jesse_the_k | (Reply)

From:

"It depends".

I use 6mm rings for fine work, and 8mm rings for larger work -- they're much like tiny keychain rings (spiral, can be put on/off of the cable part of circular needles easily) -- and are both easy to detect in the flow of work, by hand, if not by eye, as well as not intrusive enough to cause gaps in the fabric from being in place.

I've also got a few colours of bulb pins, which are handy when you're trying to add a marker to the needle, rather than the cable (or when you're wanting to mark out a stitch further down).

It's probably worth noting that safety pins tend to be fail as markers, because it's so easy to get the yarn tangled up in the head end, or split, or both -- and that makes a mess of your project.

While I'm sure that some people like markers that can't be opened, I'm not one of them -- I'd need to reliably remember when to place markers (and not drop them), which just isn't going to happen. That said, an openable marker should be easy to open, and stay closed once it's in place (completely unlike a dungeon door) -- I wouldn't want to have markers that couldn't be opened/closed one-handed either, since needing both hands would lead to frequent dropping of stitches.

As far as dangles go, it's not so much needing to be simple, as needing to be smooth/non-catching -- a simple thing with sharp edges is way more problematic than a jangle of smooth beads. That said, I personally don't like them much, because I tend to use lightweight yarns, and they're often heavy enough to distort the knitting (which really just boils down to "pick appropriate weights").

Hopefully this helps a bit -- if there are parts that are unclear, confusing, or just "Huh, what?", feel free to elbow ;D