Friday 30 January 2015

Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival 2015 - 6 Bags

Have you ever looked in a Japanese quilt magazine? There is bound to be at least one pattern for a quilted bag. Bag making is extremely popular, and if you look at the ladies queuing up to get into the Tokyo International Great Quilts Festival, you feel as if you are already at the exhibition! A fashion show of bags right there in the queue! Many stop to admire others' bags; indeed my friend Julie has a bag that is a real crowd stopper.

By the way, Julie has posted pictures from the Children's Book Quilts at the TIGQF. Check them out here.

Back to the bags. Here is a handful of the bags entered in the Bag Contest.

The winning bag

菅原真弓*Mayumi Sugawara

This was made to resemble a Penny Rug (!?)

高瀬美季子*Mikiko Takase (?)

These red bags were made entirely of Suffolk Puffs (yo-yos) and beads.
 Sorry I missed the maker's name.

Don't you think this bag is quite original?
出本正彦*Masahiko Demoto (?)

The bags need to be secured with wire so they don't 'walk out of the show'. That's popular for you!

25 comments:

Janie said...

More great inspiration from TIGQF? Amazing.

Anonymous said...

Very stylish bags with a lot of imagination, they are great!

Séverine said...

All !these bags are wonderful

https://linsartyblobs.blogspot.com said...

So many Suffolk puffs! I like the fishy bag.

Stitching Lady said...

Great bags - the first one I would choose to walk with into town. No wonder it won!!

J Honda said...

I do like that fish bag - beautiful

Queeniepatch said...

It made me smile.

Queeniepatch said...

It's stylish, I give you that, but thinking of all the work that went into some of the others...

Queeniepatch said...

I was wondering how many Suffolk puffs there were!

Queeniepatch said...

Actually there were many more!

Queeniepatch said...

The variety was great.

Queeniepatch said...

A bag is a good way to show off your quilting ability to the general public. I mean, how often do you invite strangers into your home to look at the quilts there?

Ulla said...

The bag with fishes is also a favourite as it's made with great fantasy.Önskar dig en trevlig hel från norra Sverige där vi nu får massor av snö.vi har nog 70cm eller mer och vi får mer natten mot söndag.Allt är vitt.Vackert men vi är nog nöjda med snö nu.

Renee said...

These are all fabulous! I love the first one. Thank you so much for adding a close-up. The stitching and beading is amazing!

Queeniepatch said...

It is a very stylish bag, but one doesn't immediately think 'quilted bag' I would say!

Annet said...

Such gorgeous bags, love the one with the fishes!

carorose said...

Thanks for the pics. These bags are so different from what we generally see in Japanese magazines.

Queeniepatch said...

Wouldn't it be perfect to use when you go to the pet shop to buy feed for the aquarium?

Queeniepatch said...

Oh, Carolyn, on purpose I did not take any pictures of the styles often found in magazines, believe me they were also represented!!!

Julie Fukuda said...

As I was leaving the final day, I stopped off in the stands to dig my warm clothing out of my bag and a young lady sitting there showed me the bag she had made and was proudly carrying. I think one gets not only the color and design they like but something that can be finished fairly quickly and shown off in public. I often see bags I think would be handy to own.

Queeniepatch said...

Yes, and a handmade bag can have the types of pockets that are good for ME, and other personalised things. In Japan there is never any problem getting hold of handles, snap buttons or zippers suitable for bags. Actually I ought to tailor make a bag for myself... one day...

Pamela said...

What wonderful bags! So many creative people!

Queeniepatch said...

Actually there were fewer bags this year, but still you could see how popular bag making is in Japan.

crazyQstitcher said...

Fabulous bags! The first is amazing to think it is basically running stitched. The fish one is adorable.
How surprising to find simple pieces and stitches can be combined to create such a lovely bag as the penny rug.
Suffolk puffs are a cinch to make but soooo many, so tiny would be a work of love and patience. The end result is beautiful.

Thank you again for sharing what you find.

Queeniepatch said...

I am not so interesting in bag making and often skip this section at a quilt show. (Another reason is that it is always crowded.) This time I am glad I took the time to look around as there are so many varieties of bags, all very creative.