Friday 21 August 2015

The attractive TENUGUI world -how I got interested in TENUGUI

 
OK, so I’m often talking about TENUGUI here and there, but you might be wondering..."What is TENUGUI?"

For the next few weeks on Fridays, I'm going to share my story and knowledge about TENUGUI. At the start, I will write about how I became attracted to the world of TENUGUI.

When I was younger, I had received a couple of TENUGUI as gifts. I grew up in Japan, so obviously I knew how to use them...in traditional way. Yes, it's a hand towel used for wiping! But the ones I got from my friends were a bit too nice for that, so I didn't know what to do and just kept them in my drawers for years.

One day, I got an idea to make a bag using one of those TENUGUI. After Nico was born, I started to carry a big bag that could fit all his baby goodies inside, but I realised that I didn't need to carry this big bag all the time. When I got out from the car to get some stuff from shops, we didn't need all the baby stuff, so I wanted to leave the big bag in the car and just take my wallet and mobile. I needed a small bag for that purpose, so I made this. 





I always really liked this print and thought it would make a lovely bag. Although the pattern was great, the material for this particular TENUGUI was extra soft gauze, so it became a bit weak to hold heavy things - I can still use this for other purposes though!

Now I know a bit more about TENUGUI, so if I'm making another bag, I'll put a liner inside and make the handle part with stronger materials. The great thing was that I realised that using TENUGUI as a fabric is pretty unique and interesting. There are so many fabrics if you go to Lincraft or Spotlight, but sometimes it's difficult to find a lovely, unique pattern.

This is how I initially became interested in TENUGUI. But I discovered its real charm when I went to Japan and experienced the TENUGUI-making process.

Next week, I will write about my TENUGUI-making experience. Stay tuned!

Have a lovely weekend. xxx

With love
Allie


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