Let's plan some travel knits
April 08, 2023Greetings from Athens! We are just finishing up a wonderful trip to Greece and Turkey and we’re at the airport ready to go home. I thought I’d check up on my little blog while I have the fast internet. I scheduled a few posts before my trip so thank you for reading them and for your lovely comments. I’ll respond to those as soon as I am home. This post I wrote two weeks ago while I was packing with high hopes of some quality travel knitting but I didn’t really get to do much on this trip. I knit one of the Breatrice Mitts on the flight here and plan to finish the second one on the flight back. I brought another big project that I didn’t even take out of the suitcase. So much for my diligent planning! Here’s the original post:
When I plan my travel knits I think of something compact, something that doesn't have to be fitted and doesn't have a pattern that I have to keep looking at. Socks is the most popular travel knit, but I don't knit socks so for me it's hats, scarves and shawls. What do you like to knit while traveling? Do you travel with back up projects and spare needles? I do! Let me show you what I have planned for my next few trips.
The 14 Color Wrap by Virginia Sattler Reimer above is my rode trip buddy and is slowly getting done. I keep it in a pretty canvas bag near the front door and I’ll even grab it when we drive to Costco!
I've got a long flight ahead of me and this is a good contender to be my knitting companion. Easy knitting in garter stitch and Rowan Cotton Wool. Shire in Spring Shawl by Kaysie Culbertson |
The Mussleburgh Hat might go in my suitcase as my backup knit in case I finish my shawl on the plane. It's possible! I love this pattern for travel because it's just a stockinette tube with increases on one end, decreases on the other, and in between, hours of stockinette. At the finish it's turned inside to itself. I'll knit mine in Madeline Tosh Light in half pink and half black to have two hats in one: black with a pink brim, or pink with a black brim. The Mussleburgh Hat by Ysolde Teague. |
Even though there’s a lot of yarn bits in this hat project, it fits in a tiny bag and would be a fabulous project to keep on hand when you need to chill in the hotel room. I’m also a public places knitter and love to sit in hotel lobbies, especially if they are the grand and gorgeous type of lobby, and knit and people watch. The 21 Color Slouch by Virginia Sattler-Reimer in Woolstok Worsted would be perfect for this. |
Beatrice Mitts by Leslie Friend using Turtlepurl Striped Turtle Toes in Trench Coat. Mindless knitting in the round with fun Burberry stripes. Good backpack project for emergency knitting. |
I keep this is a basket and grab it when I'm on the phone or on hold. Not the best for a plane ride, too many small bits of yarn, but good on a car trip. This is a free pattern! Stripes Please by Amy Gunderson. |
I'm visiting my girlfriend in Washington in late spring and I think this will be fun to take. I usually don't think sweaters are good for travel but this one is so simple and has hardly any fitting. First Raglan by Jared Flood. |
Rereading this post now and it makes me realize how much I miss my knitting! When I get back I have a gorgeous test knit for Jared Flood that I need to start. I’ve also got to get cracking on the spring and summer garden. I have to start my flower seeds which seems late for California but it’s been unseasonably cold this year. We also just have to buckle down and do general garden clean up no matter what the weather looks like. Tomorrow is Easter and while I imagine we’ll be pooped I did remember to plan ahead and I have a little egg hunt organized for our grandson. But I don’t want to get ahead of myself. I have a l o n g flight ahead of me!
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6 Comments
Oh what a fun trip! I rarely get much knitting done on a plane - so many interruptions - but I do like to keep small projects on hand to work on during a trip. Coincidentally, just finished a pair of Leslie Friend’s “Toast” mitts - long in my queue. It was such a fun knit, it will probably be my “sock knitting” substitute on a regular basis, since I also don’t knit socks. Chloe
ReplyDeleteI forgot all about Toast Mitts! They have been in my queue for ages and they are a great idea for a travel knit that I must remember!
DeleteI hope you’ll tell us about your trip!
ReplyDeleteThank you. I might just do that!
DeleteHi there! I love packing wips for travel, it’s the first thing I think about when making a packing list. I’ve been working on Sophie Scarves with lots of stash yarn. My sisters love them. I’ve got two trips coming up in May and June (Graduation in Denver and Family Reunion in Florida). We visited Greece in the 90’s, it was a great adventure. Safe travels to you!
ReplyDeleteSophie scarves are a great travel knit idea! Thank you for that! I bought the pattern when it came out and have forgotten about it.
DeleteYou make my day when you make a comment!