Yesterday afternoon was the first cloth journal workshop. It was an excellent beginning and I was quite happy about how it went. I think it's going to be fun and everyone now has a fairly clear idea of what they want their project to be, at least in a general way. One of the fun things about a project like this is the way more ideas come as you stitch. One woman has a lot of stuff she wants to use and doesn't want anything left. I suggested she might want to make two journals and she was thrilled with the idea. People seemed a little bit unsure about what these journals are, but after I showed and explained mine and they passed it around a few times, the ideas were bouncing around in their heads. I told them that these journals could be whatever they want, but that since the idea of infinite possibilities could be daunting, in this class, we'd have a plan--it can be a loose plan, but they want some parameters. Once they have the one under their belt, who knows where they'll take it. It was very moving to hear the reasons for their journals and what they are hoping to do. A few left with a start and a couple of women decided that what they want to use for their covers was still at home, but now that they knew where they were going with this, they were eager to go get their supplies and begin. I'm so looking forward to seeing their work progress! I was also very pleased to hear more than one of them comment more than once about what a good group it is. I agree. It's always a gamble in a situation like this. You never know if there will be one person who is highly annoying and disruptive in one way or another, but the chatting was part of the fun and I think they'll be happy to share ideas with one another as we go forward--at least I hope so.
A friend who also attends the yarn group at the library asked me if I could teach her to do kumihimo. She'd expressed an interest a few months ago and I got her a disk but she hadn't tried it yet. She's taking the journal class and as she was rummaging through things to see what she might want to include, she found some old jewelry that she wants to deconstruct and use in kumihimo. So today she brought her disk to yarn group and I showed her how to do it.
Last night I finished up a brooch that I was making for her. She's mentioned in the past that she likes brooches, the color blue, and the colorful ribbon yarn I've used for many braids. A friend found it in a charity shop and got it for me. I've done so many braids with it and I think I have enough for another one or two. I tend to use novelty yarn for either weaving or kumihimo, but ribbon yarn isn't great on the pin looms, so kumihimo it is. Anyway, here's her brooch, which I gave her today. Sorry about the less than fabulous photo--I was rushing this morning and had little time to snap the pic before I was off.
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| kumihimo braid sewn into spiral with glass art pendant attached sterling silver pin on back |
I recently completed this one, too. I love purple and the purple/teal combination.
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| kumihimo braid sewn into spiral, teal glass bead, sterling silver pin on back |
Today, because I was showing someone how to do it, I loaded my disk with 8 strands of yarn, each a different color. I figured it'd be easier to keep track of the strands that way. I brought some scraps so she could do the same on her disk and that seemed to work well. I'm kind of liking how the braid is coming out so I'm going to continue. It'll be a shorter braid than I usually make, but I'll use it for embellishment on something.
It's been a busy week, at least by my standards. I'm thrilled to be at home now for the next several days. I picked up a library book that was waiting for me when I went to the art gallery yesterday (it's just next to the library on the ground floor of a larger building). I'm looking forward to starting that very soon. But first, I think a nice cup of tea is in order! I hope your week is going well.
10 comments:
I'm very glad to read your class went well. You must be a great teacher because everyone seems to be thinking that they want to do. That's a good class because even though there value in learning while copying, in the long run it's trying things out that works out better. OK, that is my philosophy for the day. :) Your kumihimo brooches look amazing. I love all the colors you can make with them. Hope your friend likes her blue one. Good luck with class 2.
I share your philosophy :-) I think their journals will be more meaningful to them if they follow their own ideas, especially given the reasons for some of them, which is honoring the memories of people very close to them who have recently passed away. I can give them ideas about how to incorporate things and how best to construct their books, but the contents and the final design should be theirs.
You are very talented, Shari, and I am sure you are a kind, compassionate teacher, able to impart your knowledge in a manner that makes everyone feel they can do it, and puts them at ease right away. Your brooch is spectacular. If guys ever start wearing brooches I’ll be the first to join the trend! Best wishes - David
Thanks, David. They'll create beautiful journals--I know it :-)
I read this but posted a comment on you last post. Diana
Have a great weekend, Diana!
Sounds a very good week and I am so pleased the new class went well.
Your kumihimo (hope I spelt that correctly) brooches look fabulous.
Enjoy your new library book and have a restful weekend.
All the best Jan
Thanks, Jan! You did spell it right 🙂 The book is good so far. Enjoy your weekend!
Your class sounds just fantastic -- one where you learn skills but have a lot of leeway to use your own things, your own style, be as creative as one wants. I'd sign up! And I've never seen kumihimo before. It's really stunning -- I can see why your friend wants to learn!
Thanks, Jan! I hope they take away a new sense of possibilities with regard to creative use of various things. And I hope they gain confidence--a few were really hesitant at first but once the ideas started coming, I could see them light up. There are so many gorgeous kumihimo creations out there done with thin cord and beads, charms, pendants, etc. That's not how I use it, but I love to look at it. There's a lot that people can do and many kinds of braids. I tend to do the basic 8-cord braid using scraps. I love how mindless it can be. It's perfect for some days when I'm tired or stressed. There's no counting or anything. But it's also so relaxing and can lead to more mindfulness. It's interesting that it can be both mindless and mindful.
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