Northern California Bay Area stitchers, mark your calendars for March 1, 2010. I will be leading a textile talk and trunk show for the Valley Stitchers and Fiber Arts Guild in Pleasant Hill, CA, to be followed by a hands-on sashiko class. I will provide more details closer to the date. If you are not a member of the Valley Stitchers but would be interested in becoming one, you can reach them at the following address:

Continuing on with the Olympus sashiko kit project from earlier this month, here are some updated pictures.

So far I have completed the sashiko portion of the project. I still have plenty of thread left over! Next I will hem the edges to give it a more finished look.

By following the pre-printed lines, my stitches came out nice and even with no overlapping.

Even the back looks clean. The stitches here are smaller and there are visible knots, but for the most part it looks quite good. Next time I’ll show how I finish the edges and complete the project.

My current stock of sashiko supplies is available in my Etsy shop, KimonoMomo.

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Pardon my lack of blog project follow-through. My brother passed away this month and it’s been difficult to stay on task. If tragedies happen in threes, it would look like we are done (hopefully) for the time being. Yesterday was the first anniversary of my mother’s passing and it’s been several weeks since my father’s passing. Aside from nursing my kids through the flu, we seem to be doing alright.

Well, you knew that already. Seriously though, the Fall 2009 issue of Stitch magazine features Japanese textiles, crafts and textile artists here in the US, including me! The kurotomesode kimono on the article’s title page is even one of mine, currently available in my Etsy shop. How’s that for a shameless plug?

Autumn is upon us here in Northern California, with fog greeting me at the door every morning as I head out for the paper.

I’m currently in a scarf-making phase right now, which means new purses aren’t far behind…

The sashiko project is still in process and will be updated here within the next day or so. It’s looking great!

My photo studio is generally anywhere I enough space and adequate light. These days that means the back yard, amid humming birds, wild rabbits, squirrels, scrub jays, and the occasional red tail hawk.

We’ve been having a bit of early autumn rain in the Bay Area this month. While we had a bit of dry weather yesterday, I grabbed my camera, mannequin and some jewelry for an impromptu photo session. The light was good and things looked so fresh, so I took some snaps of flowers, too.

This being Northern California, sometimes we have to really look for seasonal changes. They don’t just pop out at you as they do in more northern latitudes! When rosemary begins to bloom, I know autumn is here.

Earlier in the spring, these roses bud out in such a dark red that they appear nearly black. Later in the season they tend more towards a velvety red.

The sun is out again today and the clouds have dispersed for the time being. I’ll be photographing kimono scarves this afternoon, along with more vintage kimono silk and other fabrics for the KimonoMomo Etsy shop.

Very few people are aware that I started out 20 years ago as a jeweler, working with metal and stone instead of silk and cotton. For ten years I plied my trade on the Pacific coast from Seattle to Los Angeles as an itinerant vendor at craft shows and weekend markets. I was a regular in Santa Barbara, Berkeley, San Francisco, Portland and Eugene.

Eight years ago in Eugene, Oregon, all that came to an abrupt end when my car was broken into after a show and all my tools, materials, finished pieces, and camera were stolen. I allowed myself one really good screaming cry, filed a police report and that was it. No more jewelry for me.

Having moved back into my parents’ house last year, I discovered a stash of treasure packed safely away. A trunk full of beads, finished jewelery, notebooks full of sketches, partially completed projects, and a few dusty memories. I’ve been sifting through the assorted odds and ends to find pieces I’d made over a decade ago. It’s been quite an experience.

I’m still working out the details, coming up with a shop logo, etc., but I’d like to give you a taste of what I’m working on at this point. I will be photographing and listing many more items in the weeks to come.

These pieces and more will be available through my new Etsy shop, Blue Star Atelier. Let me know what you think!

Many of you have requested I do a tutorial with the Olympus sashiko kits I carry in my shop, so a month ago I picked one out, chose some thread and picked out a needle… then things fell apart in my life and it was relegated to the I’ll-get-to-it-later pile.  Last night as I was sorting through silks to sew for winter scarves, I found it again. So here it is, round one of my Olympus sashiko kit tutorial.

To start, I chose the Maru bishamon (similar to kikkouon)  kit. The 3-D effect has always appealed to me, and I felt variegated green thread would work well in the design.

Before you begin, open the skien of thread. You’ll find it is neatly tied at one point. Hold it at the tied end, pull down gently to straighten the skien and cut at the bottom. This will give you threads of equal length, each the right size to sew with so that you don’t have threads that are too long and unruly, or too short.

Thread the needle, tie a knot at the end, then dig in! The paper enclosed with the kit will show you where to begin. There is no need to pre-wash the fabric. We’ll do that at the end.

Simply follow the dotted lines. It’s that easy! The cotton fabric is folded in half with no pattern on the other side. Therefore, when you need to skip to the next section, slip the needle between the layers to conceal the thread and keep going. Keep your stitches relaxed but firm. Pulling hard will warp the fabric, so go slow and pace yourself.

Once you get started, you’ll have the hang of it. These little kits are really a lot of fun. My 12 year old son even asked if he could take a stab at it.

The cloth has a low thread count but feels soft, not coarse. Your needle will flow comfortably in and out with each stitch.

By following the lines, you’ll find even your backside stitches turn out neat and even. Note how the stitches on the back are smaller than on the front.

This is how far I got with one thread. The second thread got me to the end of the row. I’ll post again to show what happens next and how the design progresses. I will also cover how to finish the edges, as there are different ways you can do this depending on how you’d like it to look when you’re done.

Notes: I am currently out of stock of many regular sashiko supplies, including needles. Embroidery needles will do in a pinch, but I highly suggest sticking to sashiko thread for proper sashiko. Embroidery floss is more slippery and doesn’t have the same feel as traditional sashiko thread. Also, most cotton fabrics found in quilt stores have a high thread count which makes it more difficult to push the needle through, resulting in sore fingers and hand cramps. This is one case where the tools may be interchangeable, but materials are not.

We’re preparing for Dad’s memorial service, so everything else is a bit behind right now. I hope to be back to regular posting soon. Thanks for staying in touch, everyone.

I’ve had a difficult time coming up with blog topics lately. Sales in the Etsy shop have been brisk, and I’m only just starting to restock this week. New vintage items are being listing in time for Halloween, and I am back to bundling vintage kimono silk scraps for your holiday projects.

boy's michiyuki with hawks and bamboo

To those waiting for orders to be shipped, thank you for your patience. We’ve been busy planning Dad’s memorial service which means some things have fallen by the wayside. Generally I like to ship orders within 24 hours, but lately that hasn’t been the case, and I do apologize.

teal blue meisen haori

More to come as I get back on track in October. Thanks for all the warm wishes and kind words. It means a lot to me to know you’re out there!

My father passed away peacefully early Monday morning. I am grateful I could be with him in his final days.

To customers waiting on orders, I thank you for your patience.

To customers waiting for new items to be stocked, I hope to fulfill your desires soon!

In the meantime, please understand that I am working with my family to put together a memorial service, run a business, help my kids with their homework, and arrange my first birthday party since high school.

I will be 37 on Saturday… and honestly never expected twenty years ago that things would have gone the way they did. Never planned to be a single parent, never planned to lose both parents so soon, never knew I’d find so many amazing and wonderful friends as I have in the past year, but life is full of curve balls. Some are better than others of course, and I’ll take them all as they come.

I love autumn and I love apples. Yesterday I stood up in the branches of the apple tree in our yard and picked a few little greenies for a gluten-free apple crumble. There’s nothing like being surrounded by ripening fruit, green leaves, thieving squirrels, and late summer breezes. I wish the same joy for you today. Find a little peace in your surroundings, and savor it. You’ll be glad you did.