spool knitting

when my grandmother passed away last summer, i was given her sewing and knitting supplies, which i treasure greatly. among them was this little guy, he brought me right back to my childhood. it's a spool knitter, we called this "punniken" in my native flemish. i spent hours doing this as a child, making enough knitted rope to sew into placemats, toys, what have you. check out the spool-knitted rug below from "make it yourself - the complete step-by-step library of needlework and crafts" volume 3, published by columbia house in 1973. usually the spool knitters come in a mushroom shape, more recent additions in my collection also include a bee.