The Needlebook Chapter

When I launched my first online course last February, I decided to choose my Hari-kuyo needlebook as  the course subject.  

I had figured out all the details of the book and could make it in my sleep.  What I really needed to figure out was all the other elements that go into offering a course:  pricing, supplies/kits, videography, document transfer, communications, registration, etc.

I expected to have maybe 20 students, perhaps 30.  Actual enrollment for that first class was double my most optimistic estimate and I was challenged to accommodate the scale of that request.

And now, here I am again, one week from launching Round 2 of the Needlebook E-Course and having just finished teaching the class to my local Embroiderers' Guild.



By the time I remembered to take pictures yesterday, there were only a few left of the original 20 women who had taken the course.

Like most things in life, what I had originally set out do with my initial class offering was met and then exceeded.   I think I've realized that the actual making of the needlebook may be a draw for some; but the act of honoring our needles is what really has the appeal.

And I have been touched by all the methods in which bookmakers from all over the world have made their books their own, and added their own personal touches.



Barbara Meger took the basic original kit and focused largely on the golds and oranges.  After finishing class yesterday, she had created a book for her needles that coordinated beautifully with her October sewing set:  a black felt pin cushion, a scissor holder with a witch, and an ort holder made from Fall-colored fabrics.

And then there are those like Irene, whom I wrote about last week, and Bee (below) and countless others who took the last class, who used their own materials...

They took the idea of honoring their needles and created their own personal versions.

Bee loves to dye using natural sources.  She used bali batiks and her own wools dyed with chamomile tea and onion skins to create her felt pages and to tone down the white-ness of the labels...

Buttonhole stitch, using an earthy, variegated silk ribbon, edged all the pages.

And her inside cover "pocket", was a tree inspired by the bali fabric detail underneath...and the flower pot houses her needle threader...

And her last page, again is personal to her...A simple page of gratitude...

They are all as delightful as their owners who made them.  

I am offering this E-course again beginning next Monday.  You can read all the details here.  There is no limit to the course offering...you will have access to the course videos and instructions for as long as you need them.

I am not sure I will offer this as an organized course again.  Or, it may be quite some time before I do.  To everything there is a season, and I'm ready to move onto other things. 

If you paid for the course last time, but didn't make your book.  Perhaps you will use the renewed momentum of the current group to finally finish your book.  

Thank you to all my students, past and present.  You have created a "Needlebook Chapter" in the story of my life that I had never expected would be there.

Now today, I'm off to stitch.  Mrs. Rose has been very patient...

It's Needlebook Season!

They're back and I am knee deep in needle books.  

Just in time for Holiday Gift Giving and in plenty of time for the Festival of Hari-kuyo in February 2013!

Class runs from November 12 through November 26.

Use your own fabric or choose one of the following kits...

Check out all the information on the Hari-kuyo Needlebook E-course blog page here.

Take the class last time?  Prior students still have access to the class blog (though it's temporarily closed for a few updates before class starts.)  So why not finish that book that you may have started or make another book for a lucky friend...or two.  Kits are available separately on the E-course page.

It's been fun creating all the different colorways...I can't wait to see them all made up.  That's the best part. 

Happy Monday everyone!

P.S.  Should I drop off the radar in the next few days, it may be due to a loss of power aka Hurricane Sandy.  We live on high ground and we've battened down the hatches.  Let's just hope Mother Nature takes it easy on us all.

Fall Bookmaking

Thank you ALL for the wonderful comments in response to Audrey's magazine cover.  

I tried to respond to all of you but there are many of you who do not have your emails attached to you Blogger profile.  I'm just letting you know since a number of my BNFs have found that Blogger dropped their email from their profile without their knowledge.  

Again, thanks so very much.  It felt like a party around here the past two days! 

Next week I am teaching the Harikuyo Needlebook class to my Embroiderers' Guild.  I've broken the course down into two sessions.  We'll embroider the front and back covers in October and construct the book in November.

It just so happens that I also just finished a version of the book in silks, using little bits of special ribbons and trims.

Before stitching this book, I was worried that the silk wouldn't hide the binding stitches where the felt pages are sewn to the spine...

It actually didn't look bad at all so I was pleased to have a "fancy", gaijin (Japanese for "foreigner") version of the book for those who are using their own fabrics...

I'll be offering this needlebook e-course again this Fall.  If interested, you can learn more about the Harikuyo tradition in Japan and the needlebook course here.  Additionally, if there is anyone who took the course last time and didn't get to finish, you are welcome to re-join this group.  Just let me know.

Someone asked if I'll be making kits like this one? Unfortunately, I cannot.  

I intend to give a couple of options for kits but all of them will be using traditional japanese fabrics in the spirit of the book.  That being said, there is an option to take the class without the kit and use any fabrics you choose.

There were a number of folks who did that last time; you can see some of them in our Flickr group.  Or perhaps, like my Guild members, you can make one using the kit to learn on...and then branch off and make another once you're an experienced bookmaker.

Additionally, I've re-stocked the label sets in my Etsy shop so if you need them, they are there.

I'm off to make kits for next week.  Luckily my friend Carolyn is coming over to help me cut up all those bits of fabric and felt.  God bless her, I am so grateful for the help.

If all goes well, I'll get to start my next Reflections block tomorrow.  I'm chomping at the bit!

Needlebook Encore

The Hari-kuyo Needlebook E-course is winding down.

And so is my dance with needlebooks for this Spring.

I just finished up the ties on this pastel version the other day...

It was a thrill to see needlebooks made all over the world...I especially loved the many little tweeks and personal touches that each bookmaker added to make their needlebook special.

Give yourself a treat and visit the Flickr group for the class to see how to say "Broken but not Forgotten" in different languages...

And to feast your eyes on all the different fabrics and approaches that were taken with this needlebook.

If you or someone you know is interested in taking this class...I will be offering it again...maybe in the Fall or January 2012. I'm not sure exactly when, but it will be before the Hari-kuyo festival in February of next year. If you'd like to receive advance notices about the next class, email me and I will add you to the mailing list.

In creating the lessons, I happened to make a few extra books along the way.

I have this one Needlebook available for sale today, first-come, first-served...

She was my Cover Girl and starred in all my photo shoots...

I'll miss her but it's Spring and it's time for this one to fly the coop...

Sold.

Thanks to you all for the support and enthusiasm you've given to my first online course offering.

It was a real thrill to offer a class to bookmakers all over the world from my own home here in Maryland. I still can't get over how cool that is...

I hope to offer more online courses in the future. I have some fun ideas cooking up in my brain but I'd love to hear from you. If you have any desires on what type of class you might like to take, drop me an email and let me know your thoughts...

Who knows? Maybe it could end up as an e-course.

Happy Needling everyone.

Hari-Kuyo: Laying our Needles to Rest

Today is Hari-kuyo, the Festival of Broken Needles in Japan.

As you know, I've been busy preparing for this day for a few weeks now. I've got a few butterflies and a bit of nerves, but I am mostly excited and can't wait to share this great little book with all of you.

What better way to celebrate our needles than to launch an E-course that creates a home for them. I remember very distinctly this day last year when I began my year of honoring my needles and caring for the ones which broke along the way. And I wouldn't have even made a needlebook if it hadn't been for my friend Carol Ann who encouraged a whole group of us on Stitchin Fingers to do something to honor our needles on this day.

So this morning, following last night's full moon, I went out to my back yard and buried my broken needles.

I had read that the Japanese remove the needles from the shrine, wrap them in paper and toss them in the sea. I'm not sure if this is true or not but the closest body of water to me is the Patapsco River down the street. Unfortunately, too many fishermen wade into that river for me to want to place the soles of their feet in danger. So...the backyard it was.

I wrapped them in an old piece of pattern tissue...

And I buried them in the ground along with a prayer of gratitude and a few wishes for my new needle year.

And then topped them off with this grave marker...

I buried them on the mossy side of the yard so I'm hoping mother nature creates some magic on that rock as well.

My crazy friend's husband, Lane, is a student of all things Japanese and prepared this poem for us honoring this day, A Needle's Lullaby.

It was such a gift to all of us that he chose to share our observation of this special day. And it's nice to know I'm not the only one full of sentiment for this tradition.

It leaves me with a good feeling to lay my needles to rest and honor them in this way. And I'm really looking forward to sharing my special book with all of you.

So, here's a link to the page that gives you all the details about the Hari-kuyo Needlebook E-course. There's a tab for the page under the header of my blog.

I've set up the course to be flexible for those who would like to make a needlebook similar to mine and for those who just want the pattern and would prefer to use their own supplies and perhaps design their own cover. One course price kit includes the kit, the other does not.

Many of my friends from the pilot group intend to make another one now that they have the pattern and have successfully made one.

I will eventually offer a .pdf pattern for download but it won't be available until after I finish offering the E-course.

For those that are not interested in the E-course but are interested in purchasing a set of labels for an existing needlebook you may already own...

You can find them for sale individually in my Etsy shop here. They are woven sew-on labels with the text embroidered on the label. You will also find pre-cut felt for the needle pages for your convenience.

Thank you all for coming on this adventure with me. I have lots of fun planned over the course of the next few weeks and I cannot wait to get started.

Should you enroll, you will be receiving a welcome email from me early next week inviting you to the private course blog and giving you more specifics on how we'll get underway.

And here's a button for your sidebar...

Happy happy day to you all.

And thank you to all of your broken needles.

Breeding Needlebooks

The needlebooks are mutliplying.

Thanks to my crazy quilting friends, I have a new and improved pattern and instructions for the needlebook E-course and the pattern that I will be offering this Wednesday in honor of Hari-Kuyo, the Japanese Festival of Broken Needles.

In case you missed it, here's the post that explains Hari-Kuyo in more detail.

Though most of our group, reproduced my needlebook original...

There were two friends who wanted to use their own fabrics.

This project is PERFECT for customizing your own cover and inside...to make it your own.

I plan to have kits available for those who want my needlebook version but there will also be a supply list available for those who choose to use their own supplies.

Or, like some friends did this past Saturday, you can create a personal modification of my design.

I want the design to be flexible so that you're happy with whatever you create.

Irene was doing a more muted version with eggplant, mustard and hunter green colors...she didn't like the stark white of the labels so she covered them with an organza ribbon...

Beautiful.

Because of her, today I'm tea-dying a set of labels to see how well they take the "dye".

By the end of the day, everyone was finished and ready to start filling their books with needles...

And believe it or not, Mary actually broke a needle on Saturday! (Good luck, don't you think?)

Thankfully, she had the perfect place to put it.

I am so very grateful to my friends. Thanks to them, I have great feedback and changes to make so that the pattern and supplies are even better by the time they make it to you.

So I'm very busy making kits, taking step-by-step pictures, packaging needle labels, and finalizing the pattern details in preparation for the "Go Live" on Wednesday.

Thanks for those who expressed an interest in the E-course. I'll be announcing the details on Wednesday for a start date of February 23. I can't wait!

Happy Monday everyone! I've got to get back to work...