Saori, Osaka: III

The red building of Saori was visible from afar. Kenzo Jo mentioned that he was impressed by the red barns that he had seen in the United States. When they had the opportunity to establish this new building, he wanted it to be this colour!

Misao Jo is 97 years old and she still goes into the studio to weave each day!

At the Studio, every bit of yarn is put to good use. It changed my way of thinking when I was on that shopping spree. I no longer worried whether I had to buy enough for a 'whole' piece/project. If I saw something interesting, I can just get 10/20g or one ball of knitting yarn. I now have inspired uses for the thrums that I could not bear to throw away, or the few bits left over on a cone.

If people had fnished with a bobbin and had left overs, they were left in a neat arrangement so that it can inspire the next person. It opens my eyes to combinations of textures and colours that I would not have dreamt of before. It was very liberating.

The built-in bobbin can be used in many ways other than winding on yarn. Kenzo Jo and Setsuko both showed us various ways to spin fleece into yarn, to creat fancy yarn, to form loose/tight twists, S and Z twists as you wind the bobbin.

 

This blue fancy yarn we created on the bobbin reminded me of all the overhead power lines we saw in Kyoto. This way, you don't run out of yarn. You just make as much as you need.

 

Note: all the photos except the one of the powerlines were taken by Kaz.