Pattern Review – Nifty Needle Case by Moogly

I loose my yarn needles all the time. (All. The. Time.) Do you? I know I have dozens of them in this house somewhere, but at the moment can only find 3. So when I saw this new “Nifty Needle Case” pattern by Moogly, I decided I had to have one. I’m happy to say it turned out to be exactly like all of Moogly’s patterns – easy to follow, well written and illustrated, artfully constructed, and…well…cute!

I had bought a couple of these butterfly buttons on a whim (and a sale) some years ago, and never found the right use for them. I noticed that they matched nicely with some leftover Bernat Handicrafter’s cotton in my stash, so I knew I wanted to use those. I didn’t want it to look too busy though, and particularly didn’t want the pretty button to be lost in the stripey yarn. So I decided the colorful yarn had to be used for the inside part of the case, and the outside had to be a muted, solid color. I found some navy blue Lily Sugar & Cream in my stash, which fit the bill perfectly.

My gauge worked up a bit larger than the pattern, but I think the yarn I was using may just have been a little thicker than the recommended yarn. At this gauge the stitches are very tight, so they create a dense, stiff fabric that holds onto the needles quite nicely. I was happy with the resulting size too – mine is just under 5 inches wide instead of 4, which is just fine. Since my gauge was larger though, I changed the buttonhole as recommended. Instead of ch 4, sk 4, I did ch 3, sk 2, then on the next row I worked 2 sts into the ch 3 space. This worked out to a nice, snug fit for the button.

I was surprised that the inner flap was open on both sides, and was skeptical that it would hold a pair of scissors. I tried it though, and with the case closed, the scissors stayed in there securely – I couldn’t make them fall out. Also, having the inner flap open on both sides really does make it easier to put the needles in. Much to my surprise, the white parts of the button turned out to be clear, so the dark blue showed through beautifully!

Then of course, because I can never just follow directions, I had to add my own little spin. The stitches that create the “folds” in the case leave unused loops on the outside. Working into these loops, I worked (ch 1, sl st) in each st on both folds, giving the case a pretty, colorful edging. I thought about edging it all the way around, but decided that would be too much.

I’m really happy with the way this turned out! I think cotton yarn is definitely a good choice as you can get a really stiff fabric with it, which is exactly what’s needed. Whenever I find myself with some more buttons and pretty scraps of cotton yarn, I may have to make up a few more of these as gifts…or…well, maybe as gifts for myself too!