Looming Tools

Beginning a new hobby can be overwhelming. What tools will you need? How do you get started? Who's going to join me on this crazy adventure? Oh wait, I may be the only one that thinks that.

After you've purchased your first set of looms you may want to look into some tools to make life easier. I highly suggest buying extra loom hooks. I have a tendency to misplace mine so it's nice to have a few spares. I do not like the Boye looms but I like their hook. I've bent other brands or had the middle come out completely. The Boye hooks are sturdy and can handle constant use.

 

The only negative to this hook is it can make your hand hurt if you use it for an extended time. To help with that you can easily make a grip for it. If your child has a ton of those little rubber bands around the house you can borrow those instead of buying more! Win. Win!

 Once again I'm suggesting LoomaHat for instructions. 

To help keep track of your stitch counts you can get this handy dandy little clicker. 

I always click at the end of a row so I can keep track of the row I'm on. This is useful when the pattern calls for knit and purl stitches or any other combo of stitches. If I don't use the clicker I can't keep things straight. 

To hold my place I like these lock ring markers. 

 Every now and then I'll need to pull a row out of a project. Getting it back on the loom can be tricky. To help with that I put a marker in each stitch of the last row before I remove from the loom. I fix what I need to fix and then put it back on the loom. These counters are also useful when you are working with socks or for when you need to mark the beginning of a row.  If you also crochet and are working in the round I highly suggest these markers.  They have saved me many times. 

I also keep several yarn needles on hang along with scissors. You can never have enough. 

I also have a knitting bag to keep my current project in. I have this bag from Hobby Lobby and I love it!

It may look small but don't let it deceive you.  This baby comes with 6 pockets on the outside and another pocket on the inside! I've had this bag for 2 years and it still looks brand new. It can carry several skeins of yarn, looms, hooks, needles, and whatever else I throw in at the time. It's the perfect size. 

I have some kids in my knitting club that have yarn organizer bags. This helps them keep their yarn from getting tangled. You can find this bag at Herschners.com 

Or this one, on Amazon.

 

If you don't want to purchase a yarn bag, an empty Folgers can works great too! 

Enjoy! 

-Tracy