turkish market and knitting needle head cover tutorial

Do you love traditional markets? I love them.
This week I had the chance to go to one of the famous turkish markets in Berlin at Maybachufer.

There were stands for fabrics, vegetables, fruits, household goods, cheese, meat, and so on. It was also rather crowded, so I couldn't take many pictures, but at least I managed to get the stuff that I needed:

A pair of size 10 (Europe) knitting needles, some sewing thread, zippers and some lace (one of them was needed for my dress). Also, I got myself some of these:

These are called "Sesamringe" (sesame rings) and is one of the most delicious bread in the world - for me, at least :) A pack of 3 rings was sold for €2,00 - cheap and yummy!

Back to my shopping goods - the knitting needles were also very cheap compared to those sold in stores, but the drawback is that they don't look as pretty. So I thought, why not cover the head with something more presentable for the eyes? And since I was in a good mood I thought I could make a tutorial as well!

You'll need:
- a pair of knitting needles
- fabric scraps
- ribbon
- batting
- sewing thread and needle
- glue

1. Cut out two circles from your fabric scraps. Mine had a diameter of 7,5 cm, since the needle heads were pretty big.

2. Do a running stitch along the circle, about 5 mm from the edge. Pull the thread lightly so the fabric forms a cap. Leave the needle on the thread, you'll need it later. You might want to try this half-finished cover on the needle head to see whether it fits.

3. Next, try out the amount of batting you'll need to cover the needle head.

4. Then stuff it into the cap.

5. Now place the whole thing on to the needle head. Last chance for adjusting the placement of the batting inside the cap before sewing everything up!

6. Wind the remaining thread tightly around the base of the cap a few times (did I tell you to use longer thread than you think was needed? well, you do...), then sew up with your favourite finishing stitch.

7. It should look like this now. Carefully trim the fraying edge if needed.

8. Glue a ribbon to cover the base. I'm sorry I couldn't take a better picture, but this is how it's supposed to look like afterwards.

Do the same to the other needle, and you're done!

I did this to my size 10 needle only, so I don't feel the need to put any label to the heads, but if you want to cover different sizes of needles you might want to label them so you can tell them apart. Use stamps, beads, buttons, embroidery, anything!

As usual, please forgive the dark pictures (my next tutorial should not be made at night!), and don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions!