I translated a Japanese quilting book last year, and I don't know when it's coming out, but this book you see above is not it. It was a reference book for me since I'm not much of a quilter, and what a visual feast of neutral tones! I learned so much through perusing this serene pattern book. Japanese Quilting Piece by Piece by Yoko Saito is a calming collection of quilted projects, some of which are incredibly elaborate. There's a good dose of wabi-sabi here, with the occasional …
giveaway
Sashiko Kit Giveaway! [CLOSED]
You, my dear friends, are getting the benefit of all this cleaning/purging/mending/organizing craziness that's going on around here. I've been sorting through my props pile, and came across some lovely Sashiko related items and since I have duplicates of nearly everything, I wanted to offer them up as a giveaway. The image above is an outtake from my upcoming book, Sewing Happiness. I have a Sashiko section that I included, and though this particular image didn't make the cut, I like it a …
Merchant & Mills Rapid Repair Kit Giveaway! [CLOSED]
One of my favorite things to do during the book process was prop shopping. I love me some good props. Being the way that I am, however, let's just say that I didn't hold back and now I have a mountain of charming, photogenic items taking up a whole lotta space in my basement. Luckily, most of them are very small. Like this tiny Merchant & Mills Rapid Repair Kit. "FIRST AID FOR CLOTHES", it promises, and this approximately 3.25" wide x 2.75" high metal box contains teeny scissors, …
Faux Fur Infinity Scarf + Giveaway [CLOSED]
Well now. Ute and I are simply blown away by the enthusiastic response to the Secret Valentine Exchange!! It's been so enthusiastic that my server crashed a number of times last week. It's true that I have a wimpy, tiny server, but still. I also think there's something problematic about multiple people trying to fill out the form simultaneously, but that's an uneducated guess on my part. We're approaching 130 sign-ups!! If you were one of the folks who couldn't access the form to …
Happy Friday + Randomness + Giveaway {CLOSED}
Happy Friday! Since there was no school on Veteran's Day this past Wednesday, K and I headed to the Japanese Garden to meet up with some friends. It was so beautiful and serene. I almost felt like I should whisper and suppress my coughs. The autumnal leaves boldly accented the lush green landscape. Red, gold, persimmon (there were actual persimmons too). The koi fish gathered under the small bridges. Many were autumnal in color too, but the one that caught my eye was indigo, of …