thank you!

I want to thank everyone who turned out for my shop's holiday "shebang" — a great success! All of the temari sold, and thus I was able to make twenty-five $25 loans through Kiva.org, to women in Peru, Paraguay, Nicaragua, Chile, Ecuador, Bolivia, Philippines, Mexico, Mongolia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and Senegal.

I have started posting each loan on my Facebook page, so one can see exactly which temari funded which loan.

This is the season to be thankful! (It is always the season to be thankful!)

in the droplets of dew

I like to wash
the dust of this world
in the droplets of dew.
— Matsuo Bashō (1644–1694)

A C6 swirl design. Thread wrap in straw yellow; C6 division. Embroidery in light silver blue. The haiku by Matsuo Bashō is in the bell box along with brass rings that make a quiet traditional rattle. Circumference: 9.625 inches / 24.5 cm; diameter: 3.06 inches / 7.79 cm. Completed 14 November 2012 (no. 213).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

the 2012 holiday selection in the shop

This weekend 24 new temari will be listed for sale in the Etsy shop (yes, one is missing from the group shot above). Half will be listed on Saturday November 17 at 3 p.m. Eastern time, and the other half on Sunday November 17 at noon Eastern Time. Due to the size of my mailing list, it is not uncommon for the shop to sell out in 10–15 minutes after they're published.

Click here to see details on all the temari that will be for sale.

$25 from the sale of each temari will be loaned through Kiva.org.

it is the journey that matters

It is good to have an end to journey toward, but it is the journey that matters in the end.
— Ursula K. Le Guin (b. 1929)

Thread wrap in silvery lilac; S4 division. Embroidery in purple. The quote by Ursula K. Le Guin is in the bell box along with brass rings that make a quiet traditional rattle. Circumference: 8.25 inches / 21 cm; diameter: 2.62 inches / 6.68 cm. Completed 13 November 2012 (no. 212).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

drop by drop

Drop by drop is the water pot filled. Likewise, the wise man, gathering it little by little, fills himself with good.
— Buddha

Another perle #8–stitched small temari. Thread wrap in sky blue; S4 division. Embroidery in hand-dyed naturally variegated perle #8 (thin weight thread) with blue, very light lilac and nearly white tones. The quote by the Buddha is in the bell box along with brass rings that make a quiet traditional rattle. Circumference: 7.625 inches / 19.5 cm; diameter: 2.42 inches / 6.2 cm. Completed 13 November 2012 (no. 211).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

Compare thread weights: the blue is #8, the purple and the temari in the back are #5.

year's end

Year's end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us.
— Hal Borland (1900–1978)

This the flax / hemp stitch (asanoha kagari) done in all-over style on a C8; not new to me, but this is the first time that I added extra stitches in the "blossoms." The blossoms are formed from a technique called pine needle stitching, and on a C8 flax design there are usually 4 (seen more easily in this multicolor version); after finishing all the stitching I went back and added 8 more to each.

Thread wrap in silver gray; C8 division in black. Embroidery in black and light gray. The quote by Hal Borland is in the bell box along with brass rings that make a quiet traditional rattle. Circumference: 11.25 inches / 28.7 cm; diameter: 3.58 inches / 9.13 cm. Completed 12 November 2012 (no. 209).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

at home in this universe

When I learn something new—and it happens every day—I feel a little more at home in this universe, a little more comfortable in the nest.
— Bill Moyers (b. 1934)

The spindle pattern.

Thread wrap in midnight blue; S12 division in metallic gold. Embroidery in 9 shades of rust, gold, and brown. The quote by Bill Moyers is in the bell box along with brass rings that make a quiet traditional rattle. Circumference: 10.875 inches / 27.7 cm; diameter: 3.46 inches / 8.8 cm. Completed 11 November 2012 (no. 208).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

all the universe conspires

When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.
— Paulo Coelho (b. 1947)

Thread wrap in seafoam green; S8 division in metallic silver. Embroidery in greens and violets. The quote by Paul Coelho is in the bell box along with brass rings that make a quiet traditional rattle. Circumference: 10.5 inches / 26.8 cm; diameter: 3.34 inches / 8.53 cm. Completed 10 November 2012 (no. 210).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

reality is merely an illusion

Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.
— Albert Einstein (1879–1955)

The rose garden pattern, with merry-go-round herringbone stitching around the middle.

Thread wrap in medium brown ("soapstone"); S12 division in brown perle #8. Embroidery in five shades of browns. The quote by Albert Einstein is in the bell box along with brass rings that make a quiet traditional rattle. Circumference: 10.25 inches / 26 cm; diameter: 3.26 inches / 8.27 cm. Completed 9 November 2012 (no. 205).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

the aim of art

The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.
— Aristotle

One of my favorites—inverse kiku herringbone.

Thread wrap in purple; S10 division with guidelines removed. Embroidery in four shades of sea-greens. The quote by Aristotle is in the bell box along with brass rings that make a quiet traditional rattle. Circumference: 11 inches / 28 cm; diameter: 3.5 inches / 8.9 cm. Completed 7 November 2012 (no. 206).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

winter waves

winter waves
break and turn over
their own shadow
— Tominaga Fûsei (1885–1970)

A new stitch for me: descending herringbone. Each stitch is taken just under the one previous, as opposed to around the point like with kiku herringbone, or between the previous two stitches, like ribbed herringbone.

A small temari, and the last in my "black & white" winter haiku series (which includes nos. 203 & 204, and 207).

Thread wrap in black; S10 division on perle #8 ecru. Embroidery in ecru. The haiku by Tominaga Fûsei is in the bell box along with brass rings that make a quiet traditional rattle. Circumference: 8.625 inches / 22 cm; diameter: 2.74 inches / 7 cm. Completed 6 November 2012 (no. 200).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

first snow

first snow —
begins in the darkness
ends in the darkness
— Nozawa Setsuko (1920–1995)

A C10-style swirl.

Thread wrap in black; C10 division, no guidelines. Embroidery in ecru. The haiku by Nozawa Setsuko is in the bell box along with brass rings that make a quiet traditional rattle. Circumference: 10.125 inches / 25.7 cm; diameter: 3.22 inches / 8.18 cm. Completed 5 November 2012 (no. 207).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

bitter winter wind, snow falling

This is a set of two small temari that were stitched to be a pair, and to echo each other in design

left: bitter winter wind

bitter winter wind
ends there—
sound of the sea
— Ikenishi Gonsui (1650–1722)

They are stitched in perle #8, a thinner weight thread. It was almost like drawing with pen and ink (which is something I do), and the designs were created as I stitched—"freestyle."

left: snow falling

no sky
no land — just
snow falling
— Kajiwara Hashin (1864–?)

Each has a thread wrap in eggshell. Both are stitched with hand-dyed naturally variegated perle #8 in charcoal tones. Guidelines in ecru perle #8; "bitter winter wind" (no. 203) has an S8 division, "snow falling" (no. 204) an S10 division. The haiku by Ikenishi Gonsui is in the bell box of "bitter winter wind" and the haiku by Kajiwara Hashin is in the bell box of "snow falling," along with brass rings that make a quiet traditional rattle. Both are the same size — circumference: 8.125 inches / 20.5 cm; diameter: 2.58 inches / 6.5 cm. Both completed 4 November 2012 (nos. 203, 204).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.

left: snow falling; right: bitter winter wind

the bare tree

When one sees the tree in leaf one thinks the beauty of the tree is in its leaves, and then one sees the bare tree.
— Samuel Menashe (1925–2011)

The classic 16-point kiku "chrysanthemum" pattern, with a gap left before the final three rows for a lacy, airy effect.

Thread wrap in sky blue; S16 division in "metallic" white. Embroidery in three shades of brown. The quote by Samuel Menashe is in the bell box along with brass rings that make a quiet traditional rattle. Circumference: 11.875 inches / 30.3 cm; diameter: 3.77 inches / 9.6 cm. Completed 4 November 2012 (no. 202).

Sold to benefit Kiva.org.