I cannot begin to describe how much I love the Jasmine Star Stitch!!! The texture and the beautiful stars that unfold as you move your way up is just amazing.
One comment I received on Instagram about my Crocheted Gym Bag was “My mum did this 30 years ago…” Which makes it a perfect stitch for the 80s’ favourite.
I had just moved to Lisbon and finding a yarn shop can be difficult in a new city… Google Maps to the rescue!?
Thus I found myself on the busy and bustling Praça dos Restauradores. I walked through a beaten front door and up some dingy stairs to a shop named Lás Imperial… It was a genuine haven primarily with local organic yarns.
The owner of the shop showed me this Portuguese organic cotton in a beautiful bright colour, which I immediately fell in love with, so I bought 4 balls.
One comment I received on Instagram about my Crocheted Gym Bag was “My mum did this 30 years ago…” Which makes it a perfect stitch for the 80s’ favourite.
I had just moved to Lisbon and finding a yarn shop can be difficult in a new city… Google Maps to the rescue!?
Thus I found myself on the busy and bustling Praça dos Restauradores. I walked through a beaten front door and up some dingy stairs to a shop named Lás Imperial… It was a genuine haven primarily with local organic yarns.
The owner of the shop showed me this Portuguese organic cotton in a beautiful bright colour, which I immediately fell in love with, so I bought 4 balls.
High on yarn-shopping I could not wait to get back home and start on my new project. The average gym bag measures 35×45 cm, so I made as many puffs as needed for the width. In my case I needed 34 and after that I just continued row after row till I had a piece that was 90 cm long. The Jasmine Star Stitch can be tricky – see my tutorial if you need a little help.
Crocheted Gym Bag
(Click on linked yarn label to purchase online)
Now the bag was finished, I needed to make the strings – in comes my favourite toy as a child… the french knitter!?
I sent my old wooden french knitter a kind thought, as I looked on this new glittery plastic one – but it was sooo easy to work with because the top can turn around and it had an arm to hold the yarn, so the strings were made in no time at all.
It was really tricky to find the perfect way of crocheting the drawstring and this being one of my first bigger projects, I was ready to hand in the towel!? I kept trying weaving the strings in and out but it did not work – finally it came to me… Just crochet over the strings – so simple! … and now I only needed to pull the ends of the strings through the middle of a star in either bottom end, measure the length of both and tie a big knot – HAPPINESS!
I have used it many times now – at the beach – grocery shopping – yoga… I love it and I hope you will too.
I sent my old wooden french knitter a kind thought, as I looked on this new glittery plastic one – but it was sooo easy to work with because the top can turn around and it had an arm to hold the yarn, so the strings were made in no time at all.
It was really tricky to find the perfect way of crocheting the drawstring and this being one of my first bigger projects, I was ready to hand in the towel!? I kept trying weaving the strings in and out but it did not work – finally it came to me… Just crochet over the strings – so simple! … and now I only needed to pull the ends of the strings through the middle of a star in either bottom end, measure the length of both and tie a big knot – HAPPINESS!
I have used it many times now – at the beach – grocery shopping – yoga… I love it and I hope you will too.
Camilla
