Japanese Crochet Books, Part II

Not surprisingly, thoughts about Lotus bring me back to my new stash of crochet inspiration.  This book (titled Crochet Accessories in English ISBN4-277-43080-5) is an interesting collection of crocheted jewelry (including necklaces, earrings and rings), scarves, and bracelets and charms.  Much of it I can't imagine wearing, but I can imagine using some of the foundation shapes for the beads, vegetables (yes! almost like tiny tiny amigurumi), fruits and flowers in other pieces.  

This is, perhaps, my favorite piece.  A cord of tiny flowers (it is modeled as a neck lace -- most of these flowers are probably not much larger than a quarter) in a riot of spring colors.  Done slightly larger, and with the right outfit, I could imagine it as a belt.  So much work in those little flowers, I can't imagine making it (well, maybe I can, but only over a long period of time), but I find it very inspirational.  A little garden path to wear around your neck or waist.

I think of these as crochet "dream catchers" suspended into necklace form.  This piece is probably one of the most "traditional crochet" looking pieces in the book, but I think it still feels quite fresh and wearable. Any one of those motifs, done singly, could be made into a simple choker (how the circles are so circular is somewhat mysterious to me -- I suspect there might be a small hoop that is crocheted around). 

This book has another surprising aspect -- at least it is surprising if you look at the photography done for most US craft books -- the models are diverse in both age and origins (though all are women) and none of them is overly polished or stylized.  It got my attention in a good way.

The instructions in this book are somewhat harder to follow than in the first book I talked about -- while the stitches are drawn using the standard symbols, there is no real explanation of what stitches they are except in Japanese, so you might need another reference to help you with this.  Also, the crochet and construction steps are separated.  For instance, the motifs in the second necklace are described in one area and the assembly process much farther on.  But this makes it easier to use the motifs in whatever context you might want, even if you do have to puzzle a bit more to get to the pieces as shown.

Compared to the Crochet Doliy book, I think I am more likely to use this book for inspiration than I am to crochet anything from it.  Unlike most knit accessories books I have come across, however, there are actually things I would wear were I to actually find the time to make them.  Some of the pieces are more whimsical than my wardrobe could bear, but many of them are interestingly constructed, well thought out and much more jewelry like than you might think crochet can be!

And speaking of crochet.... the first of Lotus sleeves got her pink edging last night.  I feel like I am moving at a glacial pace right at the moment. When I first saw the little pink edging on the model garment in the magazine, I was somewhat suspicious of it, but now that I see it in place, I quite like it!

In my last post, I neglected to metion which interchangeable crochet hook kit I got.  It is nothing fancy -- the kit is made by Boye and is called "Interchangeable Head Crochet Set".  I got mine at JoAnn's (I would link to it, but I don't see it in the online store).  It comes with 14 steel heads ranging in size from US 1 to US 14 (i.e. from tiny to really really really tiny), a handle and a case to hold all the parts.  It's an all metal set, but I have some foamy finger protectors that can slide over the handle to provide some cushioning.  I think it will be perfect for traveling with.  And if you wait for when they have one of their 40-50% off coupons you could pick the set up for $15-$20 bucks.