make your own cornstarch ornaments

make cornstarch ornaments, originally uploaded by jek in the box.

when i saw these in the flickr stream of jek in the box, they jumped out at me for their clear design and simple message.
after a few days looking at the pretty intense aftermath of a volcano (part of my research at the university), i was feeling ready for something just simple and sweet.
and the bonus is that these are actually made of cornstarch, and you can make your own with the recipe in the link!

dreaming

photo by syko on flickr.

i wish i was sewing. but my super busy schedule is set to continue for another month. so if it gets a little more quiet around here, you can be assured i will be popping in and out, if sporadically for a bit.

july 4th sunday kamigamo shrine market

here's a few photos from last month's 4th sunday market at kamigamo shrine. these sweet litte cases are for holding a hanko (japanese name stamp-which is used instead of official signatures).

original characters in festival (right) or swimming (left) garb.

one of my favorite things about this market is the setting--kamigamo shrine is next to some lovely natural surroundings, and the craft market winds around through the trees and near the stream. i've added this photos to my kamigamo market flickr set.

new nani iro fuccra double gauze

nani iro fuccra double gauze, in blue, and eggplant.
ok, this fabric was released earlier this year, from the wonderful nani iro line from kokka. but i just got around to finally putting it in the shop. it's the cotton double gauze we have come to expect, with whimsical, abtract, pretty patterns. every time i see it, i am consumed with thoughts of what i would like to sew with it. for myself!
a similar thing happens every time i visit the inspiring simply iro flickr group, where i saw this great project from filminthefridge (lovely blog by the way!).

actually, i am the very excited and proud owner of a new sewing machine! and my first project that i started is a shirt using this fuwari fuwari nani iro double gauze. it's a little girly compared to what i usually wear, but i've been in japan for a while now, and that sure brings out the cute and girly in anyone. it is not, however, the first project that i have finished; in fact, it's gone a bit astray...for sure because i thought i would just wing it. so that project is on hold until i redo the collar.

but as a new sewing machine owner, i picked up a couple books for inspriration, inlcuding this one, also for nani iro (or other) double gauze. the title is "made of soft gauze." isbn 978-4141878872.

here are a few clothing patterns, but it has more household objects/gifts.
and of course this nani iro book is still one of my favorites to leaf through and be inspired.

happy 4th

Sparklers on the dock, originally uploaded by Emily ♥ Follow The White Rabbit.

for those of you celebrating the 4th of july in the united states, i hope you are having a wonderful holiday weekend and some tasty potato salad.

for me, the 4th has always been a pretty mellow holiday, and being in japan i don't miss it so much. in grad school, when i was part of a international summer studio posse, it seemed like we would always wind up in asia for the 4th, taipei or china, and go to pizza hut to 'celebrate.' (sorry, i know pizza hut is gross and corporate, but until you've been a cheese-lover in asia, don't knock it!)

when i lived in seattle, we could see the fireworks from our front yard, which made for a nice yearly bbq party (ohh, i do miss bbq, or 'grilling out' as we say where i'm from).

in college in portland, mostly i think we watched fireworks from roofs of warehouses, or later the roofs of people's apartment buildings.

when i was a kid, we usually stayed home for the 4th, with some small fireworks in the backyard. i always was fascinated by the smoke snakes (cobras? is that what they were called?). and of course we had sparklers, and tried to write our names with the light before they burned out.

i love this photo from emily follow the white rabbit on flickr. when i was a kid, we didn't have time lapse photography, and the image only lasted as a memory of your eye.

but the key is, when someone hands you a sparkler, you have to move! wave it around, make circles, run around barefoot in the grass with the fireflies and crickets in the backround.

qiang embroidery

starting in a few hours from now (since it's after midnight, with a full moon, and i will have to get up well before the sun rises) i will be heading off to china for a week.

it's a research trip for school and we will be visiting the area of sichuan that suffered badly from the earthquake 2 years ago. it's an area that is home to the qiang people, an ethinic minority in china, who have an extremely rich tradition of embroidery. i'm not sure how much i will be able to blog, but you can bet that i will keep my eyes open for crafts.

the photo above is from sandyahyu on flickr.

another lovely kogin embroidery book

this new kogin book was just published this year. it's in the shop, and the full flickr set is here.

carpet map art by instant hutong

this is one of the carpet maps created by instant hutong, which i found via flickr. hutong are the traditional dense courtyard neighborhoods of beijing, and the artists behind instant hutong have done a whole series of pieces where figure ground maps are made into carpets. maps plus textiles? on a large scale? i love it!

beautiful detail from dadaya

tinytoadstool from dadaya.
this is why i love flickr, finding beautiful things like this!

pine branches ornament

Pine Branches Ornament, originally uploaded by jennybubbletime.

this wonderful ornament was embroidered by jennybubbletime, spotted on flickr.

a few holiday flickr favorites

felt gingerbread ornament from cozy memories,
sweet dove ornaments by whimsy and charm,
and not for sale, but lovely cross stitch by pigeon pair.

last weekend's markets

last weekend i went to 2 markets on sunday. kyoto has a lot of cultural treasures, and in my opinion, market culture is one of them!

by the way, have you seen that banner with the red acorns over there on the right side of this post, for felt cafe japan?------>

it's my new project, which i'm very excited about; gathering and sharing resources about japanese crafts, crafting in japan, and crafty shopping in japan. if you have any ideas about this new site, or would like to contribute, please let me know!

one of the sections on felt cafe japan is all about the different markets in kyoto, here:
http://www.feltcafejapan.com/kyoto-handmade-markets

there are antique markets that have some handmade items, and handmade markets with more younger craftspeople. last sunday i went to one of each.

the photo at the top of this post is from the tenjin market, the anique/flea market at kitano tenmanu on the 25th of each month. the photo is of one of the side areas, where they were selling plants. the little structure with the white tables is selling coffee.

this is the same market, near the entrance where all the food vendors were. there was a mix of traditional local pickle makers, and festival food. toward the end and on a different street, i had the biggest buta-man (steamed pork bun) i've ever seen. super delicious. in this photo, the dark blue banner says 'kyoto pickles' and i bought some! i'm still learning the names for pickles, so i don't know what they are called, but they are purple, include ginger and cucumbers and i love them.

at the antique/flea markets, there are usually some crafts too, often more of the traditional kinds. for example these little chirimen bunnies.

i made a flickr set with more pictures from this market.


then i went to the handmade market at kamigamo shrine, which is held on the 4th sunday of every month. it was my first time to this market, and i definitely plan to go back as often as i can. there was a nice selection of crafts, even though i didn't get there until later in the day. and the setting-peaceful woods and a nearby stream-was lovely.

this woman was selling felt off of her bike.

wonderful felt slippers.

great little felt animals!
you can see more photos in this set.

to ward off vampires

9784579112609 100 felt mascots, originally uploaded by feltcafe.

happy halloween!

these little needle felted garlic guys are from this book, which is perfect for anyone is newcomer to needle felting. i really love this book!

updated to add: i fixed the link, so now you can actually see the book i'm talking about.

gnome sweet gnome needlefelted by lucky nielson

this lovely needlefelted gnome girl was made by lucky nielson, and is available in her etsy shop. impressive felting, indeed!

astulabee

beginnings, originally uploaded by astulabee.

astulabee makes the cutest things. i just love these creatures. she sells them on etsy, and you can see more (including this sneak peek of some upcoming collaborative projects) on her flickr stream.

summer felt by elenamakesthings

i was just thinking about felt today, when i stumbled upon the work of elenamakesthings.
i especially love this piece, where she used a shibori technique while felting to make the cascading petals.
her creations are available for purchase from elenamakesthings on etsy.

and you can see more of her works on her flickr.

royal eggs by asherjasper

vicky of asherjasper makes adorable felt creations, like these fairy tale royalty. her etsy shop is on mini vacation right now, but hopefully these and other goodies will be available there soon. in the meantime you can see more of her fabulous work on flickr.

happy 4th

Frustrated Firecracker, originally uploaded by wildolive.

for everyone in the u.s., i hope you are having a nice 4th of july weekend.

you can print out and make your own version of this firecracker decoration by using the instructions at http://wildlolive.blogspot.com. (it's under the july 2008 printables).

i don't really mind missing the 4th of july, but i do miss grilling out (as those of us from my part of the midwest call it), and backyard barbeques, potato salad, and deviled eggs.

old boar and baby wild boar

old boar, originally uploaded by vriad_lee.

i discovered this spectacular needle felted boar by flickr user vriad lee via craft. more work by this artist can be seen here.

here's another photo of our local boar, and one of the new baby wild boars that's about a week old. it's a little hard to make out, the baby is in the lower left corner.

twilight roosting felt works by elizabeth armstrong

Twilight Roosting , originally uploaded by studiofelter.

these lovely creations were made by the very talented felt maker elizabeth armstrong. you can see her flickr stream here.