My first introduction to flexible knitting needles was these at KBN. I was intrigued and bought a pair. I like them very much. They are different from circulars; they are certainly different from long straight knitting needles.
I find that they ease the tension that can occur during knitting, during those repetitive movements that can be so very relaxing but also cause discomfort to the body. Having suffered from repetitive stress injury when I played competitive badminton it is something I do not want to experience again so I am interested in ways to avoid rsi in other activities that require again and again and again actions. Such as knitting!
The downward curve and stiff aspect of the above flexibles take some getting used to and I got to wondering what such needles with soft and droopy cables? wires? cords? would be like. (What is the proper name; I forget). So I started to experiment.
I cut some circular needles in half, found two buttons with big enough holes in my mother's button box, threaded the wire through a button and then back again and had a pair of flexibles.
They are a little less curvy.
The blue plastic are the best so far for 'not getting in the way'.
For a longer pair I now have a child's skipping rope which is very flexible; how to put points on the ends is the next step – maybe try to sharpen the plastic….?
I would like to know of other experiences of using flexible needles. A woman I got chatting with in a shop told me the idea is not at all new and that such needles have been around for a long time but she had never used them. Are they perhaps common in other parts of the world? Any feedback would be most appreciated.