I hate to say it, but using some sort of a knitting loom just isn't knitting to me. Knitting is more than just an end product made with a knitting stitch,....knitting is me, some yarn and needles....the process is way more important than the final product - it's the pleasure of creating something on a couple needles, watching it grow in front of your eyes, etc. I know it sounds silly, but I like the feel of the yarn as it slips through my fingers, and even the feel of the needles... it's a tactile pleasure as well as pleasing the eye.

I know a few people who are not able to knit the regular way using needles and using the knitting looms still let them create something beautiful, so thank you so much for the links. They will be most helpful to my friends.

I like to do both. I have a BOND ISM. I love it for knitting the main body of things but I also like to do the finishing by hand. I make my little guy bonnets on the machine then transfer to 4 needles to circle knit the crown then pick up stitches along the bottom hem and add a ribbed collar with 2 needles. It's a labour of love (and it keeps his neck warm!!)

I haven't posted before--I'm usually hanging out in the Quilting forum--but I do read what's happening here. I'm like Sandra, for me knitting isn't as much about the end product as it is about the process. Granted, I LIKE the socks and mittens and sweaters I make, but I really do it because I enjoy it. I've never knitted anything that I couldn't have purchased for less, but that's not really the issue. I just like knitting! If I ever get to the point where I can't knit with needles any more, I think I'd just stop and do something else instead--I want to feel the yarn in my fingers!

As far as the board itself goes, I don't think I could use one. I think that the ligament damage that prevents me from crocheting would also prevent me from forming the stitches with the hook used with the board. That twist of the wrist motion of hooking really aggravates those old injuries. I can't hook rugs, either.

I have to knit on circular needles, so that I can rest the weight of project in my lap. That, plus the fact that it's evenly supported by both hands, allows me to knit, although I'm never completely pain-free. I can't hold up the weight of a project when it's all on one needle and don't even own a regular straight needle any more. I'm only 46 and I want to keep doing this for as long as possible, so I've learned to make changes.

Annie

I had a knitting loom at some point, but I didn't like it at all. Threw it out. I prefer two needles, preferably bamboo.