A girl likes to have pretty things. Even while knitting. That's why there's "knitting jewelry" (stitch markers and row markers). A shiny bauble or more to have hanging about even during the most boring, garter-stitch drudgery.

Well, this crafty girl along with her gal pals Pamelalala, Petra and Kathy (see this? if y'all had websites, I could be spiffy and link them here) have gone and made their own.

I've made way too many for myself, but am a greedy with my preciouses. (Is it too late to make a Gollum reference?) I've made some as gifts and some for the heck of it - 'cause I liked the beads. It's addicting, I tell ya'. And it's not like knitting's not addictive enough, now I've got a beading habit to go with my fiber jones.

So here's a couple of pics o' knitting eye candy and perhaps a little instruction. I gotta get some knit on... like NOW!

First things first - you should know that I have more beads that I need or will ever need, but I want more - always. Here's a couple of pics of my beading in progress. I originally started making cute lil' seed bead animals and flowers. Then this 'sickness' came into my head and now I'm on stitch marker binge.

Some of the first ones I made were with the "girls" during a fun Crafturday (Saturday craft day). This pink set of three are my standbys, they're the stitch markers I usually go for while knittin'. They're perfectly balanced and not pointy parts to catch on the yarn.

When I need row markers, I typically pick up one of the red set. They, too, are light and roundy - easy to work with. But occasionally, I need something with a little bite to it. A row marker that's not afraid to show the knitting who's boss. Don't nobody say nuttin' bad to this little guy. What attitude! Ha!

But I'm not all sass n' vinegar. I've got a sweet side to my nature. (Just don't ask MattyBonez.) An' one of my favorite critters is the dragonfly. Cute, flitty, a bit more gumption to it than a butterfly, and not as bad a rap as a wasp. I've got a dragonfly tattoo and *want* to get another. ("Want" in this case is balanced against desire, location, and the pain factor. Perhaps; perhaps not. We'll see.) Here are two adorable dragonfly stitch markers that I made; the red one is a bead from Pamelalala and the blue/green one is ... Wha? You can't see the other one? Well, click on the pic to get a closer view!

Now might be a good time to take a little break, get some refreshments, and learn what the difference between row and stitch markers are. A row marker gets pinned or hooked onto the knitted fabric at a specific row and stays put. This makes it easier on the knitter when he/she needs to knit are large amount of rows. (I.e., it's easy to loose count of 100 rows of knitting, but if you place a marker every 20 rows the counting is much easier.) A row marker typically is a hook or clasp that conveniently hooks onto the strand of yarn. I prefer clasps because they don't come off too easily when I'm bandying about with my projects (re: toss it down in frustration or exhaustion).

A stitch marker, on the other hand, is made to "travel" with the knitting. These are made with hoops and need to have a bigger circumference than your needles. Stitch markers are used to mark a place in the knitting, usually where an increase or decrease is made. They're worked up with the knitting, slipping from one needle to the other, so that place is always where the marker is no matter what row you're on. These four stitch markers were made with hoops intended as wine glass charms, but should work with my size US #15 needles. Each has an inspirational word that makes me feel all warm & fuzzy inside.

Now to just finish up. Here's a quick n' dirty pix of a bunch of stitch markers that I made. This has been a long article to write, so I'd imagine it's pretty tough to read. To make it easier, I've linked a pix to their descriptives so if you wanna see them you gotta work a little. No one said that reading blogs was easy!

I made a set of four markers for crochet. They're a gift for a friend and once you see them you'll understand (or perhaps not). I'm not certain how well they'll work for crochet, but I can make changes if they're desired.

A single sunflower row marker. It's pretty long and dangly, but it's a large enough hook that it might be feasible as a stitch marker, too. I made twin punk stitch markers. These, imho, rock! Their black & white print w/ hot pink accents gets me all hot n' bothered for the 80's ... again. These heart stitch markers turned out so pretty that I'm rethinking them as charms on a necklace. Whatd'ya think?

And finally, the beaded markers I made for fireballhead. They were a bit of lagniappe to sweeten the pot of our PEZ-4-Yarn trade. Their are two row markers and three stitch markers of varying sizes.

So that's my story. You want more? Give me time, my friend. Money and time.

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