Saturday, August 11, 2012

Work in progress ~ Sashiko on denim

work in progress
Buddy takes ownership of my work in progress
work in progress
I've got my Babylock Sashiko machine out, after too long of a hiatus. (I did this fabulous project last year, with my Sashiko.)
work in progress
I've always loved Sashiko (literally "little stabs") the Japanese custom of mending, the decorative reinforcing of work clothes, dating back to the 1600s. They used white cotton thread on indigo blue cloth and I'm using my assortment of old denim jeans as the fabric.
work in progress
You know I love hand sewing, but my Sashiko machine makes beautiful stitches, and I'm working on a big piece -- approximately 13x48 inches --and with a deadline of September.
work in progress
I am combining the machine stitch with hand stitching.
work in progress
As I work with the old denim, I reminded of the fabulous Gees Bend quilts too.
work in progress
The quilt will be quite minimalist, but this is just the background piece.
work in progress
I'll keep you posted!

9 comments:

  1. I've been saving the pockets of our old jeans for years. I have tons! I plan on making a quilt out of them one day too. I had the idea of giving each family member a pocket to decorate....but noone is jumping on that bandwagon. LOL! Can't wait to see your finished piece! I just finished another sketch The Mushroom House. :) I thought maybe you'd like to take a peek! Hugs! deb

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  2. I just saw one of the Gee's Bend quilts hanging in the Seattle Art Museum yesterday - it's so provocative. My grandmother was a quilter, and my mum does, too, though not large format. I haven't, but the workclothes idea got me thinking - and now your blog, too. Hmm... a creative sign? :)

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  3. Jane,
    I’m a big fan of sashiko as well and was wonder how the stitches would look like from a sashiko machine.
    Well from your post they look fabulous.
    When I was working for Viking about 8 years ago they had a “hand stitch” stitch function on some machines, I think my Pfaff has it as well. But they look nothing like those beautiful stitches from your new sashiko machine.
    Bye for now, going to look for a source on line to get one.

    Linda

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  4. never knew there was a machine for Sashiko. I thought it was always done by hand... thank you for sharing

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  5. Boy I am behind the times....didn't know there was such a machine. I always did it by hand.

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  6. I didn't even know there was a machine for sashiko.

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  7. I just took a class on hand sashiko and the teacher had tried one of these machines. I think she liked it for bigger projects, but her designs are very curvy and intricate (sea life & flowers), not the traditional strait line designs, so she was not too enthusiastic.

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  8. Hey, I bought one of those sashiko machines in Long Beach! I'm just starting to play with it. Looks like you've mastered it.

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  9. You caused me to go visit Baby Lock and try the machine! LOL!
    I don't know that it sews fast enough for me.(I was hoping to use it to quilt some quilt tops, and am used to higher speed for machine quilting. of course it is still faster than by hand!)
    Have fun and do keep us posted!

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