Revision Homework for Stitches: 241 - 245 DELAYED

 Just as I feared, I have not been able to complete the Sunbonnet Sue sampler. 

Here is just a glimpse of the back to let you guess what stitches I have used for what.

I hope to have a full picture of Sue by next Friday.

Due to this delay, there will be no new stitch for this week Sunday either.

Sorry about that!

WIPW - I'm Chickening Out

 Work In Progress Wednesday. I've done only a little work. 

Mandala

#245 Spine Chain Stitch is what I used to make a half circle around the Tulip buds/Snakes head. One of those fabric-covered plastic cups came in handy, too.

So far I have only made one. Three to go and then I have to put my thinking cap on again.

Sunday Stitch School Stitch Sampler

Do you remember the sloppy-looking Knotted Satin Stitch bow I showed last week? My intention was to work it in another thread, but instead, I chickened out and used #158 Invented Half Cross as an outline. The work is still in progress. When completed I'll take a step back and see what to do.

Sunday Stitch School - Revision: Stitches 241 - 245

Sue! Sue! Sunbonnet Sue! Where are you? It is time for you to come out from the shadows... Let's repeat the following Sunday Stitch School's stitches and then make a summery sampler:

(click on the title for instructions)

241 Bow Tie Stitch

A Rhodes type of stitch, that could be used for birds, butterflies as well as Bow Ties.

242 Double Wheatear Stitch

I really like this Wheatear stitch variation. Double beauty!

243 Basket Stitch

Easy and useful.

244 French Cretan Stitch

I have received so many suggestions for what this stitch looks like. I don't like it very much but it is an unusual stitch for sure.

245 Spine Chain Stitch

It looks especially nice on a gentle curve.

Homework:

Use Sue to sum up the stitches.

Next week has a busy schedule - I might not manage to have the sampler done by Friday...

Friday Homework for Lesson 245: Spine Chain Stitch

The Spine Chain Stitch is easy. You can vary the length and the angle of the side stitches. If you are into beading you can add a bead to that part, too.

Aida Sampler

Sunday Stitch School Reference Chart

Mottled Wool Scribble Cloth

Tokyo Quilt Show, 2023 - Part 2

 Where did I leave off the previous post? Yes, we need to look at the contest.

Actually, I was greatly surprised that there were no large quilts in a contest this time. The ones we saw last November in Yokohama were all impressive.

By each side of the limited seating area in front of a small stage, two black walls had been erected. The back and front of these walls gave space for a display of small quilts. Those quilts made up the contest. I guess there were about 100 quilts, each measuring approximately 45x45 cm.

 The quilts had no names of the makers, nor any titles. All entries were, however, numbered. 

On entering the venue, we had been given a small slip of paper. On this, we were invited to write down the number of the quilt we wanted to win this mini-contest. So it was a Visitors' Choice contest.

Here are a few of the entries:

Entry #26 was a colourful quilt with lots of stitching.

Quilt #4 was a complex work of art. The background was made of small Log Cabin blocks. Over it, the dark blue fabric had been cut open and reverse appliquéd into a cat's head. Then there was an intricate quilting pattern over the blue area.

For those who like embroidery, there was a lot of Running Stitch embroidery thread on this piece. The colours fit the season - Spring.

Gradation fabric had been used for the dragonfly and extensive machine quilting for the whole quilt. The flowers were also embroidered (if I remember correctly).

I think the grey background was a print. The appliquéd flowers and leaves stood out against that foundation.

Petals from a cherry tree accompany this couple dancing in the night sky against the backdrop of the full moon.

There is not a single cherry blossom in this piece but any Japanese would know this is a spring scene. Every year on May 5th Children's Day is celebrated. Families with small boys decorate their homes with dolls (samurai fighters in armour), helmets, iris blossoms and flying carps. These are all symbols of strength and bravery, needed to fight troubles, life's hardships and injustice.

It was difficult to take pictures of these mini-quilts. The crowds pressed on, there was too little space to stand back and take pictures of the whole wall, and many quilts were hung high up and almost out of camera reach.

Also, as I am not a member of Japan Quilt Society, I had no background information on this contest or indeed details of the show as a whole.

......................

Although I am a bit disappointed with the show, it gave me the opportunity to meet up with friends, and together we had a great time. Going to a quilt show with friends always makes you see things differently, the more pairs of eyes, the more you see!

By chance, we bumped into a lady we have met before in Tokyo Dome,  lovely, bubbly Lynette from Australia, who instantly recognised my friend Julie. 

It is so nice to see foreign visitors again in Tokyo. The pandemic forced many to stay away because of strict border controls and quarantines. 

Finally, I would like to say:

The pandemic put a stop to major quilt shows, like Yokohama International Quilt Week and Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival. They were sponsored by big companies in broadcasting and publishing, drawing huge crowds and showering us with inspiration.

There now appears to be a shift in the making, showing and promotion of quilts in Japan, and I feel that at the moment there is a bit of confusion about which way to go forward. I am, however, very grateful that a handful of quilters have taken the initiative to try to lead the way into the future. Thank you to Japan Quilt Society.

Unfortunately, several of the established quilters and teachers, who have done so much for promoting quilting in Japan in the past, are retiring or at least slowing down their work. Quilt groups, schools and small shops must have suffered a lot, too.

Another change is that there are not as many quilt magazines in the shops as before, which is a pity for the older generation of quilters who might not fully appreciate or make use of online courses and YouTube lessons. 

In the past, quilting was a great activity for housewives after their children had left the nest. I guess this is one reason why Japanese quilters have excelled in meticulous handmade quilts in the past, they had time and patience. 

These days, however, most young women continue to work after getting married and having a family. They now hold jobs with more responsibilities but also shoulder housework and family care. Thus they have less time for themselves and hobbies like quilting. 

In the future, I hope there will be more opportunities for 'mother and child quilting' and 'lunchtime quilting' among colleagues and other opportunities to keep quilting alive.

There should also be a reborn interest in the quilting of used clothes and textiles. SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) #12 embraces Responsible Consumption and Production. Japanese women have in the past shown how recycling and reusing clothes and textiles in quilting can be turned into art, like boro, sashiko and mending/darning. It would be nice if this form of quilting regained popularity.

So I wonder what form Tomorrow's Quilting will take here in Japan.

Japan Quilt Society will hold the next quilt show in Yokohama, November 24th - 26th, 2023.

WIPW - All Cups In Place

 For this Work In Progress Wednesday report, on the 

Mandala

all the cups have been attached. I have also backstitched the undulating line of Chain Stitch with a metallic thread.

The next step will be to alter the 'snake heads' so they look less scary.

Sunday Stitch School Stitch Sampler

There is another shape filled with #168 Croatian Stitch. Compare the difference in the lacing with the version on the left.

I also tried to make a bow with #11 Knotted Satin Stitch, but I am not impressed with the result. The Perle thread is a bit too slippery for the 'knots', which are hidden underneath the Satin Stitch, to sit still. The result is it looks like a sloppy bow... I think I will unstitch it and either try with a different thread or a different shape, or both!

Tokyo Quilt Show 2023 - Part 1

 It is spring which means it is time for another quilt event in Tokyo. 

Today was the opening of The 2nd Tokyo Quilt Show, 2023 organised by Japan Quilt Society.

Last year's spring show was held at a small event venue in Gotanda, Tokyo and did not draw many visitors. You can read my report about it here.

In November last year, the autumn show was held in Pacifico in Yokohama, where the hall is larger and more visitors came. I wrote six blog posts about it, starting here. There were many quilts to look at.

So I had high expectations for this year's spring event. A new venue had been chosen, Hamamatsucho-Kan, which houses Tokyo Metropolitan Industrial Trade Center. It is a large modern building with many exhibition halls, eateries and cafés as well as a number of terraced gardens.

Although the building is impressive, the exhibition hall was on the small scale and the huge number of visitors queuing up for the opening soon filled every corner of the room.

In the afternoon the crowds had thinned out so it was easier to move around. As you can see, the screens for showcasing the quilts were kept in the middle of the hall and the traders' booths were lined up along the walls. There were 47 stalls, most of them selling quilting goods, a few though, traded cosmetics, shoes and coffee pods.

So what quilts were on display? Was there a contest?

The large quilts on show were made by 'sensei', famous quilters and quilt teachers, all of whom must be members of Japan Quilt Society.

 If you have read my previous reports from the Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival at Tokyo Dome (held annually before the pandemic) you might well remember some of these quilts.

Fabulous and fabulously funny! A Japanese village wedding.

Yoko Sekita ＊関田陽子

On the Earth and In the Earth.

both made by Yoko Ueda ＊上田葉子

The interior of a Parisian café.

Yoshiko Kurihara ＊栗原淑子

Precise piecing and lots of movement.

Masako Sanada＊眞田雅子

Blue Ocean

Kathy Nakajima＊中島キャシー

Huge flowers.

(I think this quilt is new...)

Denim is always in fashion.

(This quilt, however, I have seen before)
Both made by Noriko Nozawa ＊野沢典子

For the love of indigo.

Shizuko Kuroha ＊黒羽志寿子

For many years Ms Kuroha has made the most beautiful quilts from Japanese fabric, especially indigo. She is now retiring from official duties. I hope she will still make some more quilts, though.

To my knowledge, this is a new quilt from a new quilter...

Yoshi Nishimura ＊西村淑

Dragons dancing in the moonlight.

Yoneko Maruya＊丸屋米子

Many of the white pieces are paper / Japanese washi and have brush writing in ink on them.

Yasuko Saito ＊齋藤泰子

This quilt was made from kimono silk. The silk in the border is from an obi (kimono sash).

Junko Sugahara ＊菅原順子

The next quilt is a celebration of the parts a quilt is made up of.

The quilt is large, it is white and it is impeccably hand quilted, it hangs straight. Check out those stitches! 

I certainly take my hat off to 

Junko Yasawa ＊矢澤順子

Here is a complex pattern.

Taeko Ando ＊安東多惠子

Now for some sweet desserts.

Ayuko Katayama＊片山あゆ子

The other large quilts were hung from the ceiling. I must admit I did not notice them until I looked at this photo!

More in my next report.