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Sanae Ishida

A crafty little atelier in a grey city

Happy Friday + Randomness

May 27, 2016

Happy Friday! I'm just popping in with a quick Me-Made-May update. This past week was all about tops in stripes and checks -- then again, it's always about tops with stripes and checks for me. Note that the order of the images doesn't exactly match the order of the days below. The inner OCD in me begged for some sort of symmetry. Day 20: Simplicity 1538 plaid shirt Day 21: Simplicity 6241 pink + grey knit top Day 22: Julia Cardigan in indigo stripes Day 23: New Look 6648 coral ... Read more

Filed in: sewing for me • by sanae • 4 Comments

Freshly Laundered Linen

May 25, 2016

There's something about freshly washed linen that's a mood booster. I'm talking about plain fabric here, and not fitted sheets or shams. Rumpled and textured and oh-so-soft, when I look at these, I pretend I live in the French countryside in a charming villa painted a dusty bleu-grey, overlooking fields of lavender. I can practically hear a baby goat bleating nearby. I have plans for these beauties. But because I've noticed that I categorically avoid making the things I declare as part of ... Read more

Filed in: life, sewing resources • by sanae • 18 Comments

Giveaway! Finca Perle Cotton Thread [CLOSED]

May 23, 2016

Good morning! The purging/cleaning is slow-going, but look what I found: Finca Perle Cotton Thread in size 8. Such pretty, pretty colors, no? Great for embroidery, crochet, and needlework of various goodness. Anyone out there a doily maker? These -- like many of my accoutrements -- were meant as props for the book, though I never got the chance to include them. I wish I had because they're so twee yet cool (is that paradoxical?). I have to confess that there's a lot going on behind the ... Read more

Filed in: giveaway • by sanae •

Happy Friday + Randomness

May 20, 2016

Happy Friday! Whenever my mom visits, she's a little wistful that she's unable to paint in Seattle. I get it -- she doesn't have her usual supplies, her routine is completely disrupted and most of all, she says she doesn't feel like she has a space of her own, mentally or physically. Still, she's an artist through and through so when a watercolor set happens to be lying around, she'll whip up a painting like the one above while chatting to K. This kind of painting doesn't count for her though; ... Read more

Filed in: life • by sanae • 11 Comments

Launch Party Crafts Recap

May 18, 2016

When the hacking debacle happened, most of my Sewing Happiness pre-launch blog plans had to be scrapped. I was hoping to build excitement with some behind-the-scenes posts culminating in a grand giveaway and I guess I could still do that, but it feels anticlimactic now that the book's been out for almost a month. One of the things I really enjoyed about the pre-launch process was preparing for the party that was held at Drygoods Design on April 19th, the actual day of the book release. I ... Read more

Filed in: book, crafts • by sanae • 7 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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