickly with use.
I did find that the starting shape was already a little blunt for my preference, but again, I’m a really tight knitter who likes using really slick, really pointy needles. If you like a soft needle tip, this could be a good option.
The yarn you use with these needles will also affect your comfort. These needle tips would be especially good for yarn that tends to split easily. That’s because, with the slightly dull tip, they will be less likely to go into the strand of yarn itself rather than through the whole stitch.
Comfort and Ergonomics
Now here is something I found particularly surprising about these needles. In addition to being a tight knitter, I tend to have a really tight grip on my knitting needles, too. I can’t do that with these needles. Their kind of funny shape means that I have to hold them more lightly in order to manipulate them the way I’d like to.
That shape, combined with the lightweight plastic material, means that these could be a nice option for knitters who would like some ergonomic support.
I did find that my wrist, arm, and shoulder positioning with these needles stayed more or less the same, so if that is the part of your body that is causing you pain, these needles may not do much to help with that issue. On the other hand, if you’re comfortable with how your wrists and arms are positioned, it’ll be nice to know that these needles are unlikely to create a significant change there.
I also found that the rigidity of the sock circumference meant that I moved my wrists a little bit more as I was manipulating the stitches. That’s not a dealbreaker for me, but if you are working with a repetitive stress injury in that spot, it might be something to keep in mind.
How the Curved Double Pointed Sock Needles Compare to Straight Double Pointed Needles
When I talk to other sock knitters, I hear a lot of strong opinions about double pointed needles. People seem to either love them or hate them, with very little in between. Let’s take a look at how these two different styles of double pointed needles stack up.
First, let’s look at the advantages of the U-shaped needles. With this style of needle, you have fewer total needles that you’re working with. That just makes everything less fiddly all around.
That also means you have fewer needles to drop while you’re working. If you’re somebody like me who likes to knit on the go, it makes projects with these kinds of needles easier to transport because you’re less likely to lose a needle while you’re traveling and because the bend in these needles helps keep your stitches on them.
On the other hand, there are some drawbacks, too. Most significantly, these needles do not currently appear to come in a metal variety, so if you are a tight knitter who likes a slick needle tip, you’ll be out of luck.
The shape of these needles means you work in a different rhythm, which requires an adjustment period for some knitters. I find that it is a slightly slower method of knitting than with straight DPNs, because I have to spend more time scooting the stitches along the needle and past the curve.
How They Compare to FlexiFlips/Flyers
The other common solution to the problem of having to use so many stiff needles when you use traditional double pointed needles has been the FlexiFlips and the Flyers. These two types of needles have traditional metal tips with a short length of cord connecting them.
That cord allows for some bend in the needles so that, like the U-shaped double pointed needles, you only need to use three needles instead of four or five while you are working. Unlike the U-shaped needles, the FlexiFlips and the Flyers do not have a rigid bend, which has benefits and drawbacks, depending on your preferences as a knitter.
For some knitters, the flexibility of the FlexiFlips and Flyers is not appealing. They don’t like to feel the needles flopping around while they work, and they don’t like the movement in the circumference of their project while they work on it. For other knitters, that flexibility is appealing.
In terms of the actual mechanics, the two types of needles otherwise operate very similarly. You have the same number of points of connection between your needles, and you hold your needles in more or less the same way. While the U-shaped needles are fixed and the others have more wiggle, they are otherwise pretty similar.
Of course, if you are a knitter who likes a very sharp point or a metal needle tip, you might find that the FlexiFlips or the Flyers are a better choice for you. If you don’t mind a slightly dull needle tip, and plastic instead of metal, these U-shaped needles might be a good option for you to try.
What Projects Are These Needles Best For?
Because these needles have a fixed length and angle, they really are best for pretty small circumference knitting. I would definitely use them for socks and mittens, as well as baby hats. On the other hand, I would be less likely to use them for adult size hats, because I’m not sure there would be enough room on the needles for all of the stitches that you need to need a hat that large. I might use them for some adult-sized sleeves, but not all.
As for knitting flat or for making i-cord, I wouldn’t recommend these needles, mostly because they don’t provide any real advantage over double pointed needles when working on those kinds of projects.
Also, I don’t think I would use these needles for very fine lace or cable projects, just because the tips aren’t as sharp as I would like him to be for those kinds of projects. The finer the yarn, the sharper I like the needle tip to be.
Finally, I think they could be good for a tubular scarf that is not too large in circumference. A narrower fair-isle scarf, for example, could be a great use for these needles.
Who I Think Will Love These Needles and Who Should Probably Skip Them
At this point, you can probably guess who I’m about to recommend these needles for and who I would suggest should stick with a different style. If you are a knitter who is frustrated by working with DPNs because there are just too many needles moving around, these needles could be a good option for you. That’s doubly so if you do not like magic loop.
If you are a beginner knitter just learning how to do small circumference knitting, these needles could also be helpful. They will introduce you to the skill of knitting a small circle without having quite so many fiddly parts as working with traditional double pointed needles. They might also be a good choice for people who like to knit socks occasionally, but have not gone deep down a rabbit hole just yet.
On the other hand, I also think there are knitters for whom these needles are probably not the best choice. Number one would be knitters who are already happy with a similar method of knitting in a small circumference, especially if you’re perfectly happy with FlexiFlips or Flyers. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right? Tight knitters and people who specialize in very fine work might also find that these needles don’t suit your needs as well as others do.
Final Verdict – Are the U-Shaped DPNs Worth It?
As with so many other things in knitting, I firmly believe that there’s a tool for every knitter and a knitter for every tool. These needles are probably not going to become a regular part of my tool set, but they could be the right fit for you!
They can be kind of hard to find here in the US, so if you can’t find a yarn store near you that carries them, be sure to check online. Just double-check shipping costs before you place an order. Go forth and knit some socks.
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