Chubby*Hobby » Books

My Creative Space – Origami Earrings

Jo — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 06:34:24 +0000

It has been a busy month for me, some of you might have already known that I’m preparing my big move to Japan for a year… *exciting* ^^

It is also a month without my Janome, I already packed it away, but not sure how I can get it shipped to Japan yet…

Without my sewing machine in my creative space, and still lacking the right hook sizes for my crochet projects, I turned my attention to my recent online purchase – Origami Jewelry: More Than 40 Exquisite Designs to Fold and Wear.

Each earring is made out of 3 modular origami pieces.

This design is from the book, but combinations are endless with the use of modular pieces.

I also prepared 2 origami beads for another pair of earrings, I really like this print!

They are in fact quite easy to make but require a lot of attention to details! I enjoyed making them, they would make such perfect last minute gifts!:D

I really recommend the book Origami Jewelry, it’s step-by-step instructions are so easy to follow, even if you’ve never tried origami before! Or you can try my Origami Heart Earrings tutorial first to see if you like it before investing in the book!

Don’t forget to head to Kootoyoo for more creative spaces!

100 Felt Straps – Japanese Craft Book

Jo — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 11:24:19 +0000

There was no way I could resist buying this needle felting book after discovering it in Kinokuniya’s craft section! Vast number of cute projects including fruits, vegetables, tofu, Japanese snacks… etc

100 Felt Straps (ISBN: 9784579112609)

As with all Japanese craft books, all instructions are written in Japanese only, however, the pictures are quite self-explanatory so you don’t have to worry even if you can’t read Japanese.

Only pictures can describe the extent of “cuteness”, so here we go…
“Awwwww!” is the reaction I’m expecting! ^0^

All projects are very inspiring and easy enough for complete beginners.
Definitely one to have on the shelf!

Hope everyone is having lovely mid-week!^_^

Patchwork Japanese craft book

Jo — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 04:28:34 +0000

This month is busy as hell for me as the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) is coming up and I am far from prepared>< So please understand that I won't be doing much frequent posting this month!!! I have this long list of projects waiting for me to do, but everything has to be postponed until I finish my JLPT...T_T However, I am actually working on a secret mission, probably the only project I'll be working on this month, since it's a secret project, I won't show you until it's finished^0^ hehe...

Today I wanna introduce you to this second hand Japanese craft book that I got recently from Japan Yahoo! Auction through a friend living in Japan. I never had the chance to look at the content of the book before I made the purchase because this book is actually out of print at the moment, but the title really caught my attention so I decided to buy it (well, also because it was selling at half the RPP * v *).

Now... moving on... photos ^0^

One Week Patchwork Projects – matching linen with red, white and black
(ISBN: 4529042294)

This is actually the first patchwork craft book that I own, and I am completely happy with my purchase. The projects in this book are based on linen, and most use red, white and black colour fabrics to complement the material, with a few variations of other colours. There are a variety of cute projects in this book, including tote bags, cushions, pincushions, aprons, potholders… etc

As suggested by the title, the projects in this book are simple enough to be completed in a week’s time, each project is divided into a 7 day course. And if you allocate more time per day, you’ll take less than a week! The step-by-step photo instructions are extremely easy to follow, it is indeed a great patchwork reference book!

You can find hand-drawn instructions of variations of each project towards the back of the book.

Overall, I think it is a great Japanese craft book to buy! ^0^ As I’ve said, the book is actually out of print so it is very hard to get hold of a new copy, however there are still some second hand ones around, and I am very lucky as this copy I got is still in very good condition.

Thank you for reading and back to study for me… ><

Japanese craft books

Jo — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 10:28:26 +0000

Almost every weekend, I would pop into Kinokuniya (Sydney) and browse the books in the Japanese Crafts section, and almost everytime I would leave empty-handed. And the one and only reason is – they are simply too expensive!!!!><

But last weekend, I bought two!!!! Why? Because I didn't get it from Kinokuniya, I found out about Hondarake (Full of Books). It's a Japanese second-hand book shop in the city. I wonder why I never knew about this place before!!!!

Ok... moving on... photos * v *

Handmade Zakka (ISBN: 4579109988)

The book was wrapped with clear plastic, so I couldn’t see what’s in the book. But I was tempted to buy it just looking at the book cover alone. And obviously I bought it

Zakka in Japanese means miscellaneous goods, so I wasn’t surprised that there are a variety of different projects in the book. I am particularly interested in this cutlery pouch – cute!

The designs in this Japanese craft book are mostly very simple. I haven’t tried any of the patterns yet, but this shoulder bag looks easy enough for beginners like me ^0^

The only complaint that I have is that the book lacks photo illustrated instructions. Hand-drawn instructions are very cute, but personally I find them harder to comprehend as well. For beginners and people that don’t really understand the Japanese language, this is probably not the book to go for. But I think it’s still a great book for inspiration.

I really like this bag on the back cover of the book, but I think it’s quite a common style, and a lot of Japanese craft books probably have it already. Overall, a good book, but I’d probably give it a miss if I had to pay the AUD RRP.

Lesson of Sewing (ISBN:978-4391622584)

The title of this book literally translates to “First time machine sewing”. Obviously it’s a sewing book for beginners (me!).

The book is divided into two parts. The first section covers sewing tools, sewing terms and basic machine sewing techniques illustrated by both photographs and cute drawings. Although I can read a bit of Japanese, it’s still way too technical for me>< But the step-by-step photo instructions really helped me to understand what's going on. If you don't know any Japanese and you're a beginner, I'd say this section is quite useless.

The second part of the book includes a variety of simple projects like tote bag, apron, bookcover, one piece… etc. This stylish little pouch is one of my favourites in the book.^^

The instructions are very clear and easy to follow. I think it is a great beginner’s reference even if you cannot understand Japanese.

I got both Handmade Zakka and Lesson of Sewing for AUD$25. They are still in very good condition! I reckon I got a really good bargain^0^

I love Japanese craft books… I want more…

Printing by Hand

Jo — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 14:26:41 +0000

My copy of Lena Corwin’s Printing by Hand (ISBN: 1584796723/9781584796725) finally arrived!! I was so excited*v* I ordered it a while ago from Book Depository, but they had to backorder it><

It finally showed up, just in time for the weekend. I was going to do more stamp carving, but decided to read the book first as the first section covers basic stamping techniques.

Not only is the book full of gorgeous printing project ideas, each project also has photograph-illustrated step-by-step instructions – I love projects with step-by-step photos – yes, even if it’s in English.

Can’t wait to do some fabric printing^0^