Japanese Textile Workshops 　日本のテキスタイル　ワークショップ

Living in a small mountain village just outside of Tokyo, I grow a crop of indigo every year and process the leaves into dye using traditional methods. I also breed silk moths, raise the silkworms and then reel/spin the silk from the cocoons. The silk is then dyed with natural dyes and finally woven on traditional Japanese looms. I run several ten-day live-in workshops a year at the old farmhouse here in Japan focusing on the Japanese use of indigo. Contact me for information.

Tuesday, 15 August 2017

Japanese Bamboo Weaving Reed Making

How can you smuggle some essence of Japan's rich cultural heritage found in a simple antique bamboo reed artifact to a conference? Perhaps a few atoms could also be carried in piles of scraps of cloth and miscellaneous bamboo cutting tools packed all the way to Canada. Perhaps the students may touch the stuff and that essence might seep in someones fingertips..... The goal was covert.

The secret agenda was busted by Tracy Hudson in her review of the workshop.

http://www.einesaite.com/blog/einesaite/

The preparation started a few years ago. The bamboo was cut and left to dry for a month on the mountainside. Then it was split and heated over a fire to remove the oil.

It made its way to Victoria, British Columbia to the three-day workshop.

It was a pleasure to teach the class and I am looking forward to seeing what everyone has woven with their hand made reeds.

I flew back to Japan for half a day, grabbed my winter clothes and flew down to Australia for a month of adventures there.