The Tokyo Dome show has begun!

Prepare for a string of posts .....

I would not have thought of attending that big quilt show on the opening day. I knew there would be thousands of people cramming every open space ... BUT ... Quilting has as much to do with friends as it does with quilts.

Long ago I joined a group of quilters .. The Tokyo International Quilters ... it was in the days of many ex-pats temporarily assigned to Tokyo and it was a group of the revolving door. We celebrated new members coming in and were saddened by their departure. I think the average assignment was about three years but there were always members coming and going.

Yesterday, my trip to the show was focused on a visit with a former member, now from Texas. Ah, how the years flew away, and we were back to those good old days. Another long-term member, Kuraishi-sensei, set up the meeting over lunch in the coffee shop ... ah, friendship and coffee ... what could be better?

It was a good thing I left home early because though the line to buy tickets was short, the line to get into the stadium went almost the entire way around the building. It must have taken close to an hour to get in, but a lucky thing is that quilters are friendly and I could get to visit with those in line (even in my miserable Japanese).

 After lunch, the three of us wandered around the show, looking at interesting areas that Sensei lead us to and gave an insider's view.

Our last visit was to the partnership quilt #8, where I got to see my Ohio cardinal guarding his nest at the top of the quilt.

Even though the blocks were made smaller this year, there were still 60 finished quilts.

A number had blocks that were all the same except for fabric choices.

I think the quilter that joins with NHK on this activity, issues a selection of patterns for those who need an idea.

After looking at many of the quilts, it seems this one containing my block got the most creative donations.

Next to Mr. cardinal is a patterned block

but those surrounding ones are original ideas of the quilters.

Panda with bamboo (it may be a tree of life for the panda, but bamboo is a grass)

The woodpecker...

This rabbit by the stump gazing at the sprout coming from that stump and the roots below...

And, how about these trees?


Or the squirrel gathering acorns?


A tree with a swing

a Twitter shaped bird ...

a pink squirrel ...

There were lots of apples but this one was made of hexagons.

These cats were so cute framing that sprout.

More creative apples and trees.


That one on the bottom has a tree house at the top of the ladder.

There were a few of these cat blocks that had been arranged in circles on a few quilts.

The giraffe is one of a kind


not sure about the footprint ...


I have to admit, though I hardly ever win anything... I had to buy a raffle ticket for this one. And my friend, Linda bought one too.

My usual camera suddenly stopped working after the snow day and the alternative camera battery was not charged and soon gave up.

Saturday will be another chance. Along with the friendship worth cancelling my english class, I will get another chance at picture taking.

This year the contest quilts all included names in English, but alas, the other exhibits of traditional, Wa, Original design etc. were not translated. All I got for many years of filling out those questionnaires, was a pile of postcards advertising the show.

Friends and a quilt show (part 1)

                  Where to begin?

What a wonderful time I had with my quilting friends!  The time since our last meeting seemed to have slipped away and we were back where we were long ago, telling stories and laughing.



We met at the home of one of our members who has opened a cafe in the lower front of her home. She prepared us a lovely meal  and delicious dessert.

These are the members whose friendship blocks I shared is the earlier post.

I took my paper diary and we shared the memories of those quilters no longer able to come.


After our meal, we all went to a quilt show. Yasuko Kuraishi, in the middle of the group in the upper picture, treated us all to the show.

Team Quilt Ten

As I understand it, this group show was begun by ten quilters who had won at the Tokyo Quilt Festival years ago. Nine of those quilters got together and this show features their winning quilts plus a number more they have created between that first show and today.

Many seem to have been created around a theme.

This is all hand quilted with embroidery on the rings . Made by Harue Yumoto in commemoration of planting of her favorite grape.

Hemp-colored hydrangea by Chieko Shiraishi, has plenty of embroidery too which gives the effect of lace.

These tiny compass points  are way too small to catch in one picture. Probably a close-up would have been better. "In Peaceful Sunshine"  (or something like that) by Suneko Shimura.

Princess Lily, by Chiyoko Umeda also combines tiny piecing and complicated applique along with tiny quilting stitches.

This quilt called "Doily", by Chieko Shiraishi had little crocheted doilies appliqued in the centers between the blocks and embroidered linked rings in the border. You may notice that many of these quits make use of what is called "Japanese Taupe".

Beautiful Spring, by Megumi Mizuno.  Full of tiny applique and embroidery.

Flowers bloom Proudly, by Taeko Shinosaki. (or Shinozaki)?  More applique and embroidery. 

And ... if you are getting tired of all that taupe ... this "Spring - my Primavera", is plenty colorful but just as detailed. 

What the Japanese call "Red Haired Anne" is all embroidered in redwork. Made by Harue Yumoto.

Dated July 2004.

Masquerade, by Toshiko Kurihara..  Can you recognize her style now? 

She told me she uses freezer paper to assemble these quilts. Her work is done by machine. Imagine making a machine behave this well!

Another of Kurihara's ... "Who ate my egg"?

And here she is, Kurihara-san, standing beside another of her masterpieces, "Dream II - on board the Milky Way RR." I asked her how long each quilt takes and she said about one a year. 

Many of these quilts were featured in quilt books and the central room had a table with piles of those books on display. Of course all those pictures were taken by  professional quilt photographers and much better than mine.

I have about 14 more quilts to show, although I hardly got half of them. My camera battery is saying it wants to be charged so I guess I need a break here.