Читать книгу The Ultimate Sashiko Sourcebook - Susan Briscoe - Страница 15

GETTING STARTED

This section describes the tools, equipment and materials you will need for sashiko stitching. Beginning on page 22 are marking and stitching techniques, information on drawing patterns, using grids, transferring designs to fabric, starting to stitch and finishing off – everything you need to help you create beautiful sashiko easily, right from the start.

EQUIPMENT AND MATERIALS

Stitching sashiko requires very few tools and materials. You will need a basic sewing and marking kit (see below) – inexpensive items you probably have in your sewing basket already. A quilting frame or hoop is not used in sashiko. Because sashiko needs little equipment, it can be stored in a bag, like one of the drawstring bags on page 48, so your sashiko things are always to hand, ready to be taken out at a moment’s notice.

Sewing and marking kit

Sashiko needles (various sizes)

Small embroidery scissors

Dressmaking scissors

Quilting pins

Thimble (optional)

Tacking (basting) thread

Sewing thread to match your fabrics

Sewing sharps

Pincushion or needle case

Iron

Marking tools (see right and page 19)

Ruler

Basic equipment

Marking tools You will need an assortment of these, including markers for dark and light fabrics, rulers and templates for marking curves. Marking tools are described in more detail on page 19 and using them on page 22.

Cutting mat and quilter’s ruler These are useful for precision marking. You might also prefer to cut out your fabrics with a rotary cutter.

Japanese embroidery scissors (pictured left) These are not essential, but make sewing sashiko feel very authentic!

Kakehari (pictured below) This is a sewing clamp sold as a ‘third hand’ or ‘sewing bird’. It is useful for keeping your work under tension when sewing straight lines.

Thimble Thimbles are optional: some stitchers like them, others do without. The traditional Japanese ‘ring’ thimble (pictured below) is worn on the second joint of the middle finger of the sewing hand with the eye end of a short needle resting against it. A ‘coin’ thimble, (pictured below) with a dimpled disk to push the needle, is used with longer needles.

Sewing machine Although old sashiko items were made completely by hand, a sewing machine with zigzag and straight stitches is useful for making up projects. Fabrics suitable for sashiko tend to fray, so zigzag the edges before you begin hand stitching. If you want to finish cushions with zips, you will need a zipper foot for the machine.

If a thread is suitable for sashiko it will have the kanji characters for sashiko printed on the product label, even if labels are not in English.

Thread

Ordinary fabric and needles were originally used for sashiko but the thread was specially spun. Modern sashiko thread has a looser twist than many embroidery threads and is made from long, staple cotton so it is very hardwearing and strong – don’t try breaking it with your fingers! Various brands are sold worldwide, in large skeins and several weights – fine, medium and thick – with colours and variegated effects as well as white, cream and indigo. The exact thickness and shade varies between manufacturers, so use the same brand throughout a project. If you cannot obtain real sashiko thread, cotton à broder makes a reasonable, if expensive, substitute. Cotton perlé does not look or behave like sashiko thread, although it can add interesting colour accents. Thread made for sashiko will give you the best results as a beginner and you can experiment to find other suitable threads later on, once you know what sashiko thread looks and feels like. See page 23 for using sashiko thread.

Some hand-dyed embroidery threads are suitable for sashiko.

Needles

Sashiko needles are very sharp and, compared with Western sewing needles, quite thick and rigid in relation to their length. Very long needles will help keep your stitching lines straight and speed up sewing, once you are used to them. If you hand quilt with ‘Betweens’ (special short quilting needles), you may find the smaller sashiko needles easier to manage at first, although the smallest are only suitable for fine sashiko thread. If sashiko needles are unavailable, try using embroidery crewels or larger darning needles instead.

Match your thread and fabric weight to a suitable sashiko needle (shown right). As a rule, thinner threads and smaller needles will work with slightly heavier fabrics but it will be difficult to stitch a thick sashiko thread with a large needle through finer fabrics. If sashiko feels like hard work, change to a finer thread and needle or to a fabric with a lower thread count.

Fine sashiko thread and tsumugi cotton fabric;

Medium sashiko thread and reproduction sashiko cotton;

Thick sashiko thread and prairie cloth (all shown slightly smaller than life size).

Fabrics

Most modern households are unlikely to have a steady supply of old indigo cloth for recycling. Machine-made copies of these old hand-woven fabrics are specially made for sashiko, in indigo and other shades (see Suppliers, page 126). Using more colours in sashiko is a fairly recent development and fabric and threads often echo natural dyes. Choose plain weaves and natural fibres with a lower thread count (the number of threads to the inch), slightly thicker than you might normally choose for quilting. Some quilting and craft fabrics, such as prairie cloth and cotton flannel, are pleasant to stitch and look authentic. Practise grid-based hitomezashi (one stitch sashiko, see page 96) on checked fabrics or use woven stripes to line up pattern elements. Asian fabrics made for household textiles are an excellent source of thicker cottons and dress-making fabrics can be used too. Sashiko was originally stitched on cotton, linen, hemp and other plant fibres, so experiment! For a hint of luxury, I used raw silk for the sampler cushions on page 36.

This drawstring bag by Wendy Young, one of my students, has been stitched with asanoha (hemp leaf, page 72). Indian cotton ikat fabrics make good substitutes for old Japanese kasuri.

This experiment by Deborah Gordon, one of my sashiko students, combines hitomezashi as counted embroidery with couching and appliqué on 16-count Aida fabric. kakinohanazashi (persimmon flower stitch, page 100) and zenizashi (coin stitch, page 99) are two hitomezashi stitches that adapt well to counted embroidery.

If the fabric is right but the colour isn’t what you want, you can always dye it – imitation indigo dyes (sold for re-dyeing jeans) are easy to use in the washing machine, following the instructions supplied. Internet and mail-order shopping means it is easier than ever to buy materials suitable for sashiko (see Suppliers).

Old cotton katazome (stencil-dyed), two kasuri ikats, a woven stripe and eight indigo cottons. Skilled hand-dyers used natural indigo to create many shades of blue.

New fabrics, including American prairie cloth, Thai raw silk, Indian cotton, three German checked cottons, two Japanese striped cotton tsumugi and three colours of reproduction sashiko cotton.

Wadding (batting)

If your project requires wadding (batting), mark your sashiko design before tacking (basting) the top, wadding and backing together. Vintage sashiko used two or more layers of old cloth, with the best cloth on top. Today, sashiko is made with two or three layers of cloth or with modern wadding or as embroidery, through one layer only. Here are some points to bear in mind when using wadding or fabric layers:

 If you use quilt wadding, you will also need backing fabric whereas an extra fabric layer does not need extra backing.

 If you are using dark fabric, remember that white polyester wadding might ‘beard’ through and spoil your work.

 The new black waddings, available in polyester or cotton and polyester mixtures, are excellent for sashiko (see Suppliers page 126).

 Cotton wadding can be dyed dark blue in the washing machine. It absorbs a lot of dye so use the actual weight of the fabric as a guide.

 Select thin cotton wadding (sold as ‘request’ weight) for a similar look to several layers of old cloth, or use layers of butter muslin.

 Old linen blouses, tea towels and flannel sheets can be recycled as wadding/backing, dyed darker as necessary.

 Test a small sample of your chosen wadding/backing combination by stitching a few rows of sashiko – if it is very hard to get the needle through, use thinner wadding or a more loosely woven backing fabric.

 Tightly woven calico is not a good choice for backing sashiko!

Fabric markers

Before you tack (baste) your fabric layers together, you will need to mark your chosen sashiko pattern on the fabric – see page 22 for the various techniques. There are many marker options for the modern sashiko stitcher and some are shown below. Experiment to find your favourite.

Hera This is a traditional Japanese sewing marker made of bone or plastic which scores and polishes a line on the cloth. It shows up well on very dark fabrics and the line washes out. Put a cutting mat or card-board under your fabric when marking or you will score your table!

Quilter’s white pencil This soft pencil is good for dark fabrics, with marks that wash out or rub off. Soft pencils will last much longer if you sharpen them with a craft knife, cutting away on either side and trimming to make a flat point.

Air-erasable marking pen (white) This felt-tip pen marks white and fades on exposure to air. The marks should last for 48 hours but can fade sooner, so it is only useful for small projects. Washing the chemical residue out when work is complete is highly recommended.

White marking pen This pen, recently introduced, is a roller ball that makes a fine, clear white line which takes a few seconds to appear after drawing. The marks can be removed with water or heat (check brand information).

Chaco liner This is a Japanese chalk wheel that makes marks on fabric which brush off easily or wash out. A tiny wheel in the tip picks up the chalk and marks the fabric. Chalk refills are available in white, pink, yellow and blue. I find that white or yellow are best on dark fabrics.

Chaco pencil This is a compressed chalk pencil that makes marks which brush off easily or wash out. It is available in the same colours as the chaco liner, above. See quilter’s white pencil (far left) for sharpening advice.

Quilter’s silver pencil This is best for light fabrics, as the marks can be difficult to see on dark or medium colours. The marks wash out or rub off.

Soapstone marker Natural soapstone in a holder can be sharpened to a fine line. When the marks are no longer required, do not iron over them but wash them out with plain water.

Soap slivers Marking dark fabrics with the edge of a piece of soap is an old quilters’ trick which can be used when marking sashiko.

Tailor’s chalk This is an inexpensive marker which is available in various colours. Yellow or white are best for dark fabric.