Packing Light: How to pack 1 carry on for a 9 day trip

As I prepare to go off on another adventure, I thought I would share with you how I pack my bag, and how I manage to only have 1 carry on bag to last a 7-9 day trip!

When I was a teenager, I read an article in some magazine that suggested rolling your clothes instead of folding them to save space...I have been doing so ever since!

First, I pick out the amount of shirts, underwear and socks I'm going to need. I usually end up wearing the same thing for the 2 travel days there and back, so that cuts down on space already! ;)

Then, I fold the shirts lengthwise, making sure the arms are folded in like so:

After this, fold underwear in half and put on top of shirt, then add a folded pair of socks (or you can leave the socks unfolded)

Then, roll them up, like you would a sleeping bag:

After I've rolled up around 7-8 of these, I put them in my trusty bag that I've taken with me all over the world for the last 15 years or so, making sure to have my passport and travel papers of course:

And then I add an extra pair of pants, some jammies, and my little zip lock bag of toiletries, as well as a book, snack and camera, and voila! A perfectly packed bag for a 7-9 day adventure!

Much easier than going through the hassle of checking a bag and hoping it makes it to your destination!

Happy travels!

Rachael

#travel light #adventure

Latchhooking 101

Today I would like to talk about latchhooking. An enjoyable craft most people can do! They sell all sorts of kits that come with the proper colors and amounts of yarn and the mesh with the pattern printed on it. All you need to buy besides the kits is a latchhook tool like this one:

latchhook tool

You can find latch hooks at stores like Michael's, Walmart, Joann, Herrschners and online at Amazon.  If you're feeling extra creative, they also sell blank mesh so you can make your own design, you'll just need to make sure you have the right size yarn.  They do sell precut yarn, but if you have some yarn you want to use that is not cut, this is about the size it needs to be (approx. 2.5 inches):

Yarn length, about 2.5 inches

I shall use a kit in order to display the steps needed to create your very own latchhooking masterpiece.

My mom got me this hummingbird latch hook kit for Christmas last year, and I just finished it not too long ago! Here's what the finished design looks like:

Finished hummingbird and flower latch hook kit

How did I get there?

One piece of yarn at a time!

First, you will need to wrap a piece of yarn around the latch hook tool like so:

Then, take your mesh, and put the tool through one of the squares. If you are using a kit with printed color designs on it, make sure you have the correct color:

Then, open the thin piece of metal on the hook and wrap the yarn around that:

Then close the latch, the yarn is now locked into the tool, and gently pull through the mesh:

The tool should then come free of the yarn. Then you can pull on the yarn to make sure it is secured to the mesh:

Then repeat until you are completely finished with the design!

I usually like to do 1 row at a time, which take between 15-20 minutes. It is a time consuming craft, but if you keep at it, doing a little at a time, you too can create a latch hook masterpiece!

Finishing Off

Most of the time I make my latch hook designs into wall hangings, but you can also put them on pillows and make rugs!

In order to finish off your project, you must sew the remaining mesh to the back of the design.

Fold over the remaining mesh behind the design, and using heavy thread and a needle, tack it onto the back. Make sure none of the blank mesh shows in front. Then you can decide whether to make it into a  wall hanging, which is probably the easiest, or a rug or pillow.

Once you tack on the remaining mesh to the back, you can attach a rug binding to the back to hide the yarn. I like to just leave it as is, since the backside will be facing a wall if you make it a wall hanging!

For a closer look at how to finish a latch hook project, check out this site here!

Happy latch hooking!

Rachael

#latchhooking