Tool School: Wonder Knitter
By Steve Butler
What is it? – As children, most of us can remember having an old wooden spool with four rounded metal pegs protruding from one end. By threading yarn up through the center and then wrapping the yarn around the pegs we could maneuver bottom loops over top loops. As a result we were able to form some very cool woven strands or, as known to some, i-cords. The resulting knitted braids, or i-cords, were very attractive and actually had many applications. These cords were used as fashion accessories and embellishments, home decor objects or embellishments, jewelry (you can even add beads as you go), toys, purse handles, decorative shapes, the list goes on and on. It seemed the only limiting factor was the knitting tool itself. There were lots of different manufacturers but they essentially produced the same end product. Enter the creative folks at Clover. The result is the Clover Wonder Knitter. Designed to accommodate both developing knitting mediums and emerging creative technique, the Wonder Knitter is now the “go to” tool to create any i-cord project you can imagine.
What does it do? – The Clover Wonder Knitter is an amazing tool that allows you to knit i-cords with an almost unlimited variety of yarns, cords, ribbons, or strips of fabric. It accomplishes this with four functional parts.
Handle – The handle is shaped to make it comfortable to hold in your hand for those long knitting sessions. The large interior core allows you to use knitting mediums from fine to really bulky even including beads or other decorative devices. You’re limited only by your creative vision. The handle is also fitted with a handy yarn guide mounted on the side that feeds the yarn onto the knitting heads and allows you to apply tension during the knitting process.
Rotary Wheel – The rotary wheel articulates with the handle and allows you to turn the knitting head with the flick of a finger. This saves time and a lot of wear and tear on your hands since you don’t have to reposition the tool with every stitch. A little comfort goes a long way.
Knitting Head – The knitting head is where the rubber meets the road. These wheels with their protruding pegs are the point at which each knitted stitch is formed. The Wonder knitter is supplied with two heads, one with three pegs and one with six pegs that snap onto the Wonder Knitter. Having two wheels allows you to adjust the diameter, stitch size and appearance of the final knitted product. Throw in all of the different fibers available today and the potential resulting appearances are virtually unlimited.
Pick – The pick is the simplest part of the Wonder Knitter but even so is not without its own features. Most importantly is the shape of the point and its angle to the handle. These allow you to engage each loop and easily maneuver it into place with a minimum of effort. Easy on the hands and wrists and increases the efficiency (and speed) of the knitting process. Again, a little comfort goes a long way.
How do I share it? – Using the Wonder Knitter is actually fun. “Wonder Knitting” is easy to learn, works up fast and allows you to produce an amazing spectrum of creative expression. It’s something that can be used by knitters of any age or skill level. It’s a great introduction to knitting for kids. A “Friendship Bracelet” class is a great way to involve the interest of the younger set of knitters. Displays showing the variety of applications of i-cords to fashion, crafts, home decor and jewelry is a natural way to garner the interest of the not-so-younger set of knitters. Put one out with some yarn and let your friends play with it.
Watch Tool School to learn about the tool:
Watch a Wonder Knitter Tutorial to learn how to use it:
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