Quilt Show at Nihon Vouge

It was time for the annual quilt show hosted by Nihon Vouge and Quilts Japan at their building in Nakano, Tokyo.

On Saturday, I met up with a Japanese friend who is an excellent quilt teacher. Both her work and those of her students were on display.

Here is a selection of quilts that caught my eye:

Sketches with needle and thread! What do you think of Vermer's Girl with a Pearl Earring wearing a mask?

市川淑子＊Yoshiko Ichikawa

I like that this quilt is on point.

仲沢幸子＊Sachiko Nakasawa

Records by 楊楠＊Sorry I can not read this name, I think the maker is a Chinese, or Taiwanese, man. Or he might be based in Hong Kong or live in Singapore...

Look at the machine embroidery! Surely this must be made by computer software.

Feminine and romantic

稲谷美穂＊Miho Inatani

This Circle, Triangle and Rectangle quilt was made by my friend's student out of the smallest of scraps.

三木純子＊Junko Miki

For the love of the Swedish Dalahäst (Dalecarlean Horse)

桑田厚子＊Atsuko Kuwata

I liked the way the quilts had been displayed, often with two totally different quilts near each other. It helps the eye to compare and see differences.

The quirky cat quilt by 

和田まゆみ＊Mayumi Wada

The overflowing Treasure box by

苫谷秀子＊Hideko Tomatani

This sheer quilt was made with Korean Pojaki fabric, which is always so elegant.

山根秀子＊Hideko Yamane

Another of my friend's students,

若松操＊Misao Wakamatsu, wanted to use up her stash of polka dot fabric.

I love the movement and the way the size of the curved pieces change.

Quilt sculptor 

鈴木キルト＊KILUTO or Quilt Suzuki made this fantastic 3D creation.

Here is a busy but beautiful quilt, with colourful flowers and birds on a milk tea-coloured background.

平沢あけみ＊Akemi Hirasawa

These two contrasting quilts were also hung well.

The Fountain of Neptune in Piazza Navona, Rome by

長瀬順子＊Junko or Sumiko Nagase

Tropical birds by

市村静子＊Shizuko Ichimura

Soap bubbles by

近藤容子＊Yoko Kondo

As it is nearing Christmas, what better way to celebrate than with a charming quilt like this:

関谷みよ子＊Miyoko Sekitani

Here is a selection of the bags:

This is a nifty cycle bag with a plastic pocket for your online map on your smartphone, made by

鎌田朋子＊Tomoko Kamata

Meticulously made, beautiful and creative in all ways... alas the unique handle made me think of a pair of knickers, upside-down!

山口信子＊Nobuko Yamaguchi

This green bag was made by my friend's student,

梅野京子＊Kyoko Umeno

Her teacher, my friend, made this bag:

She made good use of the grey fabric using both the right and the wrong side. The latter is slightly lighter in colour as can be seen on the left side.

She extended a too-short zipper with a bit of fabric and two unique buttons.

上野知佳子＊Chikako Ueno

Finally, because of my love of Hexagons and Hand Embroidery, I have to include this blue bag. There is so much one can do with this combination!

市川祐子＊Yuko Ichikawa
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I have tried my best to spell the quilters' names correctly, both in kanji (Japanese characters) and Roman script. Please excuse any mistakes.

My friend and I ended the visit by listening to a short talk on how to store fabric and notions. The recommendation was to make three piles of fabric,  ironed flat and sorted in size - large, medium and small pieces. Then a container to put the very smallest of pieces as they are useful for accents or appliqué.

Like the speaker I also have a bag for tiny scraps, but all sizes of fabric larger than 5x5 cm I keep in boxes sorted not by size but by colour. When I first start a new project, I decide what colour to use, and then look for the size I need.

The speaker also gave suggestions on what to do with fabric we have got fed up with. Why not use it for an iron board cover, as it won't matter if it gets soiled or burned? Or make a pillow case, after all, we won't see the print when we are asleep.

What do you think of these ideas? How do you store your fabric, what do you do with fabric that no longer gives you joy?