Tutorial - Make a No-Sew DPN Cozy

I like to knit socks concurrently on two sets of double pointed needles (DPNs), and needed a couple of DPN cozies to keep the stitches safely on the needles when not in use.  There are patterns available for sewn cozies, or you can buy cozies on Etsy in a variety of cute fabrics, but I wanted something quick, easy, and right now.

I figured out how to make a no sew version, and thought I would share how I did it on our blog.

Scrounged around in my craft room, I found supplies to make a set of no-sew felt cozies.  

Some of the benefits of this style are:  

• felt can be cut without unraveling (unlike fabric)
•  no finishing is needed (although a needle felted design would be a nice touch)
•  the felted texture holds the needles securely (no need to sew up the ends of the case)
• extra needles can be poked through the felt for safe keeping
• they took only minutes to make!

Supplies needed:

• Thick felt
• Denim buttons (the no sew snap on version)
• Cutting tool - scissors or rotary cutter
• Fiber for needle felting (optional) 

Step one ~ measure your needles and cut felt a in a rectangle a bit longer than the needles

 Step two ~ insert denim buttons 1/2" up from bottom, and 1" from outside edges

Step three ~ mark placement of holes, and cut small slits (approx 1/2" long)

on opposite edge of buttons for buttonholes.

Step four (optional) ~ needle felt a design on front of cozy

I felted a flower garden on one....

and a butterfly on the other

Step five  ~ use needle or awl to poke a double set of holes

in back of lower button portion of cozy to hold extra needle(s)

Step six ~ lay your DPN project  in case, and close buttons

You are ready to go....

These work marvelously to keep knitting safe on the needles. 

Have knitting, will travel!

While I wait....I knit

With time this will be a sweater

Waiting on the Lord

                                                                                    Willing  Abiding  Intimately Trusting                                                           

I wish that I was clever enough to come up with this acronym.  I, however, am not that clever, but a wonderful woman that I know created that acronym and it is a constant reminder of how to deal with my difficulties in waiting on the Lord.

June 2011

The past two years have been a struggle for my family in the sense that we have been waiting to hear the plan that God has for our life.  Almost five years ago, my husband and I said "I do."

 The journey began!

I became pregnant and had Lily Eve in November 2012 and my whole life changed.  I knew then that I wanted to be a stay-at-home mom!

Lily 4 Months Old

My husband took the Forest Ranger state exam in 2013 and we just recently heard that he was not going to be getting into the academy.  He had pushed his body so he could pass the physical exam as well as enduring a psychological exam.  Out of the almost 400 applicants, he was number 15 and they took 13 people into the academy.

The whole time we had hope.  Hope that our future would be secure.  That Bill would have a career, and that I would be able to go back to staying home full-time with Lily.

Bill applied for a job with the Watervliet Arsenal.  It was another opportunity for him to learn new skills and even go back to school.  Unfortunately, that door closed too and he was not able to get an interview because he did not qualify for the position.

Lily 3 Years Old

Another seemingly disappointing event.

We know that God's plan is bigger than ours and even though these opportunities fell through we stand on the fact that there is something better.  I prayed, Lord knows I prayed, and I asked God to shut the door if this was not His will.  And He did!

1 Peter 5:7 says, "Give all your cares to God, for He cares about you." [emphasis mine]

Lily and her Daddy have a very strong relationship!

So to me, the acronym is this.  I need to wake up each day with a willingness to trust in the Lord.  At any given time I could give up, but part of the reason I have been victorious in Life is because I refuse to give up!  And I need to abide, meaning to long time.  And also I need to intimately trust that God is doing for me what I cannot do for myself, and that He is looking out for my family's well-being.

Jeremiah 29:11 states: "I have plans to prosper you," says the Lord.  "They are plans for good and not disaster, to give you a future and a hope." [emphasis mine]




There is no definitive answer yet and that is okay!  I could write an entire blog of the blessings that have occurred in the midst of this storm.  One of the greatest things is that Lily and Bill have been able to form a strong bond by being able to see each other all the time.  I am so grateful today that I do have God in my life and Godly people around me to share my life with!

I continue to live one day at a time, loving the Lord, my Family, my Life!

New Jersey 2014