All About HiyaHiya Interchangeable Needles

We have added English subtitles to our video introducing the Small and Large stainless steel sets! See the video at the bottom of this page.

If you see yourself knitting for years to come, investing in a reliable set of interchangeable knitting needles can be a sensible and convenient choice.

Owning a set of interchangeable knitting needles offers the following advantages:
・It's rarely necessary to buy new needles since you can mix and match different sizes of needle tips with various cable lengths.
・The cable can be used as a stitch holder when you need to put your knitting on hold, with no need to transfer each stitch to waste yarn or a separate stitch holder.
・The needle tips can be removed, so you can use the same needle tips on different projects by simply unscrewing them and attaching them to another cable.

Once you experience the convenience of having a set of interchangeable needles, you'll wonder how you ever made do without one!

HiyaHiya interchangeable needles feature two important characteristics:
・Their stainless steel needles are hollow, making them lightweight and quick to warm up in  your hands. They are odorless, there's no metallic smell that some needles have.
・The cables swivel freely, so your project won't get twisted up and your needle tips won't loosen as you work.
In addition to overall quality, these two features are very important in ensuring that the needles are easy to use and compatible with a wide range of projects.

HiyaHiya offers an impressive range of interchangeable needles – 9 types! So it may be difficult to figure out which set or sets would be best for your knitting style. Continue reading to learn about all of the options HiyaHiya offers for interchangeable needles. 

Set Options

First, let's look at how to choose from the 9 different sets available. 

・Needle Type: Stainless Steel or Bamboo
Choose from hollow, lightweight stainless steel needles or flexible and strong bamboo needles. Some options, such as the smallest sock needle sizes and sharp points, are only available for steel needles.

 ・Needle Size Types: Sock, Small, or Large
There are three types of sizes available.

Sock: Set includes 5 sizes, US 0/ 2.00 mm to US 2.5/ 3 mm
Small: Set includes 7 sizes, US 2/ 2.75 mm to US 8 / 5 mm
Large: Set includes 6 sizes, US 9/ 5.5 mm to US 15/ 10 mm

If you are new to interchangeable needles, we recommend starting with the Small set as it includes some of the most common needle sizes.

If you have more knitting experience and know that you enjoy certain types of projects, select the set that you feel would be most helpful for you! Love knitting socks or miniatures? The sock set might be most useful. Are you a fan of big, chunky yarn? The large set might be just what you are looking for.

If you want to have a range of options and be prepared for anything, you can also consider buying different sized sets. Check Compatibility Between Sets below for information about how the different size types can be combined by using adapters.

・Point Type: Regular or Sharp
Depending on the material and size of the needles, there are two point options available: regular or sharp. The Regular needles are already rather sharp, but the Sharp needles have an even more pronounced point. 

We recommend sharp needles for those who knit tightly. The sharp points make even the tightest stitches a breeze to knit.
If you tend to push the needle tips as you work, Regular point needles would be best. The Sharp needles are not painful on their own, but if you often push on the tips, your fingertips may start to hurt.

Meri and Tokuko talk about the difference between these tips in the video below.

・Needle Length: 4 inch (10 cm) or 5 inch (13 cm)
HiyaHiya makes 4 inch (10 cm) and 5 inch (13 cm) needle tips.

To decide on length, take a moment to think about your knitting style. If you hold the needles just with your fingertips, the short 4" needles would be fine. But if you like to have a solid grip on your needles, the 5" will be more comfortable.

Also, the 4" needles are well suited for working small projects in the round such as sleeves.

If you're not sure which you would prefer, we recommend the 5" tips.

Compatibility Between Sets
In order to create a smooth join between the needle tips and cables, HiyaHiya makes dedicated cables for each of the three sizes (Sock, Small, Large). This means that normally you would not be able to use a Small cable with a set of Large needle tips. The image below shows a Large needle next to a Small needle for comparison.

However, there are adapters available to make it possible to use Large needles with Small cables or Small needles with Sock cables. These adapters are explained below.

Set Content and Accessories

Any of the sets are a great starting point, but you may find that you need additional accessories to meet all of your needs.
The Small and Large sets come with 4 cables, one of each of the following lengths: 16"/ 40 cm, 24"/ 60 cm, 32"/ 80 cm, and 40"/ 100 cm. The Sock set also comes with 4 cables: 2 of the 24"/ 60 cm cable, and one each of the 32"/ 80 cm and 40"/ 100 cm cables.

Adding a few extra accessories allows you to personalize your knitting tool collection and can make your interchangeable set even more useful.

・Cables
HiyaHiya cables swivel and are flexible, making them easy to use and well-suited for Magic Loop. You can use cables to quickly put your knitting on hold without transferring each stitch to waste yarn or a stitch holder.
We recommend having some extra 24"/ 60 cm or 32"/ 80 cm cables. Having 3 cables of the length you use most often can really simplify things when you have multiple projects.

・Cable Stoppers (Panda / Glass Bead)
HiyaHiya offers super cute panda cable stoppers and glass bead stoppers for their cables. Cable stoppers screw directly on to the cable in place of the needle tips to secure your project in place.

It's good to have a set or two to go with the size of needles you've purchased. Due to the differing cable sizes for each set, there are also 3 sizes of stoppers. Be careful to select the right size for your set.

・Needle Caps
These go on the end of your needles to prevent stitches from falling off during transportation or while in storage. If you like pandas, HiyaHiya has you covered. Be sure to select the correct size for your set.

・Recommended Additional Needle Tip: US 2.5 / 3 mm
The Small set does not include half US sizes such as the 2.5 (3 mm). We offer this size separately (as well as other sizes) so you can add it to your set if you wish. Choose the material and length that matches your set to keep your needle tips consistent.

・Cable Connectors
This item allows you to connect two cables to create a new length using cables you already have. A cable connector makes it easy to add length to your cable when working on a growing cardigan or shawl. You can also use a connector to secure the ends of one cable together, creating a compact and secure stitch holder.

・Needle Tip Adapters
As described in the video below, different needle size types have their own cables to ensure a smooth and comfortable join. Large needles usually cannot be used with Small cables because the joints are different sizes. However, with some needle tip adapters you can use Large needles with Small cables or Small needles with Sock cables. These are particularly handy if you own different sized sets.

・Single Point Adapters
Your interchangeable circular needles can easily transform into single point needles with this accessory. Handy for working a 3-Needle Bind Off or flat knitting when a cable isn't necessary.

・Interchangeable Flyers (Needle Tips/ Cables)
While not offered as a set, HiyaHiya has recently released an interchangeable version of their popular Flyer needles. Flyers are very short circular needles that function like flexible double pointed needles. They come in sets of 3 and make knitting socks and other small items in the round fast and easy. With interchangeable Flyers, you can change the size of your needle tips in combination with Flyer cables you already own, or use cable stoppers to secure a work in progress in place.

A Video Introduction by Meri and Tokuko

amirisu operates HiyaHiya Japan, the official distributor of HiyaHiya needles and tools in Japan and Asia (excluding China). In the video below, Tokuko and Meri introduce the Small and Large HiyaHiya sets and explain some of the characteristics of HiyaHiya needles and differences between the sets. (This video was made before the release of the Sock set.)

English subtitles available under video settings.