MOONSTITCHES

Prendre la Liberté

Prendre la Liberté is what I did last week. And I am not just talking Liberty here, actually I finally, after a long time of not crafting on a daily basis (aside from knitting which I do everyday while being on the kindergarten's playground) I enjoyed one whole week of cutting, machine piecing, hand sewing and quilting, planning more quilts, making sketches... I am now dealing with what has been neglecting during this fabulous week, but I think it was worth it. At the beginning of the week I finally took the plunge and started quilting the Liberty Leaves. It'll be a rather dense quilting, so it takes some time till all is done.

While working on the leaves I was thinking that this quilt was supposed to be a quick one which had been started as a simple, machine pieced quilt that could be finished almost instantly... while working on my Pop Stars (which I planned to finish during the first half of 2008)... Seems I find myself in a sort of patchwork spiral because on Friday last week I had the brilliant idea of squeezing in a simple, machine pieced quilt that could be finished almost instantly... this time, however, I am pretty certain I will succeed... but let's see where we are at the end of the month ;)

I took the scraps that were left over after cutting the leaves from those striped sheets, cut small squares, cut strips of solids I had in my stash and made Courthouse Steps blocks in a Denyse Schmidt's What a Bunch of Squares manner. This block really is a quick one and so I had my twelve blocks done in a day. It's a pretty uninspired project but I love simple blocks like the Courthouse Steps or Log Cabin and never get tired of them. And as I said, that one shall really be a quick quilt.

And if I wasn't busy enough, over the weekend I started another quilt... a rather slow natured one, yes, another one of those, because I love accumulating long term quilt projects which make me worry if I will be living long enough to finish them...

It will be the center of my Medallion Quilt. Again I am using leftovers from the Liberty Leaves, seems a bit unoriginal and you may already be fed up with all those tiny flowers, but I feel good using up all those scraps and no doubt it will turn out pretty. So? Why not.

And speaking of scraps: the lovely Kristine of Townmouse recently sent me a wonderful selection of precious Liberty bits... *sigh* Once again, Kristine, thank you so much for this generous and inspiring gift! And you, dear readers, be prepared for more tiny flowers projects...
And while we're at it, I would like to finally introduce this adorable guy we got about two years ago. Of course I have been thanking Alison before, but I always intended to blog about him, so, eventually, after all this time, here he is!

And because this blog is for taking record of my all my crafty endeavours... some nicely bedded owls I made a few months ago for an exchange of sweets with Josie over at mr. monkeysuit (oh, what a cute picnic they just had!)

The end.

Have a nice day!

seven random fabrics

... and seven random facts about me.

Jessica, rani and Janet Clare have been tagging me some time ago and I will try to finally set an end to that muteness I have been suffering from lately, break the silence and get back to posting here on MOONSTITCHES.

I do love my brown corduroys... barely wearing any other pants, even in the midst of hot and humid summers.

The boy who kissed me first was called Thomas. We were in second grade and according to that it was a quite brief second grade on the lips kiss.

I love Scottish English.

I never read Harry Potter (or saw a movie).

I will always remember listening to John Peel's show on BFBS late at night (although I had to go to school next morning) and am thankful that he has been there to introduce me to all that weird and lovely music from all over the world. Sad he had to go so soon. Listen to Peeling Back the Years here.

As a child I watched a strange movie that kept on haunting me forever. Only some time ago I found out about the movie's title and thought watching the scene which scared me most (wish I could find a clip with the original audio!) would help me getting over  it but honestly, I now not only have a clearer picture of those frightening images, I do fear them even more.

Almost every weekend  for about  1 1/2  years we  are having lunch at a Chinese restaurant and  I almost always have been eating  one and the same dish. I also watch movies countless times and read the same books over and over. I guess it has something to do with creating situations of being at home...

Have a good day!

Good Night!

Sorry, here I am but too tired to post this night, can't keep my eyes focused, I must go to bed.
To share my tiredness with you, a blurry shot of a lovely, complete bolt of vintage kimono wool (very fine, handles like cotton) I found lately in a thrift store. A clear vision of it tomorrow morning.

Sleep well or have a pleasant day, depending on where on earth you are!

Edit: Good Morning, I've just added a clear sight of the fabric and my newest vintage kokeshi to my pictures on Flickr.

E-4, K-7 and H-13

So that is what a promise of mine is worth... sorry I have not been writing about the owls and the tags yet... something's in the making, for now I'd like you to take a look on those rubber stamps and the ink I am using for making the tags.

Most of the times I stamp on twill tape. I like the twill's texture and also it is pretty convenient to just cut the length you need from the running meter. After being ironed for about 15 seconds the ink is washable, just make sure it actually is ink for fabric, then the tags stay fine and you don't have to worry for them bleeding out or fading.

Last week I once went out with the intention to take a look on the new prints of Liberty but for some reason I ended up carrying a decently heavy load of linen back home...

The pink/white checked fabric on this photo is no linen though, Dagny saw it and suggested it might be looking nice as a dress for her... again, it's the pink dresses she wants me to make for her...

The past week had been busy, like every week, and I did not have the possibility to sit down at my sewing machine to sew what I need for telling you about the owls, and if you ask the week really felt like having no time at all, but nevertheless I can look on three new blocks for my "Jane feat. Little Red Riding Hood" quilt... baffling, isn't it?

This is one reason why I like sewing by hand so much - it is always possible to squeeze in some stitches. And stitch by stitch the piece gets done without you really noticing you are working on it.

Buffalo Tree Hopper, E-4

Rose of Sharing, K-7, hand pieced and appliqued

Farm Fields, H-13, not the ideal use of my beloved honeycomb but now it is done and will stay this way...

I must hurry now, as always I am late to get my hands on my lovely kitchen before picking up my daughter from kindergarten...

Happy Monday!

What Are They For?

"What are they for?"
"Erm, nothing."
"Aha?"
"Yes... they are just the result of... hm... I just wanted to try the different fabrics..."
"And which is best?"
"Best? I didn't mean to find out... I was just playing... Ack!"

I better tell you about them...

Them? The owls I made, as Lucy guessed right.

As I mentioned two weeks ago I suddenly felt the urge to do something with my beloved woolen fabrics when I came across them while reorganizing my stash. These fabrics are just too beautiful and I really love them. Some are soft, some are rather itchy (you know I appreciate a certain itchiness), all are a delightful haptic encounter.

A very soft one... who could resist?!

One that's a bit itchy but still quite snuggly...

And here one with strong itchy character, straight forward, honest and trustworthy... the very fine chap who wins you over with his absolute frankness...

Best way to find out about the level of itchiness is to rub the fabric in question over your cheek or lips, eyes closed - yes, it is a very sensual endeavor... my love for wool.

By the way, did you know mangetsu means full moon in English?
I chose this name when I made my first steps in this virtual world around ten years ago. You know, as a child I was a sleepwalker, still cannot sleep well in nights of full moon and you might guess by my blog's name I have  a certain affiliation going on with that fellow up in the skies.

Looking at the things  I brought home from our recent trip I suddenly remembered the reason that made me want to visit Hokkaido several years ago: Murakami's A Wild Sheep Chase, one of my all time favourites.

However, I think we have a serious case of woolstruckness here :)
Could be worse.

Enjoy your weekend!

PS: The pattern is a rough version of one I found in a book about crafting with  Chirimen Crepe, I  will look up the ISBN tomorrow.

Edit: Here we are on the day that followed  that tomorrow I was talking about... thank you, thank you thank you for all your sweet and kind words about the  woowls, such a pleasure to see you liked them so much!
Oh, and you googled Kurt Lowcos... :)
I definitely will give you reason to think with future owls...

The ISBN of the book with the owls' pattern is 4-529-03967-6. It's a nice book but I wouldn't recommend it for someone who doesn't want to make tsurushi bina (a mobile for Hina Matsuri) since a good part of the book is about that. The pattern really is extremely simple (scroll down to the WIP photo four posts ago, please, you see how the body is constructed) and it should be easy to come with your very own owl pattern if play around a bit.

Already Monday here in Japan... have a good start into the fresh week!

All Things Sweet

A quick muffler scarf (thanks for the proper word) for keeping me warm. Not really the Denyse Schmidt-ish one, but inspired by it anyways.
Oh, I love, love, love my Liberties! I know many of you do, too. Does anybody of you know if there is a kind of library somewhere out there where all the pattern's names are listed? I do like to know the name of my babies ;-)

Isn't it just perfect?
It came along with these... mmmmh!
Lovely and very gifted quilt artist Kristin made it for me - thank you so much!

Matcha.
Sweet and hot and creamy.
Heaven - if you like green tea.
Love it.

EDIT: I found the missing names of the pink and green fabrics that went into this scarf:

Millie and Parsley.

"Millie" was lingering around with some other "Classics" on the Japanese Liberty site, and that lovely herb "Parsley" that I thought could be dill was spotted here. What a nice name, a Libertytheque... it exists! Well, kind of... appears to be dormant... maybe it needs to be fed?

Wool WIP, Three Times

A first one one the hook, only for a couple of hours, no pictures yet. Very adventurous because I try to follow an Japanese pattern for a hat. The yarn feels very good and so far everything is going smoothly nearly everything I've been crocheting had to be frogged this Saturday morning, which wasn't that easy as the crocheting appeared to be yesterday night... I seem to have added one extra  stitch whenever I began the next round, deshaped the hat unadvantageously. Too bad. Would have been too easy though.

The second  wool that's being processed here is a set of winterly coasters.

Maybe you remember the ones I made for the kindergarten bazaar a few weeks ago... I actually thought of buying them for us but I they were already sold when I got there, sold quickly as a neighbour of us told me. She got a set. So I am going to make some new, not the same but also in my favourite, very traditional Christmas colour combination red and white. The work on those coasters finally led to a decision which colours to use for a cuddly winter blanket I've been thinking of for weeks now. Here is what made it to the final pile.

Have fantastic weekend!

Ma nouvelle Tasse et des Fruits

Autumn in Japan is a wonderful time. The air is clear, the sight of the mountains is great and the colours are just beautiful. Unlike in summer, when all seems to be covered with moist and the plants are growing like wild and everything appears to form a dense mass within breathing sometimes is really difficult... Now is the time to take a deep breath and feel fresh again.

Quinces, another pleasure of autumn...

   

Yesterday I made quince marmalade. I guess I have boiled it a bit too long, turned out rather solid. But the taste is great.
The same goes for those scones... why are mine always looking so depressed?

As you know a criminal always returns to the scene of the crime I don't have to tell you I couldn't resist going to that lovely, new fabric shop in Machida again for ample exploration... of course I brought home some more fabrics, but really only a bit. Really a bit. I don't know what's the custom in other countries, but here you normally have to buy at least 50 cm of a fabric. That can be a lot if you can't decide which. Not so at Okadaya. There they are able to cut even 10 cm from the bolt... this opens up great opportunities.

Lingonberry jam and butter on bread

 

When I was walking back to Machida station last week I stopped at our favourite  bakery for fresh "tastes like home-bread". It's the only place to find bread as I know it from home: dark, heavy, nice crust and seeds. Japanese food, if you're open to new tastes, makes you miss almost nothing. But I love bread and really prefer the bread how we make it in Germany  over the soft white bread that's so popular in this country. So I am very happy to have this bakery just around the corner. Edit: Meanwhile the bakery closed and reopened a couple of months later in the basement of Tokyu vis a vis Lumine... the bread lacks a bit of its old quality, I wish I knew where the former baker went, I'd love to have my beloved bread back!

By the way, does the rest of the world also assume Germans would eat sausages and drink beer all the time? Sometimes these cliches are just annoying me.

In the same building as the bakery is in you can find an international supermarket that has just stocked up its seasonal sweets... mmmmmh, Marzipan is here again!!! Edit: The supermarket closed, too, a new one in our area opened in Hon Atsugi.

And to confirm that that day was indeed a day of serious shopping it felt alright falling in love with the dotted cup and bowl at  Quatre Saisons, a few floors up in the very same building...

Oh my, as I was just checking Lumine's floor guide I discovered there is an ABC Cooking Studio on the eighth floor! Gosh, I'd love to take a cake class there. Suzy from floating world views had made some nice things since she started going there. Hm... will see if I can afford it. Should stop going to that certain place for a while, might help...

 

One final red and white thing to show and tell about:

The new Cotton & Paint is out and again so sweet!

And inspiring. I bought it yesterday and practically while flipping through I was urged to reach for my crochet hook to start a new project... yes, me, crocheting! Such a fun, finally. Got a fantastic instruction for crocheting flowers about ten days ago and am SO hooked now.

But that's a story to tell tomorrow.

Have a nice day!

Nice. Just Nice.

I can't say anything else.

Of course I had to pay for my impatience and wait in front of the shop with my fellow fabric addicts a while before being allowed to step in (a bunch of ladies out, a bunch of ladies in), but then it was all fun. They don't have everything but quite a lot.

I didn't buy much and haven't had time to take a closer look on the trims (did I hear skulls?!?) because I was busy caressing wools (great textures, difficult to capture on a grey day like today!) but I know this wonderful place will be around for some time (my prognosis is it will outlive the local Yuzawaya) so I can go back...

Believe me, I would LOVE to take you all with me when visiting one of our beautiful fabric stores, there is enough for all of us ;-)

I had been sewing on and off ever since but seriously started it when I was beginning to sew clothes for Dagny 2 1/2 years ago here in Japan. I mean with patterns and the earnest intention of letting the clothes be worn. So, considering my sieve-ish memory, I don't recall German fabric stores very well. I guess "Karstadt" was okay back then but I can't remember properly. I think it's in order to say I "grew up" with Japanese fabric stores and got used to them.

From time to time I am reminded by some of you that I really are in fabric heaven here in Japan and I guess you are right. I will go to a German fabric store next time when I visit home to be able to fully appreciate my luck.

Let's be honest...

No need to pretend I'm not, because I really am.
And I went through all the stages a fabric addict can experience.
Unrestrained shopping and hiding half of my fabrics in the back of my closet because I felt something went wrong.
Forbidding myself to shop for a certain period of time, limiting my shopping... asking myself when I ever shall sew up all my stash. Feeling overwhelmed (in a bad way!) by looking at my rammed up shelves which have really reached their limit.
Thinking all the new fabrics are only repetitions of the ones I already have.

But then... just giving in because I love fabrics.

So I'll be there. In a few minutes. Meeting all the others who cannot or do not see any sense in containing themselves and wait maybe two or three days which isn't possible anyway because then the weekend's here which means husbands would be around!
I'll be back soon.

Have a wonderful day, too!

PS: Isn't my new "Raeuchermaennchen" (smoking figure) just adorable?! I'ts a fabric vendor I found in a shop at the "Japanese Romantic Road", straight from the "Erzgebirge"!!!