Stenciling on fabric! If you have been following my Instagram feed you will know about the piece of fabric that my sister and I have been passing back and forth between us for decades. This fabric was bought at a dollar a yard shop when I was in college. Back then, if it was cotton …
Chigiri E = ちぎり絵 Chigiri means to rip or tear + E meaning picture Chigiri E is a picture made out of pieces of torn washi paper. They are iconic illustrations of the Japanese traditional lifestyle, seasonal touchstones and people wearing traditional clothing. These days there are modern themes as well. Traditional Japanese paper …
I love Gwen’s new stencils. I love her old stencils. I love the fact that she’ll probably have more stencils in the future. (I don’t have any inside information, but I can’t imagine a world in which this is not the case.) Not only do I love her stencils, but I love printing them on …
When Gwen came out with her new line of stencils I immediately fell in love with the Boho Circle Collection. I chose the Boho Star Circle Stencil. I immediately thought of making a pincushion. The pattern lent itself to the project and I discovered I needed a new pincushion. As they say, “necessity is the mother of …
It all started with this: A box of sari scraps from Gwen Lafleur. So beautiful. I have hoarded them for a while now, playing with them, mix and matching them. So beautiful that I was loath to cut them up and use them. I have long been wanting to make a cuff from them. …
If you have taken to origami you may be interested in learning about kirigami. Kirigami is a word that is accredited to Florence Temko in her 1962 book Kirigami, The Creative Art of Papercutting. Kirigami 切り紙 is a mixture of Kiri + Gami. Kiri is a form of the verb Kiru …
Most of the clothes I own are devoid of pockets. This means that juggling a cell phone is an adventure. Finally, there seemed to be no other choice but than to make an over the shoulder bag to cart it about wherever life might lead. Well, if you are going to make a bag, why not …
I have a tutorial showing how to make these purses on the Arnold Grummer Design Team Blog These coin purses are so fun to make and use. I was always fascinated by the one I received as a gift when I was a child. The back side is just as cute as the front. …
Japan is a paper lover’s heaven. There are kinds of paper for everything and arts developed for different kinds of paper. It’s easy to blow a month’s salary on paper goods if you do not take care. Ummm, how do I know…? Japanese paper arts are also quite well known around the world. Which can …
This journal spread was an expression of longing. “What are you longing for?” you might ask. What do we all long for? Longing for things that are past or improbable or somehow out of reach. The feeling is far from unique. The illustration I chose does not have to be interpreted as longing, but it …
