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Sanae Ishida

A crafty little atelier in a grey city

It goes too fast

May 16, 2016

This is K when she was just a little over 18 months back in 2008. Last night, we had dinner at a friend's house and I watched K and her two buddies play and eat and argue and reconcile and laugh hysterically. She's known them since birth and nearly 10 years later, they're still the best of friends. They used to be so small, they all fit snugly in a basket: I had mentioned in a post a while back that I wish I had a photo of the very first top that I sewed for her, and I found it while I ... Read more

Filed in: life, sewing for K • by sanae • 9 Comments

Happy Friday + Radomness

May 13, 2016

Happy Friday! I'm going strong with Me-Made-May, though I do combine handmade items with the few store-bought clothes I still own. Here's a round up of week 2-ish: Day 6: Renfrew Bamboo Top (worn with RTW yoga pants) Day 7: Black Simplicity 2365 Tunic + Black Gingers Day 8: Moss Green Linen Jacket (I wore the same outfit but with me-made jeans) + Indigo Gingers Day 9: Self-drafted knit dress (shown above - this was yet another prototype for the dress included in my book and the ... Read more

Filed in: illustration, life, watercolor • by sanae • 3 Comments

Imaginary Sewing

May 11, 2016

I do this thing, this thing that often starts with a discovery of a new book (or two), usually of the Japanese variety. I flip through the pages and daydream and plan and think, "oooh, I'll make this top from this book..." "Or this comfy looking one from this book..." And before I know it, I'm carrying the books out of the store, my checking account slightly depleted, but my spirits buoyed. I scroll through my mental fabric stash inventory and gleefully anticipate wearing my new ... Read more

Filed in: sewing resources • by sanae • 21 Comments

Indigo Prints Giveaway [CLOSED]

May 9, 2016

I know. I'm beating the indigo theme to a pulp, but what can I say? I love the color so much. Plus, that was my dominant hue of the book, which seemed like the ideal color to include with the Art Walk concept, etc. etc. Perhaps you share a love of indigo too? I had created these "samplers" as a reference for keeping track of which prints have sold (each square is an individual painting), but then several people wondered if I would sell the samplers as prints, and then I thought it might ... Read more

Filed in: giveaway • by sanae •

Happy Friday + Randomness

May 6, 2016

  Happy Friday! I've been a bit obsessed with this new series of illustrations I created for the Art Walk at Drygoods (I'm typing this before the actual event so I don't know if anyone will end up showing up, but just having the chance to participate was awesome. Thank you, Keli!). Over the years of experimenting with different kinds of illustrations, I've decided that painting anthropomorphic animals is at the top of the favorites list. I mean, a foxy seamstress, a wise quilter, a ... Read more

Filed in: illustration, life, watercolor • 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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