Sashiko

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LOVE Handmade Market, this weekend in Tokyo!

Join Saké Puppets and other Etsy artists this weekend as we gather to share and showcase our craft. I’ll be there to talk about sashiko, and will be selling kits and some handmade gifts. I’d love to see you there!

January 20, 2012

Reception Party, 7pm-9pm

January 21-22, 2012

Free to attend! Open 11am-5pm

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Come and enjoy a showcase of lovingly handcrafted items created by local Etsy sellers and their friends! Make some crafts with the Etsy community, find gifts for your valentine (or for yourself!) and talk with the artists about their inspirations and techniques. It’s a weekend to celebrate our LOVE for all things handmade!

Etsyに参加しているメンバーとその友人たちによる、手作りの品々の展示会を開催いたします。あなたの大切なひとたちや自分のためのギフトをさがしたり、ワークショップに参加したり、出展者と話したり。

あたたかな “LOVE handmade” の週末をご一緒しましょう！

Location

Gallery 7  東京都中央区八重洲2-11-7　一新ビル7階

Tokyo, Chuo-ku, Yaesu 2-11-7 Ishin Building 7F

Google map: http://g.co/maps/3asxw

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‘Tis the Season for Sashiko ♫

It happens every year. Christmas Eve. 2 am. Me, alone in a poorly lit room, stitching furiously to finish my last handmade gift.

I love to give handmade gifts for Christmas, but I always cut it a little too close. This year it was a table runner for my parents. I started out ahead of schedule, since I had to do most of my holiday preparations before we left Japan a few weeks ago.

But I kept putting off those last few tasks, and suddenly my ahead-of-schedule schedule was gone. There I was, alone with my stitching while visions of sugarplums danced in my head.

I enjoy designing my own sashiko patterns, but sometimes it’s fun to follow someone else’s rules. I found the pattern for this table runner in this book and I backed it with vintage kimono silk from a flea market in Kyoto. I liked the way the threads came together at the point to form a tassel.

I bet my mother never places anything on top of it, no matter how much I insist it’s meant to be used. But I guess, how practical is a table runner, really?

But enough about the sashiko, can you believe this needlepoint covered bench made by my husband’s grandmother?!

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For auld lang syne, my dear.

In a bit less than 24 hours my Etsy shop will shut down for a little holiday break.

This is the blog equivalent of my local supermarket playing Auld Lang Syne 5 minutes before closing time. It is so slow and depressing, it makes me want to gather my potatoes, leave the produce section and head for my couch, tout suite.

But I don’t want to depress you, just encourage you to check out the shop. Then get yourself out of the produce aisle.

Should old acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind… dah dah dee da, doo dah dee doo, do do doo di diddly dee…

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Black Friday / Cyber Monday Specials!

Black Friday always makes me excited, though I rarely went shopping that day while living in the States. When I was a kid, my mom and I did the get-up-and-go-early thing once, and I remember getting some sort of grab bag for free, then heading home for my dad’s chili for lunch and an afternoon of Christmas tree-trimming and cookie baking. It was a 12 year old’s dream day.

Perhaps Japan doesn’t have a Black Friday Shopping Extravaganza Day of Crazy Sales, but that doesn’t mean I can’t get in on the fun. From Friday, November 25th through Monday, November 28th, all purchases in my Etsy web shop will receive a special gift. All sashiko kit purchases will receive a leather sashiko thimble:

All other gift purchases, such as sashiko coaster sets and Tokyo Craft Kits, will receive a roll of washi masking tape (you can read more about my love of masking tape here).

But wait, there’s more. MORE! On Friday, you’ll also see some new items in my shop. These single coasters are just right for holiday gift giving. Add a mug and some tea or hot cocoa and you’ve got a thoughtful little gift for a friend or family member. How cheery!

I hope you’ll pop over and take a peek. Happy holiday shopping everyone!

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Saké Puppets at BHG.com

Etsy and Better Homes and Gardens teamed up to create a list of handmade gifts for the holidays, and Saké Puppets’ Tea-for-Two DIY Sashiko Kit was featured in their roundup!

I’m delighted and honored to be included! I also love many of the other projects, and am planning to try a few for myself , like the tea set or sewing kit in a jar — so handy!

You can find other projects online or in their November issue. Thanks again, BHG!