
No, I’m Not Thumbelina. I Just Knit With Giant Needles And Yarn

Community member
In 2011, I decided to knit something giant. But I didn’t really know where to start. There were no tutorials available, so I was flying blind.
First, I bought six pounds of unspun wool roving, then I went to the hardware store and bought broomsticks to act as knitting needles. When the broomsticks were too small, I went back and bought 1.5″ diameter PVC pipe. I turned each five-foot length of pipe into “knitting needles” by adding duct-tape tips, and just started knitting. A few hours later, I had my Giganto-Blanket.
When I posted a video of myself knitting the blanket, I was suddenly getting a lot of requests for the pattern. So I wrote up the Giganto-Blanket pattern and put it up online, and now I even sell the finished blankets on Etsy.
More info: nocturnalknits.com | Etsy
Like Atlas, but with wool
Don’t look now, but you’ve got a giant ball of yarn behind you…
On the needles
Those knitting needles are five feet long. Seriously.
Playing with scale
Tiny bed or giant blanket? Oh wait, is that a cat?
All balled up
These balls of yarn are ready to be knit into a Giganto-Blanket.
It’s so squishy
ADVERTISEMENTReally, you can’t imagine how soft it is.
Free People custom design
Free People asked me to make a version of the blanket for their holiday shop.
Giant yarn, cat + spinning wheel
Neither the cat nor the spinning wheel is required for making the blanket, but they sure to do look cute sitting there.
My first attempt
It turns out knitting on broomsticks wasn’t good enough. I had to go bigger!
Cabled Giganto-Blanket
The giant scale of the knitting makes for really dramatic cable patterns.
Free People custom design
Free People decided to call it the “Big Sky Blanket” – they sold out almost immediately.
Quality assurance
My cat Magnus likes to inspect each blanket and give me feedback.
Tiny cat?
ADVERTISEMENTMolly is a small cat, but next to the Giganto-Blanket she looks downright miniature! (She loves “helping” me knit my blankets.)
Pure comfort
It turns out the blanket is my cats’ favorite place to sleep.
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Laura Birek
Author, Community member
Writer, Knitter and Web Developer from Los Angeles.
Too much animal pain just for a blanket. There is no need for this these days.
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There is plenty of good whool to get from animals that have a great life. Yet the whool from uggs for example is plain cruel, I agree.
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The wool for Uggs is from animals that were being killed for food. They don't raise them and just kill them for their wool.
Sheep have to be shorn or in the summer months or they can suffer terribly in the heat and with fly strike.
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Because this is more humane? http://img2.timeinc....0/sheep-440.jpg
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You might not like the practice but flystrike isn't any prettier. http://www.teara.gov.../p17443nsil.jpg
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
There's always going to be sheep is what I'm saying, you either let it die horribly in the name of animal welfare or you give it a buzz cut.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
@Thomas - So you have a problem. You have a species that is your responsibility because it is historically a creation of human intervention
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
ha ha 4 people didn't like being confronted with the reality of being an unshorn sheep. Mulesing is ilegal in the UK before anyone starts.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
You are an idiot, wool is about as inhumane as a haircut... please take your vegan stupidity elsewhere
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Mulesing is only practiced where there are wrinkled breeds like merino with blowfly problems, eg Austrailia, cos the alternative is worse.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
If you are so passionate about it, I suggest you get out there and dip the sheep yourselves, but boycotting wool will lead to more neglect!
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Shaving them is not harming them. And really this is what annoys me, you are all happy to b*tch about it but do nothing to help. Grow up!
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
The rest of the world thinks you're idiots because no one else mules their sheep. Yes I think it's abhorrent, but maggots eating your flesh?
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Apparently a lot of you are cool with animals dying from horrible disease. You probably believe eating soy doesn't harm the environment too.
To all that think it's inhumane to use God's bounty, have you ever seen sheep that were NOT sheared? Speaking of inhumane! Signed, ALL ANIMAL LOVER...
Too much animal pain just for a blanket. There is no need for this these days.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
There is plenty of good whool to get from animals that have a great life. Yet the whool from uggs for example is plain cruel, I agree.
Load More Replies...This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
The wool for Uggs is from animals that were being killed for food. They don't raise them and just kill them for their wool.
Sheep have to be shorn or in the summer months or they can suffer terribly in the heat and with fly strike.
Load More Replies...This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Because this is more humane? http://img2.timeinc....0/sheep-440.jpg
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
You might not like the practice but flystrike isn't any prettier. http://www.teara.gov.../p17443nsil.jpg
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
There's always going to be sheep is what I'm saying, you either let it die horribly in the name of animal welfare or you give it a buzz cut.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
@Thomas - So you have a problem. You have a species that is your responsibility because it is historically a creation of human intervention
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
ha ha 4 people didn't like being confronted with the reality of being an unshorn sheep. Mulesing is ilegal in the UK before anyone starts.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
You are an idiot, wool is about as inhumane as a haircut... please take your vegan stupidity elsewhere
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Mulesing is only practiced where there are wrinkled breeds like merino with blowfly problems, eg Austrailia, cos the alternative is worse.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
If you are so passionate about it, I suggest you get out there and dip the sheep yourselves, but boycotting wool will lead to more neglect!
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Shaving them is not harming them. And really this is what annoys me, you are all happy to b*tch about it but do nothing to help. Grow up!
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
The rest of the world thinks you're idiots because no one else mules their sheep. Yes I think it's abhorrent, but maggots eating your flesh?
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Apparently a lot of you are cool with animals dying from horrible disease. You probably believe eating soy doesn't harm the environment too.
To all that think it's inhumane to use God's bounty, have you ever seen sheep that were NOT sheared? Speaking of inhumane! Signed, ALL ANIMAL LOVER...
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