I can really only give general instructions in this tutorial because unless you have the same exact number of needles as I do, you’ll have to adjust anyway. Here goes…
Materials
- 1/4 – 1/3 yard home decor fabric/outdoor canvas, etc.
- 1/4 yard coordinating cotton fabric
- coordinating ribbon
- basic sewing supplies
My knitting needle case is for 6 pair of circs and 7 sets of 7″ DPN.
The overall finished dimensions of my case are 13.5″ x 7.75″, so I cut 2 pieces from the home decor fabric measuring about 14.25″ x 8.5″. (I did 1/4″ seams, but added a little more than that to my finished dimensions to give me some wiggle room.)
Since I organized it so my circs were on one side and the DPN were on the other, I came up with how wide I needed the circ side to be to fit 2 rows of 3 sets of needles and then adjusted the DPN side to match that.
I figured my circular needle pockets needed to each be 2 3/8″ w x 3 1/8″ h finished, so I added 5/8″ to each side to get the unfinished measurements. So if you want to make a case for more than 6 sets of circs, add 2 3/8″ for each additional set.
I made the pocket for the DPN 4 5/8″ high and as wide as the circ pocket for symmetry. Then I used my actual needles to mark how wide each pocket should be.
If you’re making yours a completely different dimension, add up the width you’ll need for your circular and DPN and add 1″. Leaving some space in the middle of the pockets will create a “spine” so the case can close all the way.
Hopefully with that information, you can adapt this tutorial to fit your own knitting needle collection.
Cut 2 pieces from your home decor fabric (14.25″ x 8.5″). Pin right sides together. Mark where you want your ribbon ties to be and pin the ribbon in between the two layers and the edge lined up with the edge of the fabric with the excess ribbon inside.
Sew right sides together, leaving a space for turning inside out.
Turn and clip corners. Press flat and edge stitch all the way around, closing the opening you left for turning.
Next mark the center along the long edge and top stitch both layers together 1/2″ from the center line on either side. This will create the spine so the case will close with your needles inside.
CIRCULAR NEEDLE POCKETS
I made 2 rows for 3 sets of needles.
Cut 2 pocket pieces, adding a total of 1/2″ to the length and another 1/2″ to the width for finishing.
Press all 4 sides under 1/4″ and edge stitch the top edge before sewing it down to the case. Repeat for second pocket piece.
Sew the top pocket about 2″ down from the top of the case along the two sides and the bottom, leaving the top edge of the pocket free.
Position the bottom row pocket so it is about 1/8″ from the bottom of the case. Sew along the sides and bottom.
Create the pockets by sewing 2 3/8″ from the left edge of the pocket. Sew another line vertically through both pockets 2 3/8″ from your first stitching line to create the rest of the pockets.
***Before you sew the vertical lines to make the pockets, measure the total width of the pocket to make sure you have enough room for each pocket to be 2 3/8″ wide. If it’s a little off, just divide whatever width you have by 3 and use that as your pocket width measurement.
DPN POCKETS
Cut 1 pocket piece measuring 5 1/4″ high and wide enough to go from the left edge of the case to the left side of the spine sewing line. (My pocket unfinished was about 7″ w x 5 1/4″ h).
Press all 4 edges under 1/4″. Edge stitch along the top edge of the pocket before sewing it down to the case.
Sew the DPN pocket so that the bottom edge of the pocket is 1/8″ – 1/4″ from the bottom edge of the case. Sew the sides and bottom of the pocket to the case.
To make the slots for the DPN, decide what order you’re going to put them in and use your actual needles to determine the width of the pockets. I started with my smallest needles on the left. Give yourself just a smidge of extra room when marking these sewing lines. You want the needles to fit in there tightly but they are 3 dimensional, so you have to add a little bit of extra space.
This sounds much more complicated than it really is. You probably won’t need all these instructions, but hopefully something will have been helpful here! Please let me know if you have questions or if anything is unclear.
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