Let see... I bought my first pairs of bamboo circs from a local online shop owned by one of supposedly famous knitter in indonesia. She sold them for IDR 20-30K per pair. But then, ebay become my friends, and thanks to Chris who broke my 2 mm bamboo circs by sitting on it, i decided to buy from ebay.
And... It was awesome!
33 pairs of 3 different length (40, 60, and 80 cm) of 11 sizes cost me only...... US$ 10. I cant remember whether it cost me any shipping fee, but i'm quite sure that even if it did, it only cost a dime or two.
And three weeks later, i have 33 new circular pairs.
These bamboo needles actually became my traveling best friend. Light weight, easy to sneak into the cabin without further questions, can be easily stored and stowed (or shoved) into my bag and even my tiny pouch.
Actually, the cable of the needle is just like a small water hose. Transparent, and surprisingly, the joints are smooth enough, it never hurt my yarn. I always use my bamboo circs to start a project, especially projects that requires some maneuver and twist.
Different with my metal, due to its material, yarn are not easily slide on the bamboo or the cable. This means that it's good for slippery yarn, like viscose, silk, or a very soft wool. But when you are looking for speed, bamboo is definitely never gonna be your best buddy. Bamboo gave you safety and steadiness. Very very light weight, so it wont hurt your wrist.
There are some brands (not sure which, but there are threads and blogs abt it) of bamboo needles that somehow easily frayed and damaged. To my surprise, after using them (read: abusing) for almost 5 years, none of my bamboo circs shed any fiber, chipped, broken, or detached from its cable.
Tips for chipped/frayed bamboo needles:
Paint it with your nail polish. Transparent base coat or neon color... Your choice!
Now let's go to the summary:
Advantages:
- light weight
- easy store, easy carry, travel buddy
- firm hold on yarn, friendly for knitting slippery yarn
- supadupa cheap!
- friendly material
Disadvantages:
- small sized bamboo needles (that looked more like a toothpick) are so so so fragile. Dont press them, or sit on them, dont grip too hard, as it will broke easily. And dont get angry and knitting with a 2 mm bamboo needle. no no!
- stitches are not easily travel from one aide to another on these chinese bamboo needles. Plastic-rubber and fiber is not a really a good friend. If you are going to knit thousands of sts, dont even consider using chinese bamboo circs. You'll get frustrated because you spend your time shoving and moving the stitches on the cable.
If you are looking for these chinese bamboo, make sure you are looking for those circs which size numbers are grafted deep (by laser, they said, but who cares) onto the needle. If it's only painted, it's gonna disappear after you abuse it for the hundredth time.
Remember, knitting is not about how famous your needle is, or how luxury and expensive your yarn is. It's about you, and the process, and what you do to make it beautiful.
