Tokyo Quilt Festival 2017

Where did February go?? 28 days passed so fast. I always feel the first 3 months of the year is the slowest but looks like it's different this year. 

I had an amazing time in Japan last January . It was a dream trip since I always want to see the Tokyo International Quilt Festival and yes it's worth every penny.

I went alone from India all the way to Japan and met my friend who was traveling solo from Indonesia. We planned to see the show for one day and then we'll check the fabrics stores around Tokyo, but we ended up 2 full days in the show. Yes, you need at least 2 days to see (almost) everything to see the displayed quilts and the market stalls...ahh there was just soo many amazing handmade stuff there.

Here's some of the amazing photos from the show :
(More photos can be seen HERE)

  

and my fave:

And the market booths

and of course we visited all the Fabric "shrines" where ever we went. We discussed our itineraries for months out of excitement and all the historical shrines suddenly forgotten when we knew there were fabric stores in vicinity LOL. Well, I can go  back with the boys for those historical places, right? 

Truthfully, the show is sort of one stop shop if you want to buy any craft supplies, fabrics and meet the designers. Oh yes, I met the Suzuko Koseki. I've been a big fan of her works and she was such an awesome person. So humble and obliged when I asked for a photo. I bought 3 of the recent books too. I'd love to go back every year if I had my way LOL.

Besides, where ever you go in Japan, there is always fabric shops. The famous one would be Yuzawaya. You can find it almost in every city, I guess.

In Kyoto, my fave would be Nomura Tailor. It's the best. I don't remember which bus we took, just consult your Google Map (thank you Google) when you are in Kyoto. 

Look at those yummy fabrics!! -- Nomura Tailor Kyoto

Nomura Tailor Kyoto

Yuzawaya - Kyoto

and of course one have to Visit Tomato in Nippori. It's fabric heaven!!

The only thing to remember is in Nippori the shops closed at 5 PM. Some of the shops closed at 6 PM and some at 8.30 PM,

 

So you have to think and decide fast when you have little time ^___^ 

  

That's the most difficult part of fabric shopping in Japan. To buy or not to buy. 

While choosing all those beauties, my mind did quick calculation - will it be over luggage (I was allowed 30 kg) , do I still have balance in my debit card - some of the shops accepted cards payment (to my hubby's dismay)

 

So, I came back home happy with full suitcase of fabrics, quilting books and happy memories and an empty bank balance. 

Now, I better get some sewing done 

Stay tuned for exciting offer in my next post ^^

Happy Sewing

{ NEW PATTERN } - CARD WALLET ORGANIZER & TESTER PHOTOS

Yay! Finally now the pattern is LIVE on Craftsy, Etsy and Chezvies. It will be on SALE until I come back from my trip to Japan by End of January. 

First of all I want to thank all my friends for generously help me testing the pattern and also for their invaluable input/comments which help me in perfecting the pattern ❤❤

The pattern features :

12 or 16 cards slots, 2 flap styles included in the pattern templates, 2 zipper pockets and 2 slip pockets, clear step by step instructions with graphics and photos. 

In my previous post I mentioned about the fabulous tester result by my generous facebook friends. Now you will get to see them and what they think about the pattern. Let's Start! 

Maria of Miacreates  was the first one to post and I love how neat her work is. It's simply perfect. You will love all her shabby chic style creations. Here's her comments about the pattern : Great pattern and love the inside concealed zipper

 Sudha Sekhar from Madras Motifs always come up with something quirky and unique. And sure enough she came up with this cute Elephant print CWO.An elephant wallet with bright contrast card slots inside and she said "All in all its a very simple, straightforward pattern"

 

Novi is my bestie from college. She converted into the world of sewing few years ago and I love her one-of-a-kind style. Whatever she made, she never made them twice. She came up with this cute Japanese Linen wallet. Using different print for flap really give a unique result.

My BFF Agnes tested the first draft and she's one of my "brainstorming" buddies. She tried the triangle flap and I love how neat it is. This is what she said about the pattern "This CWO pattern is very clear and easy to follow, especially the pictures, they are very helpful". Her hubby thought she bought it! Ha, I guess it's high time to take your sewing hobby to a different level ;)

And here's Susan of SKH51 Teal and Grey Wallet. I really love her fabric choice. This is what she said about the pattern "It's a really super pattern!" Susan's work is alway fantastic. You can follow her works in her instagram and I am sure you will love it too!!

Here's my friend, Hernik of Jemariku from Kuala Lumpur who loves anything shabby chic. I always love her work and how neat it is. Red is another fave color of mine. It's my "cheer-me-up" color. I love how she added a fancy leather strap there. She said she loved the pattern, because she can fit in her phone too!  

Alka of Sew Fab Stories really live up to her brand name. Whatever she does, it's fabulous. I love how the green binding make the orange pop. And look at how neat her work is. She said "Wonderful pattern with clear instructions" 

Sudesh Jangra of Stitch A Memory came up with this bright & beautiful red wallet. She just released her pattern too, so make sure to check out her Instagram to get a look at her popular pattern. 

Poonam of Quiltsiop is another artist that I admire. Her works show how much love and dedication she put into each one of them.  Don't you love this modern look wallet? Perfect binding too. She said "It was my first pattern testing and that's a wallet. I enjoyed making it. Instructions, measurements were clear to understand and follow". 

Prabha Mathew of Quiltaholics did another pretty wallet in spite of her busy schedule. She said  this is the first time she made concealed zipper and she was happy to be able to do it in one go. And it's pretty neat zipper!!  

I'm super happy everyone finds the wallet is easy to do and it's a fast project to sew. Perfect gift to make for your friends and family.

Once again, don't forget to get your copy while it's still on SALE.

Pattern Available here:

Craftsy

Etsy

Chezvies 

until then,

Happy Sewing