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Sanae Ishida

A crafty little atelier in a grey city

Japanese Sewing Book Series + Sewing Projects of Yore Part 2

March 20, 2013

 

You’ve probably heard the buzz. The delightful Miss Cherie of You and Mie is hosting her very first series and it’s an awesome one: Japanese Book Sewing Series! Let’s take a moment to coo at little Yuki’s cuteness up there, shall we?

Cherie has brought together a group of blogging ladies, including yours truly, familiar with the way of the “wa” (a pun that probably makes no sense at first glance; “Wa” means the “center” or the “fold” on Japanese pattern sheets and it also means things related to Japan or Japanese style).

Anyway. Over a five-day period, we’ll be providing basic instructions and tips and tricks to demystify the often mysterious ways of these beautiful pattern books. Cherie also has several fun posts and events lined up leading to the start of the series. Miss Matatabi Japanese fabric giveaway, anyone?

I will be guest posting next Tuesday, so I hope you’ll pop on over to join me there but make sure to catch all the posts because I know that you’ll feel so much more comfortable with Japanese patterns after the series!

If you’ve been following along here for awhile, you’ll know that I sew almost exclusively from Japanese pattern books and have quite the collection. I dug through my archive photos and found a few items I made from these books that I haven’t featured here on the blog yet. I sewed these way back in 2008 or so, when K was still 2-ish. They are the tiniest, cutest little things….oh, how time flies.

This top (which was actually a dress that I shortened) and dress are from this book:

This one is from this book:

The top is from here, and the shorts from here (a sippy cup! she used to be so little!):

You can see some of my first sewing attempts here too. Don’t miss the Japanese Sewing Book Series! Next week!

Filed in: sewing, sewing resources • by sanae • 7 Comments

Comments

  1. Venus

    March 20, 2013 at 8:26 am

    just came from Cherie’s blog and I’m so-so excited you gals are doing this sewing series. I’ve sewn many Japanese pieces over the years, from my oldest daughter to my youngest and even myself! I’m not Japanese and I certainly don’t know a lick of the dialect, but with the basic understanding of sewing skills, it can be achievable. This is so awesome… I can’t wait to see what’s next.

    Reply
    • sanae

      March 20, 2013 at 4:54 pm

      Fantastic, Venus! When I first started sewing from the books I had so much trouble and I can read most of the Japanese! I’m so impressed that you could figure it all out without knowing the language at all. Now that I’ve been sewing for a while, I’ve really come to admire the pattern designers – the proportions are always perfect for K!

      Reply
  2. Lucinda

    March 20, 2013 at 8:35 am

    I am beyond excited for Cherie’s Japanese patterns week. What a great idea! And so glad that you’re going to be a big part of it – for really, who does Japanese sewing better than you?! K’s little clothing are so incredibly adorable . . . do you get nostalgic about them like I do about my kid’s little clothes? I’m pretty sure you had the cutest toddler ever!

    Reply
    • sanae

      March 20, 2013 at 4:50 pm

      Yippee! It’s actually amazing how there are so many people worldwide obsessed with the Japanese pattern books. I’m so looking forward to participating in the series! And yes, I get totally nostalgic about the clothes I made, especially the ones from the earliest days. K was definitely a bit of a fashionista from the very beginning 🙂

      Reply
  3. Yeka Dharmajanti

    March 20, 2013 at 10:48 am

    I do sew Japanese Sewing patterns and getting addicted to it. I have been starting to collect Japanese Sewing books since last year. I’m excited about the series and glad to know you take part in that series. Can’t wait ’till next Tuesday! 🙂

    Reply
    • sanae

      March 20, 2013 at 4:47 pm

      Hello Yeka! I love the clothes you make for your little ones! And I’m so glad that you’ll be following along with the series. 🙂

      Reply
  4. LightningMcStitch

    March 23, 2013 at 5:34 am

    Those are some beautiful pictures. Lovely clothes and what a cute kid.
    I’ve decided to join in and sew along with you all, so I’ve got 2 dresses and a little bag cut out and ready to go for next week. Thanks for the lovely pictures and the inspiration.

    Reply

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