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21.4.14

Travel Chitchat

Hello there, I hope you had a lovely (long) weekend. Although I'm back home again - picking up my daily routines and work - I still owe you some last yarny travel stories.

Let me start with my travel doilies, I made these with cotton I couldn't use for my Travel Blanket. (Picture made with my phone.)

ByHaafner, Japanese crochet, doilies





















I especially like to the pink one. Both patterns are taken from Japanese crochet books. Ah... those Japanese crochet books... That must have been one of the best surprises of Thailand - only yarnwise speaking of course! - the incredible choice of Japanese crochet books on sale. Most of them translated in Thai - which is fine because I speak neither Thai nor Japanese so I'm using the charts anyway. However, there are several Japanese bookstores which a huge selection of craftbooks. So I also bought a couple of them in the Japanese language. Have a look at my choice... Patterns for hats, bags, doilies, wraps, scarfs, blankets and lots of trims and edges - you name it!

ByHaafner, crochet, Japanese crochet books




















Pretty good, don't you think? ;-) I made a lovely pair of mittens from a pattern taken from one of these books, I'll show them here soon.

Also, while still travelling I started playing with my hemp yarn. It soon became clear that whatever I'm going to make with it, it will be very delicate. The yarn is at some points so thin it breaks just by looking at it. But the texture is rather nice I think. I'm using my 2.7 mm crochet hook - another of my travel souvenirs.

ByHaafner, hemp yarn, sample, crochet




















ByHaafner, hemp yarn, crochet circles,



















I especially liked the circles. However, after two circles a major drawback occurred: my fingers were indigo blue... And not a little bit either... So I guess that before continuing I have to do something about this, or the white soon will not be white anymore. Maybe rinsing the blue circles in cold water with vinegar? Mmm, not sure if I'll bother to do that any time soon...

Oh, and before I forget, there's one really good travel tip I'd like to share with all you fellow-crocheters. Take dental floss with you! For example on the plane where you're not allowed having scissors with you. It's ideal for cutting yarn. I used it for cutting cotton and acrylic - maybe it worked even better than my special craft scissors... Anyways, I can't recall where I read that tip for the first time (it wasn't my own idea), but I did make a small visual reminder. ;-)

ByHaafner, alternative travel 'scissors'




















Okay, I guess that's it for now. I'll have another post lined up already (how organised for once...), so I will be back soon! Thanks for visiting.
♦♦

10 comments:

  1. what a clever idea! I just need a plane journey now! Heather x

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  2. I love the hemp yarn, but it's a shame about the dye. The doilies are fantastic, so beautifully done. Glad you had a good trip.

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  3. OK, ik weet waar de ik de volgende keer op vakantie moet. Op naar Thailand. Wat een geweldige verzameling boeken! Inspiratie genoeg voor jarenlang haakplezier.
    Binnenkort verhuizen we naar Berlijn. Eens kijken of daar een Japanse boekenwinkel te vinden is.
    Dat wordt inderdaad lastig met het blauwe garen, misschien haken met huishoudhandschoenen aan? :)
    Wat slim, die tandflos tip. Ga ik zeker proberen de volgende keer dat ik vlieg. Ik verveel me altijd stierlijk tijdens de vlucht. Nu kan ik ongegeneerd te keer gaan met mijn haaknaald en tandflos.
    Welkom thuis en ik ben benieuwd naar alle projekten die gemaakt worden uit je Japanse bibliotheek.

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  4. This is a very useful post...I expect that every single reader is going to learn something.

    I love the dental floss tip, but wonder how many folks have also gotten their fingers unintentionally decorated by generous dyes. I know I have.

    Your ability to decipher the crochet charts is fabulous. I have some Japanese charted books with designs I want to try, and admit that it's often taken me a while to comprehend those symbols...but eventually I did.

    Japanese crocheting esthetics are beautiful, aren't they?

    Best wishes. xo

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  5. Japanese crochet books….. awwww I love them too!!!!!!!
    xxxxxxxx ale

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  6. Dental floss...what a great tip!
    Tracey x

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  7. Great tip, the dental floss. It's a regular discussion on my Facebook Group "Ons Hekel"- how to fly with your crochet work. That seems to depend on the airplane, but also the person who sees you! I have crocheted while flying KLM and Aer Lingus wit no problems, and our local airlines didn't seem to mind yet - As Long As You Don't Ask! As knitting needles are prohibited, staff sometimes don't know what to do with crochet hooks. So I take the change and haven't had problems. I always use hooks I wouldn't mind loosing, though, and usually fly with a project that wouldn't need cutting. I also have a nifty little cutter that looks like a medallion, that I wear on a chain, and it works in the same way as the dental floss.

    Good luck with the blue and the delicate...I have discarded Rowan tweed as it breaks so easily!

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  8. Busy, busy...
    Have a nice week !
    Anna

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  9. Sawadee ka, goeie more, hello! love the hemp! Hmm into the vinegar and salt with it then. Now I wonder whether you shopped till you dropped at Kinokunya? I love that bookstore, we used to go to the one in Dubai every weekend and then I was so happy that I could occasionally pop into the KL and Bangkok stores as well. I also love the reading culture in Asia - here in SA people hardly read and the bookshops are pretty pathetic compared to the shops I am used to. The doilies are yummy as well! Cheers!

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  10. Gorgeous doilies!! I really need to get my hands on some Japanese crocheted books! Any one you would recommend? Have a fabulous week! xo Heather

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