How to Make a French Knitting Spool

French knitting is a cheap craft to teach young kids.

Young girls often learn French knitting or corking before graduating to knitting. The spool required for this technique is known by many names including a knitting nancy, bizzy lizzy, knitting mushroom, peg knitter and corker. While spools are readily available at craft stores, you can make this device using an empty wooden thread spool and four small nails. The spool is then used to knit thin tubes of knitting, smaller but similar in style to that achieved on a larger circular loom. These tubes can then be formed into numerous knitted items.

Things You'll Need

• Marker pen
• Wooden thread spool
• 4d nails
• Hammer
• Varnish

Instructions

1. Mark one end of your wooden spool with four dots in a square pattern, evenly dispersed across the spool top, with the hole in the spool centered in the middle of the dots.

2. Hammer a size 4d nail into each of the four marks. Leave 3/4 inch of each nail protruding.

3. Varnish the spool to protect it from finger marks, while corking. Allow the varnish to dry thoroughly before starting your corking projects. if you are feeling particularly artistic, you could decorate the sides of the spool with permanent markers, paints or decoupage, prior to varnishing.

References

• Needlepointers: Spool Knitter
• All Free Crafts; Corking - How to Make a Knitting Spool, Corking Spool or Corker; Twila Lenoir