Sashiko Stitching

This is a vest I bought in Japan made with traditional sashiko stitching and lined with Indigo ikat fabric. A type of sashiko designed to mend clothing with visible patches and stitches is called boro. I have purchased a book on boro because I would love to try my hand at it, but I suspect it is a lot harder than it looks to achieve a a pleasing result. Especially since I spilled coffee on the book right after I bought it and have had to wait for it to dry out so that I can unstick the pages....not an auspicious beginning.

It's been a very slow day and I don't have much to say about it. Dense fog eventually gave way to a sunny but cold day. No Pilates to get us started this morning and for some reason both of us have been feeling creaky and sore. I did manage to design a half sized hanging cloth for smaller quilting projects and John dug up some PVC pipe in the garage which is perfect to hang it from. 

After talking with a woman in my Pilates class I ordered some extra furry tops which she swore kept her warm no matter what. I ordered two in two sizes and they came yesterday. The smaller one is probably the right size but it's a struggle to get into it. The larger one makes me feel like a hibernating bear, but it DOES keep me warm. Almost too warm.

Off now to make some spaghetti and watch the news. I don't really want to watch the news, but it's an ingrained habit and I feel I should know at least the broad strokes of what is going on in the world, depressing as the news from the Middle East is. Why can't the UN do something? With all those people trapped in Gaza with no place to go, it's like shooting fish in a barrel. What is happening there looks like genocide to me.

Many thanks to Ilja for an interesting set of challenges for the month.