Light and another find

When a lovely bright day dawns, especially after several days of dismal wet stuff, most people think immediately of getting outside, whether to walk or to garden or something else. I, whilst appreciating the joy of being out in the open air, am much more appreciative of the light. Light to read by, light to knit by, light to sew by - just light. I think the worst thing about Winter is the lack of light, so a day when there has been bright daylight for many hours has been wonderful. 

I have been sewing. I am still sewing the tags, but have now started another stitching project, which I am really enjoying. And I am still finding things from my textile days. Today I came across a box, which had not been opened for many years, and there were all the materials, threads and patterns for Sashiko embroidery. I even found one of many samples I made whilst we were exploring all kinds of quilting. I remember getting on with Sashiko very well - it probably appealed to my like of order!

Sashiko is traditional Japanese stitching, which began life when a layer of fabric would be added to expensive clothing to make them last longer. The two layers were stitched together using complex patterns of stitching. There are many, many designs that have evolved over the years and the design needs to be carefully drawn onto the fabric so the lines can be followed accurately. The most common fabric used is indigo cotton with white thread. I even found Sashiko needles, which are very sharp!