It's sakura (cherry blossom) season in Japan, and the trees are magnificent! And the textiles aren't so bad either... ;-) The textile tradition, both historic and contemporary, is so rich and plentiful in Japan, so there's always something wonderful to see.
Diana Sanderson, of Sanjo, had the rare and honoured distinction to meet with Jun-ichi Arai, a living legend in the weaving world. He was so generous with his time and shared so much of his deep and fascinating collection, amassed over his many years of weaving and innovating. We are deeply indebted to him for taking the time to share his love of textiles with us.
We also met with our suppliers in Japan, so you can expect some tantalyzing tidbits in the next while. Woohoooo! Isn't spring wondrous?
These things are not silk yarn. You caught us again.
In fact, as much as they look like something that was delivered direct from a silkworm, they're not. They're by-products of industrial silk-reeling. When the silk is reeled onto spindles, this is the part at the centre that is so tightly compacted and full of sericin (a silkworm's glue) that they can't unreel it. So they cut it off and create one of the world's exceptionally lovely things, silk casings. Some are smooth and some are ridged. Artistic people make them into jewelry; fibre artists embellish things with them. Aesthetes put them in lovely bowls to simply admire.
We've been quietly sneaking in some pretty fantastic stuff onto the Sanjo Silk website.
The first beauty on the catwalk is this stunner. It's Golden Muga Silk, which is a wild silk. Soft gold is the natural colour of this yarn, and it's yum-yum-yummy. It's a 60/2, which means that it's pretty fine, great for weaving or machine knitting. See our 40-004 on the website for photos showing how wonderful it is when it's machine knit.
Next up is this unusual yarn. Hey, we try to bring you things that you can't get anywhere else, and this is one of them. It's Pedencal Tussah Silk, another wild silk. The pedencus is the little stem that attaches the tussah cocoon to a tree branch, and this yarn is spun from the fibre in this little stem. The soft brown is its natural colour; it has a soft, almost cottony feel. It's a 20/1 Single, and like the above yarn, it's lovely for weaving and machine knitting. Again, we've got some great images of this yarn machine knit on the website on the 40-007 page.
Another Sari Silk yarn. The two featured today are spun from the thrums (warp yarns) left from weaving silk saris. This one, 40-015, is a multi-coloured yarn; every time we get a new shipment, they're a new colour, and this time we're quite excited about how many colours each skein has. It knits up into a textural, heavy fabric and is a real showstopper.
Last but not least is our other spun Sari Silk yarn, 40-016. Although it too is multi-coloured, it "reads" magenta, so we call it Mostly Magenta. This yarn is uber-drapey and lovely. It knits up into a luscious, heavy garment.
We're still adding new stuff every week, and although we update the blog regularly, but don't forget to check the website often to be the first on your block with the latest goodies.
It's worth the wait. The first Sari Silk is on the Sanjo Silk website. This is our Recycled Sari Ribbon yarn, 40-013. Why not start with a bang? The strips are about 1" wide, and are machine stitched together for secure joins. The resulting cloth is crunchy and textural.
Go big or stay home, Sistah. Imagine this with either jeans or a stunning black dress.
The skeins are pre-wound, so you need to contact us with your requirements. This garment was made using about 130 grams and an 8mm needle. It's big enough to be a wide cowl. Every skein is different; the variations are part of what makes this yarn so unique.
Check out the latest addition to the Sanjo Silk website. It's a 100% Linen Paper yarn (14-007). It's so very cool, and works up like a dream. It's surprisingly strong; the Japanese have been making wearable paper for centuries, so they know what they're doing. I guess if we had to name this yarn, we'd call it "Russell" for the beautiful sound it makes (yeah, yeah, it's a play on words...get it?)
We're working on those beautiful Sari Silks for the website. They're currently available at the Silk Weaving Studio on Granville Island, so get the jump on them if you're in Vancouver-town. Stay tuned, they're worth the anticipation.
We just received another wonderful shipment from India. Receiving parcels from India is always an adventure. This time there were 2 huge bales, with distinctive "ears" on each end which we used to drag them into place. It felt kinda like getting a sheep ready for shearing...
The contents are these bales are the most colourful, joyous yarns. Opening the parcels elicited some dancing and singing. I'll write about the yarns later, once I've had a chance to get a camera onto them.
Needless to say, the sheep has been sheared...
We have something very exciting and new with which to greet 2014.
We have 2 new fabrics on the Sanjo Website.
The first is a 100% Wool Gauze. This lightweight, gauzey cloth is delicious in its undyed state; it also dyes beautifully, and looks fabulous when painted. But the real fun comes when you shrink this fabric. You can use resists to limit the fulling to specific areas to get special effects. Play with it! It's irrestible!
Order it here. on the Sanjo website.
The second fabric is no less exciting. It's a 100% Wool Broadcloth. This fabric is so smooth and sleek and un-itchy that we can't believe it's wool. It has a slightly crisp drape and makes a stunning garment. Or you can paint a big piece and use it as a shawl. Go to the Sanjo website to see the details.
