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Sanae Ishida

A crafty little atelier in a grey city

Rumi + Toaster = Roaster Sweater Tunic Thingie

October 26, 2018

I did it! I figured out the tripod/wireless remote situation with my new camera and new photo wall! I just realized that all my shots are a little crooked but I'm out of practice with this whole selfie thing, so let's take it slow and easy. The new camera was a reluctant purchase. I managed to somehow drop and break both my nice Canon and back-up Canon cameras a few months ago (sob!) and after lamenting the losses, I decided to take this opportunity to try out an Olympus mirrorless camera. I ... Read more

Filed in: sewing, sewing for me • by sanae • 8 Comments

New Sewing Set-Up

October 19, 2018

Hello, hello! Now that Ba-chan, The Ninja Grandma has officially launched, I am sewing like a fiend. You may or may not know that I sew in my bedroom. In our sweet little townhouse, we have a disproportionately huge master bedroom and though I love me some airy minimalism, it seemed a shame to let all that space go to waste. I've carved out a little corner as my "atelier" and for the last 6 or so years, this has been working out pretty well. One of the downsides, however, was that I pushed ... Read more

Filed in: sewing resources • by sanae • 5 Comments

Espadrilles Kit by A Happy Stitch

September 25, 2018

Hello, my friends! Amid the swirl of book launch prep, I also made shoes. SHOES. Espadrilles, to be exact. The Espadrilles Kit from A Happy Stitch, to be even more exact. They look legit, right? When my lovely friend Melissa of A Happy Stitch contacted me to see if I'd like to try my hand at shoe-making, I was all in. I was actually a little nervous. There were some super long and curvy needles involved and the very helpful and thorough kit included "needle pullers" (plastic thimble ... Read more

Filed in: sewing • by sanae • 8 Comments

Behind the Scenes with Ba-chan, The Ninja Grandma + FREE GIFT AND GIVEAWAY! [CLOSED]

September 18, 2018

Today is the day! Hooray! Hooray! My friends, what an incredible ride these last few years have been. Ba-chan, The Ninja Grandma marks the fourth book I've published with Sasquatch Books (and third with their children's imprint Little Bigfoot). My head spun while typing that. What's been fascinating for me is how different the experience has been for each book. Little Kunoichi, The Ninja Girl -- my first book baby -- effortlessly popped out with virtually no changes, nary a stretchmark. I ... Read more

Filed in: book • by sanae •

Book #4: BA-CHAN, THE NINJA GRANDMA!!!!!!

September 6, 2018

Hello, hello! Long time, no blog...the last five months whisked by and I have no excuses for not updating at all. I've been focusing on "being in the moment" and have fully enjoyed immersing myself in spring/summer activities and projects! Now that it's September (my favorite month of the year), I'm feeling that usual surge of energy to get back into action. We did so much this summer: some traveling, a few camps for K, a ton of time with family and friends. And we got a kitten! I've become a ... Read more

Filed in: book • 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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