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Sanae Ishida

A crafty little atelier in a grey city

Happy Friday + Making LINES

December 1, 2017

Happy Friday! Have you seen the latest Making issue, LINES? What a beaut! Carrie and team continue to slam dunk with gorgeous content, and I'm so honored that I was a contributor! Many things have changed in my life these last five years, and one of the most glorious changes is that I now get to collaborate and work with the loveliest, most amazing people all the time. I'm sad to say that wasn't usually the case for the 25+ jobs I've had in the past, though of course there were always a gem or ... Read more

Filed in: crafts, illustration, sewing, watercolor • by sanae • 10 Comments

Happy Thanksgiving!!

November 23, 2017

Hello, hello! My goodness, has it really been so long since I last updated here? I just wanted to pop in to say "Happy Thanksgiving!!" I wish I could send you all flowers, but these watercolor blooms will have to do. I hope my mother-in-law isn't reading this because this is a card I painted for her that I just posted in the mail. It's been a whirlwind of a year full of HUGE events. So whirlwind, in fact, that I can't even wrap my head around all that's happened. The Japan trip changed my ... Read more

Filed in: illustration, watercolor • by sanae • 10 Comments

Happy Friday + Upcoming Events

September 29, 2017

Happy Friday! I shared the beginning of my sea life doodles on Instagram a few days ago, and this is how I ended up filling up the sheet. Every so often, I pause and revel in the fact that this is my job - watercoloring is so fun!! These illos will get incorporated somehow into the next book, the final art of which is due in a month. I'm making slow but steady progress... So this means that I might be absent from here for long stretches again, especially since I'll be going on book tour for ... Read more

Filed in: illustration, watercolor • by sanae • 2 Comments

Happy Friday + Randomness

September 15, 2017

Happy Friday, my friends! I've been quiet here, there, everywhere. Thinking a lot, reading a ton. Speaking of reading, I created the poster above for Sasquatch Books for an upcoming event. Obviously, I had fall on my mind. I also made a spring version: Which do you like better? I believe it's getting printed right now, though I don't know which version they decided to go with. I'm betting autumn. I haven't felt engaged online for a long time. Not because there isn't great content ... Read more

Filed in: illustration, watercolor • by sanae • 18 Comments

Happy Friday + Hallelujah!

June 2, 2017

Happy Friday, my friends! I did it! I did it! I completed my rough art for the next book that's coming out in 2018. Normally, I create digital rough art using only Photoshop brushes like these and these, but I wanted to try a little something different. For this next book's rough art, I used only black watercolor and I enjoyed it so much! It's a different kind of challenge to paint with a single color to create various shades. Surprisingly, it took less time to hand paint than it does to do ... Read more

Filed in: black and white, book, illustration • by sanae • 4 Comments

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I just realized that this week marks 10 years sinc I just realized that this week marks 10 years since my first craft book Sewing Happiness was published. I’ve sewn literally thousands of garments and other textile projects in the last decade! I included a Sashiko primer in the book, and I’m delighted that this humble Japanese embroidery practice has stood the test of time - if anything, I’ve noticed that there’s an ever growing enthusiasm for hand stitching. Fun news: I’ll be teaching a virtual Sashiko workshop for @tatterbluelibrary on Thursday, April 30th at noon ET. Link in profile! Would love to see you there! 💙💙💙💙💙
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