Packing up Your Project(s) for Travel

Many of us will be traveling this summer, whether by car, train or plane.  As we move into the “travel” season, it is a good time to cover some travel tips for taking our knitting or crochet projects with us.

Select a project that is easy for you to work on while traveling. You might be chatting with friends or need to pick the project up and put it down numerous times. This is not the time for intricate charts or involved stitch patterns.

• Take a project that is light in color. The lighting on planes and in hotel rooms tends to be quite dim, and you want to be able to see what you are doing!
• Download and print the pattern and, if necessary, highlight the correct size and the instructions that correspond with the size you are making.
• Carefully read over the pattern and make sure you know how to do all of the techniques involved. There is nothing worse than getting stuck on a flight without WIFI and not knowing what sk2p means! If it is something you will not remember, look for written instructions and make a note of the process in the margin of the pattern.
• Gather all of the supplies needed for your project and keep them in a small notions bag. Don’t forget:
  • A stitch fixer or crochet hook to pick up any dropped stitches.
  • Extra stitch markers – those little buggers can pop off on a plane or in a car and they are gone!
  • Take a set of extra needles in the same size needed for your project. If a needle is bent or broken you can keep on knitting!
  • A nail file – don’t let a hangnail snag your project!
  • I carry Knitter’s Hand Balm in my notions bag, as my hands tend to get dry on a plane. With the hand balm, I do not have to worry about lotion spilling in my knitting bag.
  • I wind all of my balls into center-pull balls. 
  • Walker Yarn Case or a plastic bag - Protect your yarn from getting dirty or falling on the plane floor (ew!) 
  • I carry some TKB cords in my bag just in case I need to move my project off the needles.
  • Don't forget a little notebook and pencil. You never know when you will need to make a note or two!

We do get a number of questions at the shop regarding the TSA policy on knitting needles. They do allow knitting needles on a plane. I carry a full set of metal ChiaoGoo interchangeable needles when I travel because you never know when you will feel the need to cast on something new!