Multiple Latch Hook Tools with Legos

For Converting Purl Stitches to Knit Stitches

When I found a used Knitsmart Sweatermaker on the net, it came with a nifty little dual-latch hook tool. It consists of two regular latch hook tools that are connected by a little spacer so you can convert 2 stitch columns (such as the 1st and the 3d) at the same time from purl to knit stitches, like you do for ribbing.

This was pretty neat, ribbing in half the time! I also had several Bond latch hook tools and got to thinking, hmm, if two are fast, more would be even faster! So as I looked around for something that would make a suitable spacer to go between three of them, I stumbled on the Lego blocks. I put a few of them between each tool, taped them together with freezer tape, and, voila, it worked and I was able to convert three (EO) stitches at a time. If you have no Legos, anything else that will give you the same spacing will work just as well, so make yourself a double or triple latch hook tool, and see whether you like how it works! If you think you'd like to convert even more stitches at a time and you happen to have some flat Legos on hand, read on below! :)

I had also discovered that our latch hook tools are made from regular Bond machine knitting needles and that the spacing across two little Lego nubs is exactly the same as our needle channels (8mm) and that the nubs make great channels for the needles. Off I went, experimenting again and glad for a change that we have so many of them scattered around the house, don't know how many more I've vacuumed up over the years! :)

Click Picture or Text for "Building Instructions"

This is the first tool I made with 8 regular Bond knitting machine needles. This is how it works:

Put the latch hooks below the purl bumps of every other stitch as many rows down as you want to convert. Release those stitches off the needles by pushing the needles all the way forward, then pulling them all the way back again.

Pull down on the tool so the stitches will unravel into floats. Tilt the tool, bringing the open latch hooks that are behind the knitting forward, so that each hook catches the float right above it from behind. Pull down on the tool, making sure that the stitches that are on each hook have slid behind the latch, pull the floats downwards through those stitches, then pull them up slightly to enlarge them. Let newly formed stitches slide behind latches, then go under and behind the next row of floats with the open latch hooks and again pull them through the stitches on the needles as before. Repeat until you reach the top.

Put the converted stitches back on the needles. The easiest way I found to replace the stitches was to bring the empty needles forward with one hand, pushing them alongside and through the stitches that are on the tool hooks (make sure latches of empty needles are open!). Once you see that the stitches are lined up with the needle hooks, push up on the tool, letting the stitches slide behind the latches. As you pull the tool through and out of the stitches, the stitches should settle into the needles hooks on the bed.

7 seems to be the greatest number of stitches I can convert for more than one row at a time. Because it was a bit awkward to transfer them back to the needles, I made another tool that also included a 7-EO transfer tool as shown below. This worked well, but the drawback was that now I could only convert stitches ONE row at a time with it, otherwise the prongs of the transfer tool got in the way. This tool is made the same way as the first one, except that the transfer tool is included and sandwiched between the layers of blocks.

The prongs of the 7-EON transfer tool prongs extend just a bit past the latch hooks. Since it worked really well for converting ONE row of 7-EO stitches and transferring them back to the needles, I made up another one with 14 latch hooks and two sets of 7-EON transfer tools. This also works very well for converting 14 stitches ONE row at a time and I have used this tool for things like converting an entire row of stitches to garter stitch by first converting 14-EO stitches, then converting the stitches in between. It works very nicely for solid rows of seed stitch too. I can also use the transfer tool prongs separately to transfer 14 stitches to their "next door neighbors" at a time for allover eyelet patterns.

NOTE: To use the tool with the transfer tool prongs, you put the latch hooks under the purl bumps of the row below just as with the other one. It doesn't matter if the prongs end up in the row below. Since they have no hooks, they can't get stuck. Then when you have released the stitches, caught the floats from behind and have pulled them back through the stitches, you lift up on the tool to enlarge the newly formed stitches and slip the prongs of the transfer tool through them. Let stitches slide behind the latches, then hook onto the needles on the bed (latches need to be open). Tilt tool so stitches will slide over the closed latches and into the empty needle hooks on the bed. Release prongs from needles by lifting up on them.

To summarize, the 7-EO needle latch hook tool without the transfer tool inserted can be used to convert 7 purl stitches to knit stitches MULTIPLE rows at a time.

The 7-EO or 14-EO needle latch hook tool combined with the 7-EO or 14-EO needle transfer tool makes it easy to convert and put back in place 7 or 14 stitches for ONE row.

I ordered my set of multiple transfer tools from Cara Bernhauser last year, Lea-Ann may carry them also? They are very practical to use and consist of two sets of 7-EO needle transfer tools and two sets of 14-Every needle transfer tools.

If you're still awake at this point :), the last tool I made is a 28-needle adjustable latch hook tool. I have used it to knit things like a seed stitch alphabet because the spacing with some patterns is not always k1, p1. There is a seed stitch alphabet if you would like to try it out.

Click Picture or Text for "Building Instructions"

With this tool, each needle can be adjusted to be in use or not by either sliding it forward or pulling it back. The needles are held in place by the wedge shown above the tool which is very quickly replaced. This also works to convert ONE rows of stitches. It does not include the transfer tools as I haven't yet figured out a way to adjust them to be in use or not, sigh...

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This page last updated 8-September-1999