japanese craft books at my etsy shop

here are some photos of all the craft books currently for sale at my etsy shop. i plan to keep this post updated when new titles are added, and include the ISBN numbers for reference.

1.
ISBN 4-529-04306-1
"tanu (seed):how to make little fluffy felt things from wool"
includes projects for snowflakes, penguins, a scarf, bags, accessories, and cute things.
both needle and wet felting projects are included, some combine both techniques.
this is a good book for someone who already understands the basics of felting. if you know how to felt around a flat resist, the wet felting projects should be no problem. 81 pages.







2.
ISBN #4-309-28044-7
'small articles made of wool felt'
out of stock as of feb. 15, should be back in stock by march 1.
includes both wet-felted projects like bags and small needle-felted projects like dogs and sheep. there are 25 different projects, with lovely photos. although the text is entirely in japanese, there are clear instruction diagrams and pictures, both for wet- and needle- felted projects. 71 pages.





3.
ISBN 4-529-04079-9
shows how to make little cute chirimen characters-including little people, dolls, a cat, fish, and flower. most projects start with the pattern for cutting out the cloth pieces, followed by directions for hand sewing. there is some glueing, and stuffing, and many tiny details included.
64 pages.







4.
ISBN 4-529-04305-3
teeny tiny amigurumi
this japanese book has patterns for characters that are wee even by amigurumi standards! there are many pages of photo illustrations of the construction process, which uses a very fine yarn. most are between 5-8 cm tall; there are elephants, lions, dogs, cats, pigs, monkeys, russian dolls, kewpie dolls, a ladybug, a caterpillar, snails, figure puppets.
there are about 16 projects total, plus variations. 71 pages.




5.
ISBN 4-309-26572-3
chalk full of adorable creatures, and the pattens and instructions to crochet them. 16 projects are presented in great detail and diagram; although the words are all japanese, the pictures are very clear and go step by step. 71 pages.




6.
ISBN 4-579-11015-3
'Fleece Dog'
photos and directions for needle felting 20 different specific breeds of dogs:

labrador retriever, miniature dachshunds, shiba, french bulldog, wire-haired fox terrier, siberian husky, chihuahua, miniature schnauzer, pomeranian, papillon, dalmatian, catalan sheepdog, bernese mountain dog, scottish terrier, west highland white terrier, afghan hound, toy poodle, shetland sheepdog, cavalier king charles spaniel, and petit basset griffon vendeen.

the project titles and table of contents are in english and japanese. the text for the step-by-step instructions is all in japanese only, but the photos and diagrams are very clear and easy to understand. for each one of the 20 breeds, there is a full page diagramming the dimensions, shapes, and parts that make up that dog, as well has photos from every angle showing the completed project. there is also a detailed step-by-step photo process showing how to make and assemble each part. 79 pages

muji, moving and storage, and more muji

since i am moving to a new apartment in a few weeks (not far, just one stop on the JR train or a rather long walk), i have given myself permission to shop for new home/storage products. as i am going to be here for one more year, i was looking for something that could double as moving boxes and storage. it should come as know surprise that after extensive comparison shopping, MUJI was the winner.
plastic storage solutions (above) and cardboard, wicker, and fabric (below).
i'm going to get some nifty collapsible plastic boxes soon, but first i picked up the brilliant invention that is a modular cardboard box drawer system. you can see them in the bottom photo, on the left side.

here's how the boxes work:
they come flat (on the bottom shelf of the above photo). one piece of sturdy cardboard for the drawer, and one piece for the box that holds it.
and there are instructions (excellent, detailed, visual):

there's also a square metal loop to reinforce the opening of the box. and about 5 minutes later i have a working drawer.
in a study box that is fairly large (20 x 40 x65 cm) and stackable on other boxes like itself.
i especially like this corner detail, with the recessed drawer pull finger ledge (sorry i'm not up on furniture terminology).

so i plan to uses boxes like these for the move, and then as my new modular furniture system. and maybe eventually to mail back to the states. imagine, if you could move and never pack or unpack your dresser. brilliant, muji, brilliant.

on a related note (and then i will stop, promise, or maybe make a new blog that's all about muji.....bwah ha ha) i went to the what i believe is the largest muji in kansai yesterday. after going to the one in umeda (its inside Loft) and being a little disappointed i stumbled across the mothershop, in namba. you can access it from Nan Nan Town (actually the first underground shopping area in japan, since 1957). it's in the same building as tower records, a real one two punch to the wallet. 5 floors of goodness, with an entire restaurant in the subbasement. ahhhh.

tokyu hands and booties

here's the tokyu hands store in kobe (near the sannomiya train station). tokyu hands is the best. self proclaimed d.i.y. headquarters, tokyu hands has pretty much anything you can think of for any craft project you may be planning. 7 floors, each with an A, B, and C subsection. aaah.

here's some merino baby booties i made recently for a custom order.

pottery class in itami

yesterday was my first class at the itami craft center, part of the museum of arts and crafts in itami, hyogo prefecture, japan. it's a really cool combination of museum, teaching facility, gallery spaces, and even a little shop. all in a compound of buildings that include traditional japanese shophouses-some of which are open just to walk through and see, and some are used as the shop space, where teachers and students at the craft school have work for sale.

i dont know very much about the city of itami itself, (it's not included in my japan lonely planet) but wikipedia tells us that it was the only city in japan built within a castle (which was since torn down). from my architectural preservation friends, i know that itami also is an example of townscape preservation, which means that historic areas were preserved instead of just isolated buildings. and from my firsthand experience, there are good maps/signage including clear pedestrian access through the city.

the craft center offers a stunning array of craft classes: jewelry-making, spinning and dyeing, feltmaking, etc. i would love to take a spinning class, and one of their seminars about using natural dyes... this is one of the reasons i am excited to take a class there, as it seems like an excellent place to find out about all sorts of crafts and crafty things happening throughout the region. but first, i was excited to get back into ceramics, something i did back in high school, and then also when i was in japan last time (three years ago in yokohama).

the ceramics class was fun, very mellow and laid back, with a distinctive community class feel. there were about 10 students total, a couple other younger people, but mostly middle aged/retirees. the woman across from me was there with her elderly mother, i think they have been enjoying classes there for a while, and they also know the woman next to me, who was hilarious. she was probably in her 50s, and very chatty, with a thick kansai accent. constantly talking about how whatever she was doing wasn't good, and that she didn't want the teacher to see it, but in a totally light-hearted and funny way. there were a couple of older gentlemen, with their aprons (as this is japan, most people had smocks or aprons-one grandpa had a christmas teddybear apron on, which was quite cute) who were quietly making pots. everyone was mostly coil-building on small handwheels. a couple of the older men also were obviously not novices, as one used all his 2 kilos of clay to make a huge vessel, and another threw a piece on the electric wheel. the teacher did a demo of the wheel, and encouraged people to use it for trimming/finishing their coil work. i've done wheel work before, and i'd like to get back into that, but i want to wait a few weeks and not be demanding!

the teacher was really nice, very positive and interesting, and has been to walla walla, washington, as part of some kind of sister city program. there was a moment when i was explaining my situation (i.e., what is the white girl doing in this class, and where is she from?) when everyone was listening, and some discussion of seattle included me having to look up a japanese word that i didn't know, which turned out to be 'slug.' which was funny, because in the guessing game of what it might be, i had guessed 'is it food?' based on the explanation that 'you put salt on it'. but anyway, apparently there's a rumor that there are slugs in seattle that are the size of tiny dogs (!)

craft resources in kyoto

here's the kyoto art center from the outside (they don't allow any pictures inside).
this is a great store/gallery, actually a cooperative of over 40 artists/craftspeople. the displays are lovely, and there are an impressive range of crafts, including paper, ceramic, lacquer, wood, metal, fabric, cards, prints, etc.
most techniques and materials come from japanese craft traditions. however, the individual craftspeople's aesthetics and styles are clearly visible and create a very contemporary feel to the space.
there are lots of affordable items in the range of $5-20, as well as more expensive art objects.
here's my local wool shop in kyoto from the exterior. they sell a lovely variety of corriedale and merino rovings, as well as spinning, felting, and dying supplies and books, both in english and japanese.
hitsuji wool store homepage
map


displays outside the chirimen museum. chirimen fabric is traditionally used for japanese kimonos, but also to create a huge variety of tiny crafts.
and finally, here's a resource that lists lots of craft activities that you can try in the kyoto area....so many crafts so little time!

hyakumanben tezukuri (handmade) market, kyoto

on the 15th of every month, there is a handmade market at chionji temple in kyoto, called hyakumanben tezukuri market. (te means hand, zukuri means to make, so it literally means handmade). their website is here, buts it's all in japanese.this banner says 'handmade market' in japanese.
vendors set up all around the temple grounds, maybe there about 200 vendors. i guess its busiest in the mornings, starting around 9am, and in the winter people started packing up around 4.


there was a very impressive range of different kind of items, and different ages of vendors and size of their operations. there were some crafts people selling similar 'traditional' crafts that you would see in the u.s., like woodworking and ceramics.

there were cute piggies (remember, 2007 is the year of the wild boar in japan)

miniature scenes
woodworking and gnomes
dyed and print work

accessories of all kinds and materials
farm products from homespun to food and bath products
bags and more bags...
and more bags, lots of traditional japanese fabrics being reused to make other functional items/accessories.
super cute stamp work
handspun and handknits

felt food along with wooden play kitchens (of course my eyes were especially peeled for felt!)
there was quite a lot of needled felted stuff, and one felter who does very beautiful wet felting.

these photos are a tiny sample, there were also food vendors, both homegrown and snacks, and lots of clothes, old kimono fabric, jewelry, leatherwork etc.

the coolest part was that it was a total mix of people, both selling and shopping, which i believe reflects the strength and continuity of the craft tradition within japanese society. there were some young crafters similar to people in the states who are part of our huge craft resurgence (and mind you they are making some awesome stuff!), but they were part of a much larger crowd than included older folks and locals of all ages.

psst. more totoros!

my first stab at needle-felting, introducing...totoro!
i'm feeling a new craft obsession coming on.

felt cafe east + west is debuting over at my etsy shop with a few items, including these tokyo building blocks (above).
if anybody has suggestions or things they want from japan...here's your chance!