Stitch markers. We love them. (except auto-correct which keeps trying to make them markets…damn it) But this is about us – and we love them as jewelry. As decorations. And even to…mark stitches.
I’ve tried many. Decorative, plain, removable – you name it. But the one I keep going back to is:
Yep. Cheapo little hair elastics. Why? They’re:
- thin
- plentiful
- easy to buy at lots of places
- sized to fit on most needles
- easy to slip from needle to needle
- great to see when you want to know how much is left before you get to that place (oh come on, you know you do that too)
The package even stands in for a chart place keeper.
Why do I love these more than the others?
The thin-ness. They don’t create a hole in my knitting.
The lack of expense. A package of 500 just costs $5.00 on Amazon (affiliate link) (yes, that’s 1 CENT each) and they’re Prime so, free shipping. If you’re like me, you lose stitch markers ALL. THE. TIME. Don’t tell me I’m the only one. My couch uses them as decorations. My cats use them as toys.
Easy to get. I can stop by my local Target, pharmacy or even a supermarket. Or order them via Amazon Prime and get them delivered for free.
Go for the multi-colored pack so they can stand out with all your knitting. Don’t go just for one color because that one color is sure to blend in with something.
Still not convinced you need to use stitch markers? I use them in lots of ways:
- Marking the start of a row when knitting in the round
- Marking each repeat when knitting a more complicated stitch pattern
- Marking the start and end of a section to make it easier to knit
I still use the removable ones when I need to remove them. But for every day – little hair elastics all the way.
About the Writer: Jody Richards
I’m the knitting-obsessed, crochet-loving, math-geeky, web-dev girl behind Knotions. I’m passionate about helping crafters become even better at what they love, whether that means understanding why a stitch works a certain way or discovering their next favorite yarn.
Crafting runs deep in my roots—my mom was an avid embroiderer and sewist, and she sparked my lifelong love of all things crafty. Since those early days, I’ve combined my degrees in Math and Computer Science with over two decades of experience in digital marketing to build Knotions into a place that’s both fun and informative.
My mission at Knotions is simple: to empower crafters to craft smarter. Let’s make something awesome together!
You didn’t mention my favorite use of this colorful markers – I use them when counting cast on sts! Every 20, 25, 30 or even 50 sts. I don’t have to worry if they will fit on any particular needles as I do with my metal ring markers. And my chair likes markers for snacks, so I am pleased with the low price of these guys.
True! I do have a post on this – https://knotions.com/issues/july-2017/tip/tip-counting-casting-on/ – but don’t mention it in this post.
Nice catch 🙂
I love this idea. I saw you post a pic of these and was intrigued. I think I need to get some of these.
Do you ever find that the elastic sticks to “woolier” yarns?
That’s a great question, I don’t find that they stick (although I was concerned about that).
I have a love/hate relationship with stitch markers. On the one hand the fancy ones are just so cute! On the other, they slow me down and fall off my needles, or even worse somehow end up with my knitting through them, permanently attaching them to my knitting.
Best part of your stitch markers there? You can use them as removable markers, literally knit through it so that it is on that stitch you want to mark and then cut it when you done with it and use a new one the next time.
You’re right – you can! And sometimes when I’m frogging the yarn gets all tangled and I don’t have a choice but to cut them.