I recently had a fun get together with my friend @kai.kianu!
He's really into flowers and I'm really into crafts (obviously 😜) so we decided to get together and combine our worlds and make origami flowers -- it was the perfect collaboration for our worlds and we had both a relaxing (and challenging!) afternoon making the flowers. Some of the flowers were actu...
Wow it’s been such a crazy time in LA!
I am so blessed to say that I am safe and away from the fires. Thank you for your care and for checking in on me. ❤️
I’m getting back into making things. Something I explored recently was how to make rope. I really loved the process of making rope. It’s something I use a lot in my crafts— from kite making two tie-dying, it’s ...
Praying for Los Angeles right now as we are experiencing the most intense wildfires in LA history. I worry about my studio and I really hope it will all be ok. Thinking of all the friends and animals being directly affected. 😭😭😭
2025-01-08 22:48:13 +0000 UTC View Post
Happy 2025 dear ones! 🤩. How is everyone starting off their year? 🩵
I can’t believe it’s a new year already and already four days in. As for me, it’s that time again with my indigo plants. Today I separated stems, leaves, and seeds from my plants. I have to start gathering the seeds so I can start planting them very soon! I keep the leaves to make the indigo dye so I have...
HAPPY NEW YEARS (eve) from Los Angeles! 🎉🙌🎊🍾
Finished my final craft of the year… wrapping this rock with wire. I want to make more to give them as gifts :)
Hope everyone is having a safe and wonderful day. See you in 2025 🪨💖
Just bottled and strained my first homemade persimmon vinegar. I wrote about how I made this a few posts ago :-) Happy! 🧡
2024-12-28 00:13:15 +0000 UTC View Post
MERRY CHRISTMAS! 🎄✨
Crafting and getting to know some really awesome people on here has been the greatest gift. Hope everyone has a great holiday. I’m going to see my family and friends. 💖
How to wrap 5 oranges using a piece of cloth I dyed with indigo...
I've been really interested in the art of Furoshiki lately--the art of wrapping gifts and objects using a piece of cloth. In Japanese culture, gift giving is a big deal, because signifies thought and care. People give gifts to maintain relationships, especially in business. Wrapping the gift in cloth shows care becaus...
It’s been such a busy holiday season! Forgive some of my absence here. I’ve been busy trying make gifts, see family and friends, and seeing art and some traveling. What have you been up to? How do you like to celebrate the holidays?
I finally have a moment to sit down and be chill. A friend gifted me this hand stitched round bottom bag kit, and I am going to focus on making it to...
I had such an incredible day today!
I’m visiting one of my favorite cities, New York, to look at art and get inspired.
This is one of my favorite sculptures in the world.
It’s by Louis Bourgeois. She was an incredibly talented sculptor, painter, printmaker… definitely one of my favorite artists ever!
Her spider sculptures are her most famous, I believe. She has a co...
Dried persimmon update~
They are DELICIOUS! The white powdery stuff is just naturally occurring sugar. There’s more person than trying behind me!
Hoshigaki is my favorite treat ever. I hope you get a chance to make some. 🥹🧡
I took a trip to San Diego to go to the Mingei Museum to see this fabulous and amazing show about my favorite subject: INDIGO!
I spent hours at the museum nerding out on all the different techniques and beautiful art pieces made with indigo dye. This show was so special because it explained the intersection of the science, art, and history of indigo. Indigo is a plant and there are ...
Example of the first basket I ever made with willow. It was so complicated and tedious but I love how meditative it was. Can’t wait to make more 🧺💞
2024-11-27 04:24:44 +0000 UTC View Post
Went foraging for willow along the river :-).
Hehe, it was so bright, don’t mind my squinting… ☀️
Willow is an incredible material for basketry. I wanted to collect some to make more baskets. It’s very flexible, strong, retains shape well, and grows very long. 🧺🧺🧺🧺🧺
Cutting it also helps it grow longer for the next season, so it’s a win-win...
Have you ever made your own homemade vinegar before?
I love vinegar, it’s a staple ingredient for me. I use it for pickling, adding to foods, and adding a splash of it to my drinks.
I had more ripe persimmons than I could finish in time. I didn’t want them to go to waste. So I decided to make some homemade persimmon vinegar 🧡
Making vinegar is super simp...
Fall is hands down my favorite season. I feel like it’s when I get really cozy and get to take my time with things, just like how mother earth begins to rest herself. I really enjoy home cooking whenever I can.
Decided to ~craft~ up a homemade tomato jam today. A friend from the South used to make it for me. I had a few leftover tomatoes and thought this would be a good way to pre...
In my studio today ~ cleaning & organizing before I start on a new project. Having a clean blank reset always helps me clear my mind to focus and make space for the next thing. I’m thinking of doing some quilting next. So I need to search for my scrap fabrics….
2024-11-07 18:34:25 +0000 UTC View Post
Spent my weekend making Hoshigaki. It’s my favorite autumn activity! I love making dried persimmons and giving them a gifts later, they’re such a treat. It’s my ultimate favorite dried fruit, tastes like candy! The whole drying process takes at least a month. I’m drying them in my apartment right now. 🟠🟠🟠🟠🟠🟠🟠🟠🟠🟠🟠🟠🟠
So proud of myself and...
Oh my god….
I am SO happy right now because a friend gifted me all of these Hachiya persimmons from his family’s tree. This is my favorite fruit in the whole world. I feel like it’s Christmas right now!!!!
I love this fruit so much because not only because it is so delicious, but also because I can use it as dye. However, with this batch, I am going to make “Hoshi...
Omg I made my first tabi sock!
Tabis are a Japanese style of split toe shoe/sock. The toe is split so that traditionally people can wear it with thong sandals. 🩴
It took me a while to figure out the sizing, but I am happy with how it fits! I’m going to try to make it with some better fabric now.
Today I’m working on making slippers as part of my costume project!
Each foot needs to be traced individually because our feet aren’t always the same size. It’s my first time ever making slippers or any sort of footwear, wish me luck! 🐾✨
How is everyone’s weekend?
I’ve been trying to take it easy. I’ve been tasked with creating some costumes for a performance. I haven’t made clothes in a while, but I sure do miss it. I’m currently looking at this book on how to make Japanese clothes and I’m getting inspiration. I’m really excited for this next crafting project!
It’s interesting to be thinki...
I’m making a small edition of books today using the 4 hole side stab method ✨ you can find this tutorial on my OF tv channel!
Brb…
My indigo seeds are starting to ripen 🥲
I can’t believe how fast time is going! I think in a couple of more weeks they will be more mature.
I can’t wait to harvest them… it’s a magical thing. Marks the end of a cycle. 💙
Gardening is a full time job…
Today I’m sorting the petals and seeds of the orange Cosmos flowers I grew and harvested.
The petals will be used to make dye and the seeds will be sown again for next year.
I think I’ll try winnowing to separate the seeds!
Just went to the Rare Book Fair in LA. Heaven for a nerd like me…
I came across this one of a kind, rare book about botany. It was so thick. Every page was incredibly detailed and letterpressed (a very old printing technique that uses cast metal type to print). This book was very inspirational and showed me how I could potentially use some of my pressed flowers in a book. :-) I hav...
Good morning ✨
I just finished a workout and was craving a pomegranate. I really enjoy peeling them. But also did you know that pomegranate can also be used as a natural dye? But the dye is in the rind itself, not the seeds! 😋
So I am saving the rind and I will leave it to dry for later use. The dye properties are found in both the rind and the flowers. Each pomegrana...
I’m officially addicted to wrapping rocks 😅
It’s my new favorite way to shut my mind off by doing something repetitive!
I started wrapping this rock with some silver wire and I feel like it somehow elevates it! I’ll post a pic when it’s fully wrapped but I love seeing the progress.
I’m gonna start making these for all my friends for Christmas! It makes ...
Fixed it 😊
Now it fits perfectly. I’m so proud of myself!!!
The power of crafting and doing it yourself is so satisfying 🥹
I’m taking on a new project today:
Making this tatami mat fit in my apartment! It’s driving me crazy that it doesn’t fit any more. 😤
Tatami mats are traditional Japanese mats made out of grass and used in tea rooms.
I had to rearrange some things around and it no longer fit so I made a bold decision to take it apart and cut it down.
We learn a lot about somet...