another occupational therapy project

Seems that lately all I do is o.t. I have the Japanese midterm looming and all I can think of is kana, we have been informed that this test will be a written one.
I hope it does not include dictation or else I will be lost. Having some mild dixlexia issues I need extra time to sort out whether the letters face left or right. And in hiragana and kana you have the same letter facing each way with a different sound of course.
In desperate need of creative fun I resorted to good ol' overdyeing. The scarf here was a garish odd red with black overprint and woven circles and all the elements were pulling different ways. Cacophony in a very nice soft silk yarn.
Solution -overdye to integrate all and salvage the beautiful yarn.
I think it was sucessful and now I can wear the scarf without blushing.
It has also done wonders to my tired brain cells.

neki desu

Tags: weaving, dyeing, japanophilia

batch box

It was too cold in the studio to batch fabric so I had to use a bit of ingenuity to create a batch box. It is also a recycling project since a discarded wooden wine crate was put to use. As a source of heat an old heat pad was used and all was covered with cellophane paper. Two flat sticks served as support for the pad. Albeit not being a candidate for a design award the batch box worked well.
It was a welcomed mindless project that helped me clear my brain and assess the number of dead brain cells after studying the numbers in Japanese spiced with some more kana.

neki desu

Tags: dyeing

oishi.i desu ne!

After the kana test in which I did neither well nor badly but just the opposite, sensei brought a small surprise for us. An assortment of teas for us to see and sniff and a dorayaki for each one.
Dorayakis are small panckake like sponge cakes filled with sweet atsuki bean paste made world famous by the anime Doraemon. Interesting the way he provides not only the language, but he also gives us the cultural context.
Had high tea with some of the green tea sensei gave us and the dorayaki. It was a perfect reward for the begining of the week.
Being already in the orientalia mood decided to to a take on thai food and cooked thai red curry chicken and cellophane noodles for dinner.
It feels wonderful when you have your own home grown lemon grass .


neki desu

Tags: food, japanophilia

of palm trees and procrastination

Yes, instead of studying katakana for tomorrow's test I spent my time finishing the t shirt project. Seems that if I'm going to be illiterate in Japanese might as well be stylish.
Friend Carme gave me an sos call and she came over from Girona to spent the night.
Female bonding is a good cure for the blues. Wine also helps.

neki desu

Tags: surface design, printing

playing with images

This is really occupational therapy.
I came out of Japanese class with my brain feeling like mashed potatoes and I needed something distracting and fun. Started dinging with the image I posted days ago and suddenly I had one of those AHA! moments.
What if I use a textile generated in Fiberworks
and use it as background then overlay the fractal image? This is the result.
I like the concept of textile within textile or is it maybe trextile on textile?
If anyone is interested in the wif file of the weaving feel free to e- mail and I will share

neki desu

Tags: digital printing, japanophilia