so wierd... when I saw the picture of the box, it immediately reminded me of something I would have found at my grandma's house! YOu are lucky to have them!

Wow, I can see how you don't want to touch the box.

Sometimes gifts from the past like that are too precious to touch at first. I bet in a few days or months or years the "pins" will call out to you to be used in a special project.

I am a longtime lurker on your blog and your Shining Star pattern was the first hat I ever made. I just wanted to second the other comments about the Wing Top from the most recent Interweave. It is drop dead beautiful, as my mom would say . . . I can't wait to knit it up!

Wonderful!knitting...beautiful blog.
BRASIL

That is a great gift if I say so myself!
Isn't it amazing how no matter how old a person is or how young another person is, they can still connect through knitting? That is always amazing to me.

Marly
knitthing.blogspot.com
knitthing.mypodcast.com
yarnthing.blogspot.com

I have one pair of my great-aunt's knitting needles--Boye, aluminum, size 10.5. As needles they're nothing special, but I think of her every time I see them, and it makes me feel so connected to the whole community of knitters, past and present. What a precious thing to receive!

oh dear what a beautiful gift and the logos are lovely and the worn box. and our headline sort of reminded me of another knitter and fellow canadian (to you), joni mitchell. she sings about knitting sweaters and has a song called edith and the kingpin. so much for pins.

Hi- just surfed in from Cari's site and thought I'd say hello. Plus, yeah, I know about not wanting to use that box of old knitting stuff- I've had the same feeling when I find things like that at thrift shops. But it is cool to see stuff like knitting pins. Whoa.
I've also found, with old stuff, though, that sometimes after a while it works itself in and then it doesn't seem weird anymore. Not always though.

Hi Kate! I just wanted to say that I love your patterns - I've just checked the Summer issue of Interweave and yours is, once again, one of my favourites.

I got all of my Grandma's knitting/Crocheting supplies when she passed away. I love them. She did some of the lace crochet work. The hooks are so tiny. I love to imagine her using them. She had a bunch of Granny Squares that were partially finished. I finished them up and put them together into a baby blanket for my son. He didn't get to meet his Great-Grandma but she'll help keep him warm.

I like the needles, i too have a lot of my grandmothers needles including a metal ahnd made pair that is square, painted black with a red wax seal for the top i have mine displayed and uou do the same, how about a nice vase.

I like the needles, i too have a lot of my grandmothers needles including a metal ahnd made pair that is square, painted black with a red wax seal for the top i have mine displayed and uou do the same, how about a nice vase.

wow- what a lovely collection of "pins"! Amazing to think of all the things they've created with their previous owner. So lovely that many of them are still in their plastic sleeves too.

I too have my grandmother's knitting equipment, including several sets of plastic needles that apparently aren't made any more. I've tried to teach my stepmother, her daughter, to knit, but it didn't take, so I carry the flame.

Thanks for sharing your reverance for old pins and needles. Hopefully, you'll find just the right container so they can be admired.

How incredibly cool! I love holding old pieces in my hands and imagining everyone else who has used them. :)

That's such a thoughtful gift! I'm sure I wouldn't immediately integrate the elderly pins into my punk-ass, immature needle collection, either. Give them time, though; the pins don't want to just sit in a box on a shelf forever, either. :)

About two years ago I picked up a large zip lock baggie of old knitting needles at an estate sale for $1 or something small like that. They weren't packaged very special so I didn't hesitate to mix them into my own knitting needles. I learned quickly that old plastic needles break easily. And old knitting pins and old metal circulars with wire cables rust and aren't very good to knit with today. The old "pins" are LONG - like 12" long!

I do have old things from my grandmother and family treasures that I definitely do keep in the original box - I couldn't bear not to. The box itself is part of what makes the items special. I hope your box lasts as long as you need it to.

That's quite a treasure trove. I'd keep it separate, too.

Just this weekend, I was thinking that my addi size 0 circular needles are very pin-like. Probably stashing the sock in progress in my pocket made me think that, eh?

You have received a wonderful gift. I know what you mean about keeping these separated from your own knitting tools. The collection is quite lovely.

Very cool. I have my mother's old knitting needles, and don't really use them ... they're too precious.

It is strange, strange and personal, like someone's vintage slips and lingerie.

What a wonderful gift! When I first started knitting in earnest 6 years ago, I got my first needles on ebay from a retired knitter and there were many susan bates, inox circulars, and even some addis in the mix. I totally understand your not wanting to mix this timecapsule treasure with your own tools too! :)

What a gorgeous set of needles, I hope you get to use them for a project and that they don't languish in the box for the rest of their lives.
As for the destashing - I guess working at a yarn store, especially one with the gorgeous stuff Effiloche has, lends itself to acquiring more and more yarn. I don't know if I'd be able to resist.

p.s. check out my new blog - with the picture I took of you wearing my clapotis at the Lucy Neatby workshop.

my mother in law's aunt passed away last year and everytime i go for a visit, my MIL hands me some old knitting and crochet tools, just last night she gave me some vintage spools of thread. aunt claire didn't start getting crafty until she had retired, so there are no knitting "pins" in the mix, but still some wonderful things.

I always felt that way about needles I'd been given, too. It's been years, though, and I actually have used some for different things, so now there's much more co-mingling of the knitting needles and pins going on at my house. ; ) Oh, there's just nothing quite like a rubberbanded box holding treasure, though, is there?

How fabulous!Your grandmother's friend must be happy that her treasured collection went to a good home.

Swoon! I do know what you mean -- I have a few old knitting items (including a package of "knitting pins"!), and I think of them more as precious objects than as working tools. But maybe you should keep your eye out for a see-through container for them, so they have a special spot but can be admired easily...

So neat to see the older needles/pins!
I inherited big collections from my great aunt Hazel and from my lover's grandmother. Like you, I was inclined to horde or cherish them for a long time because they were so special. Eventually, I mixed them all in with my own, so now there's a wonderful, colorful, patchworky quality to my needle vases. It's like a cool inter-generational crafty mish-mash, but I still remember where each tool came from. :)

Wow - what a treasure. Edith is a very kind soul to pass on these needles.

I looked through my grandmother's knitting books on the weekend... we didn't even get to her stash or to her needles - I can't even begin to imagine how many needles she has.

I know what you mean, about not wanting to use the old stuff. I bought a whole lot of "pins" at a yard sale once, but they've just languished in a drawer. Pretty pics though! Thanks for sharing.

What a nice thing to have. When my great grandmother died I inherited her knitting bag and there was a box of little dpns labeled "sock pins". I guess we stopped using that phrase, which is too bad. I like the way it sounds.