Starting More Japanese Fabric Bags

After making one small fabric bag the other day, I started a few more. 

Maybe they’ll be finished soon.

NHK Partnership Quilt for 2016

The following information was recently posted by Queenie Patch:

"The information for next year's NHK Partnership Quilt project (to be displayed in Tokyo Dome in January, 2016,) has now been announced.

The theme is  M U S I C

Should you wish to participate, then these are the rules:

• one block per person
• 20 cm x 20 cm for the motif, add a seam allowance of 1-2 cm on all sides
• flimsy block, i.e. no wadding, no quilting
• your name should be written with pen in the seam allowance of the lower right hand corner
• your block should have reached NHK by 31st August, 2015
• enclose a note with your name, address, tel no, email address
• send to:

Partnership Quilt
NHK Sutekini Handmade
2-2-1 Jinnan
Shibuya-ku
Tokyo 150-8001
Japan

Your block will be joined with other blocks into large bed size quilts and quilted by volunteers. These quilts will be displayed at Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival in January next year, where they will be raffled off. A raffle ticket is 500 yen."

I've participated the last two years.  You can see my blocks here and here.  I'll have to get to work on this year's block soon!
You can read more about this project and see more blocks over the years at Queenie's Needlework blog - here.

Japanese Fabric Bag Finish

Using Japanese fabrics I’ve acquired here, I stitched all day from an idea in my head and made a little bag.

Here are the two blocks I started with, that became the front and back of the bag.

 

Here is the front and back of the completed bag with the lining pulled out to see.

 

This is what the lining looks like inside the bag.

 

I added some little circles and a few beads and a piece of ribbon for the drawstring.

 

I gave this one as a gift, but I like it so much I’ll probably make another.

Work in Progress Wednesday - Getting Unstuck #8 - the USA

I started this one about two years ago and I was liking it. I think I last posted progress on it here. I had some counting mistake and put it away, rather than fix it and continue. At that time, I had seven states completed – Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. After getting it out again, I fixed the mistake with the dark red inner border and went on to work on the red, white, and blue outer border. I completed two more states - North Dakota and Washington and started the pictures and words in the upper left corner.

I hope there aren't any other counting mistakes!

Take A Stitch Tuesday #112 Feathered Chain and #113 Beaded Feathered Chain

Sharon B at Pintangle is not currently posting new TAST stitches, but I haven’t tried out all of the ones she previously posted yet.

I had tried out #112 the feathered chain before, but decided to do it again, along with #113, the beaded feathered chain.  My sample included #8 perle cotton (blue), two strands of cotton floss (red) and a metallic silver.

If you are interested in learning new stitches, check out her TAST page here.
 

Monday Morning Star Count - Thinking of My New EPP Project

I’ve been cutting some fabric for the new project I have in mind. 

Hope to have something to show by next week.

Scarf Progress

Other than tracing the template shape, I have no plans for this design.  I’m just stitching what I think of.  So far I’ve used chain stitch, running stitch, fly stitch, feather stitch, and blanket stitch. 

 

It’s fun to stitch without knowing what comes next.

Population Decline and the Year of the Fire Horse - Hinoeuma

Americans have no shortage of superstitions, but I’m more interested in the new and different (to me) Japanese superstitions.  I was reading the English newspaper in the university library the other day and I came across an article about the population decline in Japan. The article covered the usual things – people getting married later or not getting married at all, the high cost of everything and not being able to afford to have a second or third child, etc. One thing I had never even heard of before as a reason for the population decline was Hinoeuma, the year of the Fire Horse.

You may already know about the twelve years of the Chinese zodiac calendar – this year is the sheep, last year was the horse, the year before the snake, the year before that the dragon, etc. I hadn’t heard about the combination of those animals with the five elements (fire, wood, earth, metal, and water) to make the wood dragon or the metal snake, etc. Each of these occur once every 60 years or five cycles of the twelve signs. Some are considered good, others not so good.  The really bad one in Japan is the Fire Horse or Hinoeuma. People born during this year have the worst bad luck.  Women are especially unlucky.  The article I read said these women make disastrous wives.

This superstition is so powerful that men avoid marrying Fire Horse Women and couples avoid giving birth to children that year. The last Hinoeuma was in 1966.  Birth rates in Japan that year declined by 26%, according to the Japan Statistical Yearbook, or by 15% according to some other sources. Women who were actually born that year will often claim to have been born the previous or the next year.

In 2010, researchers from Osaka University and Japan’s Gender Equality Bureau found that these Fire Horse Women completed less formal education, had household incomes that were less, and were divorced more often than women a few years older or younger.

Do you know anyone born in 1966? What do you think?  Is someone born in the year of the fire horse more unlucky than anyone else?

A New Summer Project - a Scarf

It’s summer, but it is still cool here in Hokkaido.  I see many women with lightweight scarves, so I think I’ll make one for myself.

 

I’m stitching in hand (without a hoop), using a sharp needle and #8 perle.  I know it doesn’t look like much yet, but give me some time and it will look better.

Sapporo Wine Garden 2015

Most weeks after Japanese class, we go to the Fuji Film Photo Salon in Sapporo.  The exhibits change weekly so there are always new photos to see. It is located just south of Odori Park, where there is usually something going on.  Last week it was the Wine Garden, so we stopped for something to eat and a glass of wine.

 

We bought a wine glass and tickets for the wine.  When we returned the glasses we were refunded the 500 yen we paid for each wine glass. I think this is a great way to cut down on trash.

 

 

We were surprised to see these two girls in high school uniforms drinking wine.  Maybe the woman with them was their mother.

 

 

We found a place to sit and tried out several things to eat.

 

It was a fun supper out.

Work in Progress Wednesday - Hokkaido Has Four Seasons Finish

I added some spring and summer details and a sleeve on the back so I can hang it and I’m calling it finished.

 

I already have another project in mind to get to work on next.  I started this one two years ago and put it away when I made some counting mistakes.  I really like it, so I’m going to find and fix those mistakes and get unstuck.  Check back next Wednesday to see how I do!

TAST - 138 Barb Stitch

This was a very easy stitch and I really like how it looks.  I tried it out with perle #5 (red) and Soy Luster (lavender).  Next I’ll have to try the beaded version.



 

Check out Take a Stitch Tuesday at Sharon B’s Pintangle blog to learn these stitches and many others.

Monday Morning Star Count - Big Quilt Progress

Here’s what the big one is looking like.  Slow, but still progress.

 

(If you missed the finish of my sewing machine cover - you can see it here.)

Linking up with Life Under Quilts and Hibiscus Stitches.