Simply Haken

these days I get a lot of questions that relate to the difference between Canada and the Netherlands, but also about the difference between the Netherlands before and after our move. my answer differs from day to day depending on what I experienced and on what subject. 

when it comes to crochet and crafts the answer is always the same. SO MUCH changed in the Netherlands while I was away. it seems now yarn, crochet and other crafts too are everywhere. from yarn in stores where I never saw it before, like HEMA, but also TV commercials from Zeeman about their new yarn collection. I have not been on a train yet, but I image I will no longer be the only one crocheting there. I see crochet and knitting clubs, get togethers and beautiful creations on Instagram. 

Mollie Makes magazine translated to Dutch, and recently the new magazine Simply Haken #1 was published. it is a sister magazine to Simply Breien (knitting). so I decided to see what this glossy has to offer. the name is literally translated from the English Simply Crochet, however their content is different. this first issue features Dutch designers like the lovely and talented Annemarie who designed a cute toadstool and gnome. 

despite the projects I have on the go, my hands were itchy to try out some patterns. I got out my bucket of yarn scraps and left over pieces from projects, and tried out a square and doily from this issue. when  a package was delivered, wrapped in brown paper, I got an idea: the oil crayons came out and I drew some more 'crocheted' squares and finished the doily on paper.

I struggled while figuring out the crochet square pattern, however more with cotton than with wool. funny right, how different material can give a different feel to a project while you're working on it. I like the look of these squares, and how the inner square is twisted from the outer square. I don't like how the 3rd row (green and grey in the samples) goes over the previous clusters of 5 treble crochet and sort of squeezes them in. I'd probably redesign the 2nd row to overcome the squeezing. but that's personal preference of course. it would probably look the same when the square is finished.

the doily is not quite finished yet, however I enjoy playing with the different colours. the pattern seems nice too so far, since I love me some good amount of scallop edgings haha.

I really like this brown paper designing, it saves me time and I love to draw, so that's a win win you'll probably see more often here from now on!

to finish my comment on the Simply Haken magazine, I like it. it is absolutely packed with designs, ranging from easy to complicated. it helps me get back into Dutch crochet terms and I love how it presents Dutch crochet designers and their work. the lay out of the magazine is a little 'busy' to my taste, however it's better on the pages than it is on the cover. I'd say Dutch ladies, get your copy and give it a go! would be great to hear your opinions.