Ever wanted to try out a French Knitter (also know as a knitting spool)?  My oldest has been showing interest in learning how to knit but sadly knitting is one craft I just have never been about to really get the hang of. Honestly, knitting frustrates me so much that knitting needles are much more likely to become projectiles that actually knit anything.

However using a french knitter is not nearly as frustrating and is a great tool to teach the basics of knitting to little ones.

All you will need to make your own knitter is a piece of dry tree limb (or even a dowel rod), approximately 1.25″- 1.5″ inches wide, 4-6 finishing nails, a drill bit that is at least 3/8″, and a hammer or mallet.

First you will need to cut your piece of limb down to size.  I made mine approximately 4″ long.  Make sure to that the cuts are flat. If the ends of you knitter are rough just sand them a bit.

Next, you will need to drill a hole in the center of the knitter.  Try to make the hole in the center of the limb.  Allow the drill to remain in place while drilling so that the drill smooths the inside of the hole.  This is where the knitted portion will go as you finish knitting each round so you will want it as smooth inside as possible.

This is what your knitter will look like after drilling the hole.

Now you are going to make markings so that you will know where to place your finishing nails.  I just used the tip of a nail to make little indents.  I did not measure, I prefer to guesstimate this type of stuff.  I wanted 5 nails but you can use different amounts such as 4 or 6. The more nails the thicker the “tube” you will make.

This is the type of nail I used.  Go ahead and place the nails that you just laid out with a hammer.  And yes, I love sparkly nail polish!

This is what your knitter will look like as you begin to put the nails in place.  Leave about 1/2″ of nail sticking up.  Make sure though that you drive enough nail into the wood so that it is secure.

This is what the top of your knitter will look like after putting all the nails in their place!

Here is a sample of what the “tube” you can knit with your French knitter can be used for.  Elliot is loving his new bracelet.  Stay tuned, I will be posting a directions on how to knit with your brand new knitter new week!