Heard this tip from a TV show: Take a drinking straw and
just cut it into size you want for markers.
If you have left over yarn, cut small pieces and tie in a
circle and use for markers.
Hope these help and good luck with the sweater.
I did an Aran Afghan for my mother and brought back memories. I do know you need lots of markers.
Enjoy.

Yarn loops are nice and you can make them in different colors to help keep your place.

Annie

You can use most anything. HOw large are your needles? You can use dental rubber bands for braces, yarn loops (but be sue to make the knots real tight), safety pins, drinking straw sections, or even those round plastic forms to crochet buttons around. I use the latter for very large knitting needles. Getting a variety of colors will be the challenge. Maybe yarn loops would be best.

The dental rubber bands are a good idea but sorry I don't have access to them since my children are grown up. The scrap yarn I tried before and they didn't work great for me. The sweater has a needle size of 9 and 10 but I will not be using those sizes. I have to step them down several sizes to be able to make the pattern fit my son. He is a very petite 32 year old young man. He weighs only 98 lbs on his heaviest day. His growth from birth was affected by kidney disease. He was not a premature baby but weighed only 3 lbs 7 1/2 ozs. He was only 17 1/2 inches long. He was been small his entire life. At age 9 was when he finally bumped his head walking under the dining table at my mom's. When he was old enough to start school, he had to be picked up and placed on the buses' first step to go up the steps into the bus.He had to have a kidney transplant in 2000 when his right kidney failed. His kidneys were abnormally small and only worked at the rate of half of a normal size kidney. When he buys clothes for himself he shops in the boy's department of the stores.The only problem the clothing is not appropriate for an adult with the designs and styles that are there. when he and his brother were younger, any out grown clothing was a "Hand me up" instead of a "hand me down'.
When he went into kidney failure his remaining kidney contiued to produce urine but the toxins the kidneys eliminates from our body, continued to build up in his body till they almost killed him,He was less than 24 hours away from dying in his sleep when he finally went to a Dr. The only reason he went was he passed out at his job and they sent him home with the instruction to not come back unless he had a Dr's note stating why he had passed out. Young men who are in their early twenties do not pass out for no reason.My son said he didn't feel sick when in fact he was dying from the inside out.

Hi, this is my first time to post. I have used old clip on earrings and they work fine.

Hi pepsi41,
I would use old clip on earrings if I had them, I do not wear them since I had pierced ears until my grandson pulled on my earring and split my earlobe. Since then I don't wear any earrings at all. I will get some things at JoAnns Friday when I get paid. I will try making some . I saw a site online where a guy was making them and looked easy to do so I bookmarked his web page for referring back on how he did certain parts.

Go to the craft store. You will need Double rings (the kind like your key ring), the "pins" looks like a long straight pin with out the point, your choice of beads, and a pair of needle nose pliers, preferably without the "teeth
. Thread a couple of the beads on the pin, use the pliers to cut off the excess, leaving about 3/8' to form a loop with the pliers. Put the bead pin on the double ring. You now have a stitch marker! You might need to put a tiny dab of hot glue on the "loop" you made on the pin, if it catches on your yarn. I've been making a ton of these. That and earrings are all I know how to bead right now!

Tami

I forgot to add that you can get bead and the findings really cheap. I have a discount craft store that I can get 25 double rings for under $2. Micheals or Hobby Lobby will have them. If you spend $5 you can easily have 25 markers. Buy inexpensive beads, and use coupons.

I've tried the plastic loop sort of markers and find I don't like the rigid ones...I make loops of different colored yarns...you can use a different color for the first set of increases, or what have you, so you'll know when you're starting a new circular row. I find they stay on the needle better than the rigid ones and don't move around as much. Give them a try and see if you don't like them...and, they cost nothing!

The plain round stitch markers aren't expensive and if you can't find them, you can substitute plain plastic rings. I get both at Walmart.

If you google "stitch markers" you'll turn up a lot of options. Lion brand makes a nice one that's very inexpensive.

Annie

I used to have flat plastic rings but over time the plastic got brittle and the remaining stitch markers I have are too big to use on a smaller needle and I wind up putting pressure on the plastic marker when I am trying to push the knitting up to the tip of the needle and the plastic breaks very easily. I get paid tomorrow so I will see what JoAnns has in stock and also Michaels. I am currently working on a afghan using Peaches and Creme cotton yarn and the plastic rings I bought recently are too bulky to use with the yarn. Every where I have one placed between stitches I wind up with a hole there and pulling the stitch tight as I work doesn't eliminate the hole.
Thanks for all your suggestions .

I have used embroidery floss tied an a knot with a little fray check on the knot. Easy to color code and easy to size with the needle used.

I went to to my local JoAnns ( I used to work there about 8 years ago) and found that they had completely changed the layout of the store. It took me several minutes to find the aisle that the knitting supplies were on. I was lucky to find the exact stitch markers I had used before and likes. I also found a different marker set that would work too but didn't have the funds to buy it as it was more than double the price of the flat ring markers. I also bought supplies to make my own markers. Got several nice beads that will give me some very pretty markers.