This summer has been tough with catastrophic levels of heat. The heat wave continued day after day, and I spent my time wondering when autumn would arrive. In the midst of all this, it rained heavily again this week. I would like to express my deepest sympathies to the people in Noto who suffered from the floods and disasters.
My teacher in bag-making, who has been a great help to me over the years, has retired recently.
"Watch and Learn!" "Use your head while you live!" I received many encouraging words of love from my mentor...
Recently, not only did my teacher retire, but also the material supply shop that we used for our production closed ... a lot of changes have taken place.
In the meantime, I decided to work on the Rikyu bag, which I had always wanted to make but had not yet started, and I joined a workshop on Rikyu bag making.
The Rikyu bag is the most popular form of Japanese kimono bag, which is covered from both sides and has a pocket compartment.
There are just so many parts and processes! I have experienced methods and techniques in the workshop that cannot be easily seen from the finished work.
I was surprised by many things about the totally different way of production from my teacher. It's exciting to learn, it's fresh and fun.
The body of the bag is made of Oshima tsumugi kimono fabric, while the zipper and handles are made of a Obi lining (light green) co-woven fabric.
The body of the bag was made from single-layered silk kimono fabric, while the zipper and handles were made from a Obi lined (white) co-woven fabric. I got a lot of inspiration from participating in the workshop.
This is an excellent bag with a central zipped compartment that opens wide and pockets on both sides for storing small items.
It looks neat and easy to use, but the sewing is actually very complicated....
There are many ideas in mind but have not yet been started.
We have made many prototypes of materials, designs and sizes, but we would like to create more satisfying upcycled productions by taking your suggestions and advice into consideration.