If you’re a space gnome (and you will know if you are) then you might be doing a Kanzashi-A-Long with me on Saturday.
Kanzashi is a short name used in the west for what’s technically called Hana Tsumami Kanzashi. They are the flowers folded from silk fabric that are often used on hair decorations that are *actually* called Kanzashi. Kanzashi are made out of different materials/in different forms, and Hana Tsumami Kanzashi is just one form.
What are you going to need to make Kanzashi flowers? Here is a supplies list of things that might be in your house right now, since you’re staying home, right? There are a couple methods that you can use depending on what you have.
Supplies
If you have fabric:
– Fabric – quilting cotton or if you’re brave, silk (on the heavier side is probably better)
– Needle & thread OR Aileen’s tacky glue OR fabric glue
– Scissors OR a rotary cutter
– A ruler or quilting square
– An iron
If you have wide satin ribbon:
– Wide Satin Ribbon – preferably polyester rather than natural fabric
– Scissors
– A lighter AND/OR a tea candle (you’ll melt the ribbon instead of gluing or sewing
If your fabric is made of a polyester material, you might be able to melt it as well (one of the videos linked below shows this). PLEASE be careful. This is not the time for injuries!
The next set of items are good for either method, and you can improvise as you wish, depending on the supplies you have
Buttons, gems, or beads to decorate the centers of the flowers
Pin backs, barrettes, bobby pins, combs, or other findings to which you can affix the finished flowers
Hot glue gun
Pointy tweezers
Resources:
I learned to make the yellow flower above from a tutorial by Diane Gilleland, and she subsequently published a book called Kanzashi In Bloom with instructions on how to make them. I have the book and that’s mostly what I’ll be working from. It’s available as a Kindle eBook and in the Apple Books bookstore as well, currently $9.99.
There are a LOT of YouTube videos on how to fold as well. Many of them focus on using ribbon, which I don’t have a lot of. So you’re on your own, gnome! But these videos looked useful:
If you decide you like making these, once nice thing is it’s a hobby that doesn’t take up much room and is extremely portable… you know, for when we can go places. Heh. Anyway…
If you precut squares of fabric or ribbon, you can tuck them and your other supplies in a little zipper pouch and go someplace else with them. Like the other room. Or the couch, or the bed. Or the back porch! Anywhere, as long as right now, you are staying home as much as you can!
If we can’t go to the flowers, let’s make some!
See you, space gnomes!
Skulleigh.com 