My New Crochet Bag and a Giveaway Winner

Yarn, twine, rope, thread or even plarn: they're all suitable for crochet. Although the results will be quite different. :-)

Personally I love experimenting with different kinds of fibre. So I was excited when I got the chance to crochet with the fibre of the kudzu plant, also know as JungleVine.  

This is the skein I received.

Beautiful, isn't it?
Let's do a closeup. ;-)

Beautiful as it may be, it's an understatement to say I was not looking forward to handwinding this into a ball. I'm notoriously bad at this and I always end up tangling the yarn beyond rescue with me somewhere stuck inbetween - desperately crying out for help. However, this time I was in for a pleasant surprise. the skein was divided in mini-skeins, like this:

There's even a a little loop (which you can see in the picture) between every mini to prevent any untimely unravelling. I have never seen this before and I think it is such a clever way of creating a skein. 

I'm really curious: is this a common way for making a skein? Seriously, I'd love to know! Because it was really, really, a piece of cake to handwind it into a ball. No tangling. So, I was happy and I ended up with this huge, squishy ball.

Then came the really fun part: crocheting. I decided to make a bag, similar to the Nature Bags. Also, I decided that I wanted to make it without having to cut the yarn. So that the bag would be as strong as possible. And I wanted it to be simple. So this is what I came up with - Meet the Breezy Bag:

I made a small, cream edging with cotton crochet yarn. 

Some facts... I used a 2.7 mm crochet hook. But I think you could use up to at least a 3.5 mm hook for this fibre. It's a bit 'harder work' than crocheting with a regular yarn (probably also because I used a relatively small hook) but definitely very doable. Plus I found it fun and interesting because it's just completely different than all other yarns I've worked with: although it's very sturdy, the surface is at the same time much smoother than, for instance, twine. And the result is very stretchable. So I would use it again. Which is good news, because I still have some left! Ha!

I will post the pattern for the Breezy Bag here next week.

A Winner!
And now... Thank you all so very much for participating in the Nature Bag Giveaway. But there can only be one winner and that is... Kotbury from the lovely Kotbury blog! Congratulations to you and please mail me your address and I'll send you the bag asap.

If you did not win but would still like to be a proud owner of such a cute fairtrade bag you can find them online here. If you'd like to work with the JungleVine yarn yourself: Nature Bag sells JungleVine skeins, although they're not listed in their webshop yet. If you are interested you can send an email to service@naturebag.org.

Thanks so much for your lovely visit. I wish you all a most happy day!
♦♦♦

Nature Bag and a Giveaway

Hello dear readers,

Ohoh, it's been too long... But it's good to be back, both at home and on my blog.
I had a lovely time in Thailand and today I would like to take you with me to an interesting project in a neighbouring country: Laos.

Maybe you remember the first photo, I posted it before on this blog last September...

It's a bag from Nature Bag - I bought it a couple of years ago when I was in Laos. I sometimes use it as yarn bag when I'm abroad, because it's flexible and lightweight. It's from made of the natural, strong kudzu fibre which is traditionally used in Laos (and other countries) for making bags and baskets. Kudzu (also known as Japanese arrowroot, as Wikipedia kindly informed me) is a climbing vine that is native to Laos and many other parts of Asia.

On the occasion of posting that photo last year I was contacted by the kind Terry from Nature Bag. Nature Bag is a fairtrade project based in Laos. They make these traditional tote bags with a modern twist from the JungleVine as they dubbed the amazing fibre that is destined to be turned in a Nature Bag. We agreed that I would style and photograph more Nature Bags. The results of which you see here! I loved doing this because fairtrade has my heart.

I tried to highlight the fact that they are very lightweight by pinning them to my wall. I only needed a two or three pins. (Good news for my wall.)

Despite their lightweight nature and delicate looks, the bags are very strong, capable of expanding to carry heavy cargo. (I loaded mine with books!) The bags are knotted, not woven or crocheted, so in the unlikely event that a hole develops, the bag should not unravel. I wish I could say the same about my crochet. ;-)

Nature Bag gifted a bag for a giveaway for my lovely readers! If you would like a chance to win the blue-striped bag below, follow this blog and leave a comment. You can enter until April 2th 2015. [Edit: now closed]

If you'd like to see all styles of bags and meet the people who craft these lovely bags click here to go the Nature Bag website. (They have a webshop.)

In my next post I'll show you a bag I crocheted with JungleVine. I'll also share my pattern!
Okay, that's it for now. I hope you'll enter the giveaway. [Edit: now closed] If you do: Good luck!

Many thanks for your visit and I wish you a most lovely week.
♦♦♦

A Crochet Project Revisited

Chiang Mai has a thriving craft scene. There is a lot of really interesting crafting going on. Bookshops stock lots of gorgeous books on crafts. Last year I showed you some pictures from Bantaktor: a crochet (and a bit of knitting) project in Northern Thailand with a shop in Chiang Mai. They employ about fifty women who crochet and knit good quality products in return for which they receive a fair payment.

Recently I revisited them and they had lots of cute, new things. I think you don't mind having another peak inside. ;-) So here we go!

Would you like to see more? You can find Bantaktor on Facebook - here. And of course do pay them a visit if you are in or near Chiang Mai. It's well worth it! Click here for my post from last year.

That's all for now! I hope you've enjoyed this little crafty tour.

Many thanks for your kind visit and have a lovely weekend.
♦♦♦

Lots of Yarny Goodness from South Africa

Look what the postman brought me a couple of days ago:
A box full of yarny goodness, all the way from South Africa!
A gift from Pigtails, one of the most talented
crocheters, photographers and bloggers around.






















There was Nikkim Vinnis...
(A cotton I was dying to try for quite a while now.)

And more Vinnis...Not only is this yarn very beautiful,
it is hand dyed and balled by women from an economically depressed area of South Africa.
So it empowers women who can really use some empowerment.

And there was Elle Premier cotton in gorgeous colours...
Looking forward to working with this yarn too!

Pigtails' colour choice is really spot on,
I simply love all the colours she chose!

So yesterday I have been crocheting like my life was at stake.
Finally I could work with Vinnis, hooray! And it is great.
It's soft and a real treat to crochet with.

I'm making a scarf (hoping to finish it today).
In Sea Green, Stone & Green Slate.

About the pattern: I wanted to make something wavy,
but not lacy, so the amazing texture of this yarn would show at its best.
And when Jeannette pinned this picture yesterday,
I knew at once this would be it. You can find the pattern here.
I'm using a 4,5 mm crochet hook.

Thanks again Pigtails!

♦♦♦ Have a great & crafty weekend everyone! ♦♦♦

Vegan Treat of the Month ***Chocolate Hazelnut Flapjacks***

Oops, incidentally I skipped the vegan treat of the month in October.
Time to make up for that with this very easy, but very rewarding treat.
Flapjacks!

They don't look much on these pictures, I know...
However, they truly have a great texture and are delicious.
This week I made them for a friend who loves them.

Another plus: it doesn't take much time to make them,
and you can make a bunch of them in one go.
They keep good for at least a week in airtight tin,
but honestly: they probably won't last that long.
Oh, and they're not expensive!

So, what do you need? 
(makes about 30-35 flapjacks)

450 grams (16 oz) rolled (porridge) oats
300 gram (10oz) margarine
150 gram (6 oz) black molasses (or treacle)
150 gram (6 oz) brown sugar
100 gram (or to taste) fairtrade pure chocolate chunks 
100 gram (or to taste) roasted, unsalted hazelnuts, crushed/cut into half
pinch of salt

You can replace the hazelnuts and chocolate with dried dates, abricots, cashew nuts, almonds, raisins... Anything you like really!

How to make the flapjacks?
Preheat the oven at 190 degrees Celsius.
Melt the margarine, sugar and treacle in a pan, stir & be careful not to burn it.
Mix in the oats, the hazelnuts and the salt. Stir thoroughly.
Press half of the mixture into a square or rectangular tin (mine is about 30x15 cm).
Put the chocolate chunks on top, press gently into the mixture.
Then press the other half of the mixture into the tin and completely cover the chocolate. (This way the chocolate won't burn.)
Smooth over the surface with a spoon.
Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, until golden brown.
With a sharp knife: mark into portions while still warm, then leave to cool.






















♥ Best enjoyed in the company of a dear friend,
with a good fairtrade tea served in mismatched vintage cups...

Kidney Beans Brighten Up Any Teatime

Q: 'Where do you, as a vegan, get your proteins?'
A: 'Why - brownies of course.'





















With these brownies this conversations can become reality.
Main ingredient: kidney beans. Love it!

\
♥ Animal Friendly Teatime

The Droste Effect & Why The Nurse Is Frowning

In Dutch thriftstores you'll often find these tins,
from Droste cocoa.
Originally this chocolate was produced in Haarlem,
in a beautiful factory by the river.
(Now converted into fairly ugly appartments - with stunning views though.)

The brand is also known for the expression Droste effect:
when a picture contains a smaller image of itself;
which in turn contains a smaller image of itself;
which contains a smaller image of itself; et cetera...
- because of this image of the nurse:

How much I like the old tins, I never buy Droste products!
Why?
They just have very few fairtrade products.
(Only the chocolates for Sinterklaas - a national feast in The Netherlands in December - are UTZ Certified.
And that's because a public campaign a couple of years ago.)
None of their regular products are fairtrade.
And none of their products are organic - not even the cow's milk in it.
Which is a pity and a bloody shame really.
If you ask me: the nurse is frowning about this.

I'll just stick to the old tins.

Vegan pie to die for

After a small hint from my side
(Pleaeaease bake me a pie - please?)
Mr. H. decided it was a good day to try a recipe from
Vegan Pie in the Sky
Another fabulous cookbook from Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero.

He decided to try his hand on the Lagusta's Chocolate Raspberry Tart.
Kudos to him for that choice.

I tell you it's really hard to catch this pie's gooeyness on a photo,
but I gave it a try.
Although it meant having to deal with small hints of Mr. H.
(Can we pleaeaease eat it now - please?)

If you're vegan or not: the pies in this book really are to die for.
To make it (just a little bit) more complicated:
The recipe for Chocolate Raspberry Pie was borrowed from Lagusta's Luscious,
definitely a site (and vegan chocolate shop) to add to your favourites!

Vegan Pie in the Sky is well written and funny.
If you click here you'll find some sample recipes:
Like Pear Frangipane Tart and Old Fashioned Chocolate Pudding Pie.

Highly addictive stuff...

In my cuppa

I live on tea.
Well...
But seriously, I drink lots of it.

But only: Fairtrade & Organic.

Source: Scarborough Fair

I will not have it any other way.
Especially not after visiting quite a few tea plantations over the past years

in India, Sri Lanka, Laos...

Breathtaking landscapes / Stunning architecture
– like this former tea factory in Sri Lanka.
(Now turned into a hotel where, BTW, I stayed a couple of years ago.
Yes - it was nice.)
















Others are still in use as tea factories.
The conditions under which most teapickers still have to work

are beyond words. It is often modern slavery.
They don't have a choice.

We do.
Paying a few cents extra for our tea can make a huge difference for them.
So yes, only Fairtrade & Organic
In my cuppa.