Here’s my fashion tip of the season: Wear a damn mask. Yes, I’m being harsh. Why? Because I live in a region where masks are mandatory and I support that decision by our local government. If you want to debate the merits of going maskless, please don’t bother. I will remove your comment. I already…
Category: product review
Quilting with Sashiko
My mom was a hand quilter, which makes it logical that after watching her enjoy it for so many years, I’d come to appreciate handwork, too. The slow pace, the gentle and rhythmic stitching, and the fabulous texture of it all. There are some aspects of hand quilting I do not enjoy so much, especially…
Sashiko Thread – Which type should I use?
If you don’t live in Hawaii, California, Oregon, or Washington state it may be difficult to believe Sashiko has been in the US for decades. For those of us on the Pacific side of things, Sashiko has waxed and waned in popularity since the late 1970’s at least, with a big upswing in the 1980’s…
Postcard from Houston International Quilt Market 2016
Wow! What a busy show this year. I’ll keep this short because I’m off to build my booth for Quilt Festival and the preview night is tonight… and I need more coffee. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this little window into the show. Some of the quilts in the video are from Japanese…
Hiroshima 広島 – Home of Tulip Needles
Riding the Shinkansen from Kyoto to Hiroshima I had plenty of time to relax notice the smaller details which usually go by the wayside. For example, the formality with which every member of the train crew interacts with passengers. As a crew member exits a car, he or she will pause and bow to the…
Sashiko Needles – Which to buy?
In Japan one may have an abundance of sashiko needles to choose from, but outside of Japan our choices tend to be more limited. For the past decade or so we were really limited, generally to whatever Olympus had to offer, and that was about it. Times have changed, much to our benefit. Which brand to…
Thimbles thimbles thimbles! And more thimbles.
As an avowed thimble-hater in my youth, I never expected to carry so many in my shop that I would actually use. You may have heard me evangelize the merits of a sashiko palm thimble, either leather or metal, and seen me wearing both at a quilt show or teaching event. I do use these regularly…
New in the shop: Sashiko Southwest
Joyce Perz of Sashiko Southwest is an artist with a vision. She enjoys the classic style of Japanese sashiko, but living in Albuquerque, New Mexico, she is exposed to Southwest Native American tribal art in all its beautiful geometry. In combining the two she has created a collection of beautiful hybrid designs. I had the pleasure…
New Kona Bay fabrics in the Kimonomomo Etsy shop
Nobu Fujiyama. NOBU FUJIYAMA. sigh. So pretty. The entire Serene collection is just gorgeous. And yes, I have all of these in stock right now, even though they don’t all show in the Etsy shop yet. Patience!
Product Review: KARISMA Air Fade Pen and Fujix Soie et Silk Thread
It’s a product review two-for-one! I’ve been experimenting with the KARISMA Air Fade Ink pens on silk lately and I’m quite pleased with the results. I have heard that some brands of air fade ink pens will come back if the fabric is laundered, so I decided to use them on fabrics I wasn’t planning to…
Tulip Sewing Needles a’plenty
Tulip, a sewing needle manufacturer in Hiroshima, Japan, recently celebrated its 65th anniversary. Founded in 1948 to make fishing needles, the company switched to more crafty consumers in the 1950s when they began exporting crochet hooks and knitting needles. Now well-known for their quilting needles and beading tools, Tulip has refined their product for a…
How to refill KARISMA Multicolor Pencil
Aleta from HinterlandMama sent me the following email this week: Hello! I have been using my pencil endlessly, but now the white chalk won’t come out when I press the end. I thought I would refill with the leads I bought from you, in case that’s the problem. But try as a might, I can’t…
A love for both the common fiber and the extraordinary textile @KimonoMomo 