Of course, I COULD go and clean the kitchen, put away the Christmas tree, do some washing... but really, that's not going to happen.
The night before last, I stayed up until 3am sorting fabric. Just the smaller pieces mind you. I really thought it would only take me a day or two to sort my purchases from the latest kimono auction, but it's taken over a week! Below is preview of some of them that will be going up in the store soon.
While I was sorting, I thought I'd share the love and put together a large pack (about 350 grams) of vintage kimono fabric to give away. You can see the fabric in the picture below. If you're interested, please leave a comment telling me what you'd do with a free day. If you're not a blogging person, you can just leave your name in the comment. I'll draw a random number on January 21st and post the name of the winner then. Please don't forget to come back and check to see if you've won!
Now I'm off to play!
61 comments:
Well of course I have to try to be the lucky recipient of some of that beautiful fabric! You've been doing terrific work lately Melanie - I love your origami too!
Whoops, I forgot to tell you what I'd do with a free day! (You'll have to delete one of my comments so I don't double my chances of winning). If it was completely free - no kids, no hubby, no anyone, plenty of cash - I'd have a massage and facial, then spend the day sewing, crocheting, with all meals only needing serving up or reheating. Bliss! Oh, did I mention doing some sleeping?
Hi,my name is Lilie,signing as Miurable at Flickr.
i saw your photo on your page.
They're beautiful.
Lately i am getting interested in Kimono, especially in Japanese fabrick design.(By the way i am Japanese.)And it is wonderful to see many foreigners getting interested in Japanese culture.
Free time? Mmm..i've just got married a few months ago, so i am trying to adapt the new environment that has changed my life. So truthly i don't have much free time now. With free time, i like to do some art work with paper or clay, shoot and edit photos, and study English!
so i'll be grateful if i win!
Lilie
i would plunge into the sea at Clovelly (sydney australia) with a snorkel, float aimlessly for some time, my own breath amplified in my ears, staring at all the wonderful fish, hoping beyond hope to spot a weedy seadragon, which i never have, and then i would haul myself out of the ocean, lie flat on a towel just to dry off then head up to the beautiful glassed restaurant overlooking Clovelly to meet friends for lunch, sip a chilled Margaret River Sav Blanc and plan the rest of the day....
If I had the time I would love to stand on top of a cliff in Cornwall and watch the waves hit the rocks. I find the sheer energy of it exhilerating but unfortunately live about 300 mile away so a free day would really mean fabric play!!
oh my, I would just LOVE to win this - all the beautiful things I could make!!
Ok, a free day - what luxury - what would I do?? Sleep in for starters (very rare these days with a very active toddler). Then I would pamper myself with a massage and facial, followed by a few hours in my studio listening to my favourite music while making jewellery or painting. Then I'd spend the afternoon at the beach with my husband and son making sandcastles and floating in the water out past the waves..feeling totally free. Then some fish and chips on the beach for dinner, son to bed early and snuggle up with my hubby with a good wine and watch a movie.
Is it humanly possible to fit all that into one day??
I'd lie in bed reading till 11, then have breakfast fit for a queen. I'd go walking around London, which is the best way to see it, looking for my favourite places, hoping to find new ones. And when it started to get dark I'd head for Gordon's wine bar and meet all my favourite people in its dark little caves.
Ohmygod Melanie - they look gorgeous!!!
I really don't know what a free day is; all my days are filled to the brim with work (home and away from home), study and hobbies. So if a free day means I don't have to do any of these things, I guess I'd stay in bed... just kidding! I really love the mixture of things I HAVE TO DO and things I WANT TO DO. I think I wouldn't want it any other way :)
Thanks for the giveaway!
Sibi
Free day? What is that? I'd probably would be so shocked that I had a free day I wouldn't know what to do.
I'd make some coin purses that I've been dying to try, or play with some polymer clay.
Keep up your fabulous work, sugar! You are such a sweet person.
On my free day:
I would take a super hot bath, get some steaming tea and sew Barbie clothing. As an avid Barbie collector, I like to design my dolls who are out of their box. I'm always looking for new and exciting fabrics for my designs that range from my Native American ancestry to Kimono/Hanbok/Qipao to wedding/ball gowns to historical European clothing.
And if I had enough time after that, I'd finish up a few art pieces or study some more Kanji.
XOXO,
Amber
What beautiful material! and a good question :-)
I guess I had a free day on saturday, Duncan was out playing hockey most of the day - So I read in bed with my morning coffee. I had a nice long catch up with my mum on the phone and I designed and started embroidering a card for my fiance's birthday, whilst catching up on the BBC's latest costume drama.
If I had a free day, I would sleep late, dress slowly after a long bath, put on some nice jewelry and a silk scarf. A nice pot of Earl Grey with lush magazines, Some crafting. Some reading, repeat. Would love to have this fabric!
sherry
On a free day ... I could see forever, that is to stay I'd probably plan way to much ... sewing, friends, eating .. you get the picture. And oh would I love to play with some kimono fabric :-)
Oh, my . . . if I had a free day, I'd probably spend a third of it wondering whether the day were *really* free, or if perhaps I'd forgotten about something I was supposed to be doing. But, once over that, I'd pick out one craft project that's totally silly, pointless, and colorful. Then I'd settle in with a big mug of tea, some Dinah Washington on the CD player, and make without purpose.
(I hope I hope I hope I win!!)
If I had a free day - I would sleep a little later than usual, lounge around in my pajamas for awhile, do some sewing then rent a movie and curl up on the sofa to watch it.
Thanks for doing this giveaway.
I'd love to sit by a lake and read a good book. And I'd also love some of your fabric.
Right now a free day sounds too good to be true. Lots of personal family tribulations going on here that won't be ending anytime soon so the thought of a free day in itself is joyous.
I'd sleep in. Eat a peaceful breakfast and sip coffee in my slippers and bathrobe on my back deck. Bubble bath with candle light and classical music playing softly.
I'd go through my patterns and pic one I've been wanting to make and make it all in one day.
Quiet dinner with my husband and kids. Chocolate for desert! Have my hubby put the kids to bed and pop in a movie and lounge on my sofa with my little Boston Terrier on my lap.
This sounds like pure heaven right now!
On a free day, I would go for a swim, cos I'm trying to get the habit, then I'd potter about the house working on my quilting projects. I'd drink a coffee on the deck and look at beautiful books.
*sigh*
I'd probably find it hard to resist the impulse to start a new project -- I need a bag.
Beautiful fabrics! My free day would be to work on crafts and go to a garden centre and wonder around all day.
Hi from Wendy C.,
With a free day (and some funds), I would start by gathering up a good girlfriend. Next, we would go out to some yummy restaurant we hadn't tried, and then either a tandem pedicure or a movie. Then some little boutique window shopping and winding back at home for some crafting/chick flicks/pajama party. Sounds like fun, I need to plan it up.
I would spend a free day organizing so that finding something wouldn't be so stressful and time consuming (I'm very absent minded) I would sew and get some knitting done, read, and take pictures. Hopefully this free day has extra hours in it. I absolutely love all of your beautiful fabric. I grew up in Hawaii and have always been fascinated by kimonos.
♥ Cristallie
A free day!?!? Oooh, what a thought! I would definitely spend most of it playing with my daughter. Any extra time would be devoted to good chocolate and a good book.
of course i'd love some ^_^ more fabric. there is no such thing as too much fabric!
~kat
A free day! I'd sleep in till 9, go to Coogee for a swim, eat lunch at the good local Mexican and then walk home to create! I've recently got a sewing machine and am itching to make new things. I'd spend the rest of the day making my little baby cousins stuffed toys. I'm thinking elephants and lions!
Such lovely fabric!
I could really use a free day, especially if it meant that my crazy landlady was away. I'd have a nice long shower, read, knit, listen to music, have a nap, bake, and maybe go for a hike if the weather was okay.
Wonderful blog! I think with a free day I would pamper myself like crazy- sleep in, read a good book and take a nice long hot bubble bath!
ooohhh, I NEED that fabric!
Please count me in! :D
I'll get a free day jut to spend it cutting and sewing all that beautiful kimono fabric!
That's how bad I want it :)
My free day, wich is sunday is spending on cleaning the house and do some crafts that I love to do like my pincushions using your beautiful fabrics. Thanks for sharing your stuff with us!!:-)
Great fabric!! I'm in ;)
you are inspiring, melanie! i almost wish for a cloudy day so i could have an excuse not to work...i love your japanese fabrics. so incredible!
I hope, hope, hope that I am not too late! If I had a free day I would SEW!
If I had a free day, I would love to go to the spa and get a facial and perhaps a pedicure because I need one desperately!
Love the beautiful fabric you are giving away!!
If I had a free day, I would spend it making items from the new book I bought 'Omiyage : Handmade Gifts from Fabric in the Japanese Tradition' by Kumiko Sudo.
If I had a free day I'd organize my sewing area (that is badly in need of some kimono fabric! ;-) )
What a lovely idea!! - a free day....to be spent pampering oneself (because we do NOT take care of ourselves like we should). I would complete the daily sudoku & crossword puzzles with a big cup of cup, followed by reading, knitting, sewing those beautiful kimono fabrics with inspiration from a Kumiko Sudo book. Then I would go to Lake Michigan & be rejuvenated at the shore - searching for beach glass & just being with the water & sand. A dinner with my favorite girlfriends would ensue, returning home to curl up with more kimono projects. What a wonderful day it would be.
Thank you, Melanie, for your writings and for the opportunity to share!!
I have a free day today!
My best friend has just returned home from nursing her father in his final illness.
We are going fabric and op-shopping, having lunch and telling each other stories about our dads.
There will be laughter, hugs and undoubtedly many tears.
And I'm really looking forward to it :) I love her very much.
Gina
A free day!
I'd paint, paint, paint, then sit back and look at the sky for a while. :)
Beautiful fabric pieces, if I had a free day I would do the following:
Rainy day:
I 'd sleep in, then I'd go for a drive to my favorite thrift & secondhand shops, stop somewhere along the way for a nice snack and some coffee....hang out in a bookstore for awhile browsing the latest craft books and then head home where I'd curl up on the sofa under the warm fleece blanket my sister made and order some food and watch a movie.
Sunny day: (early spring, summer)
Get up early and organize food for lunch, snacks, drinks and put them in a small cooler while my partner got the got all the other supplies, equipment and canoe loaded onto the vehicle. Drive to a beautiful nearby lake where no power boats are allowed and row to a quiet secluded little shore and just sit and relax and listen to the sounds of nature and waves rippling against the shore.
Thanks for getting me to think about what I'd do with a free day...I'm lucky enough to get to do some of these things every week. Your fabric is beautiful and who ever wins it will be lucky!
P.S., sorry about the typos...did catch before I clicked sent...also my link seems to go to some nothing-blog...not sure why but I'm vintage-chica on Flickr!
I'm a 37weeks pregnant. so I have lots of free days at the moment. This time could be one of my special stage of my life to have lots of free times! I like going for a walk in the morning around Narrabeen Lake (Sydney Northern Beaches)and do duckling hunting. Then going back home and have breakfast. Then think about what I feel like doing today. I love doing this - having no plan, no stress, even don't need to check the clock!
Sometimes going to the swimming bath or making baby's clothes.
My new project is to embroide plain baby's clothes which were given to us.
A free day riding my bike, enjoy a lingering bath and in home massage, early to bed with a book
The fabrics are just gorgeous!
Ok... a free day...
Some napping, lots of art, knitting with kitties all around me, a nice dinner (catered by someone else) with my family, maybe a favorite movie... sounds lovely!
Heather
if i had a free day... i'd play in the garden, work on some existing knitting and sewing projects, start some new ones and nap with my cats
i love your fabrics melanie!!! they are a source of much inspiration
I just love all of the fabrics. They remind me of my childhood, even though I am not of Asian descent. My father sailed to Japan when I was very young and until I had finished elementary school. One of his many purchases overseas was a wedding kimono. I had saved it all of those years but lost it in a disasterous flood that hit my neighborhood December, 2006.
if i had a free day i'd go visit my mom and sisters in arkansas whom i haven't seen if over a year. my sisters have has 2 new babies recently and i'd love to hold them and play with them.
huggs
susy
forgot to say i live in indiana..it isn't that long of a travel.. but with an autistic child it can be a little diffuclt.. but anyways thats what i'd do if i had a free day :)
If a had a free day I would sew all day! I have been dreaming of it..I have so many ideas of bags and things I would like to make but never anytime to just play around with the fabric. Not an extraordinary thing but honestly that's all I want!
Thank you for stopping by my blog. I was just going to say hello, but then I saw that I could just scrape in the deadline for a chance at this beautiful prize.
Hmm, a free day? It's been a long time. I'd start with sleeping in (yep, I have 2 small kids). After that I'm torn between going to a bookstore / catching up on sewing etc. or having a really lazy day, exploring the neighbourhood etc. I guess ideally I'd spend it back in England catching up with everyone again.
If I had a free day I would start shopping for fabrics to make a simple coin patchwork doona cover! Comprised of japanese fabrics of course :-)
If I had a free day - I'd sleep in, get up and have milkcoffee and stroke the cat whilst blog-surfing... and then I'd get started on this bag, I've been planning to do for three weeks.
If I had a free day I would start to get organised for the arrival of my baby, due in 40 days time (29th Feb). Not my first baby, as you can probably guess from my "relaxed" attitude to the preparation, but as it has been almost 8 years since the last baby arrived, I do have quite a bit to do to get ready. Perhaps if I won the fabric pack I could make somthing pretty to decorate the baby's room, as the nesting instinct is starting to kick in. Unfortunately I am still at work for another couple of weeks so the opportunity to nest will just have to wait...
just got a book by Sudo, would make some of her cute designs out of your awesome fabric!
A free day? Hopefully it's somewhere sunny so I can lay outside and read. Drink some lemonaide. Nap. Relax and be happy, as a free day should be.
G'day Melanie,
currently house sitting in Greenwich, Sydney so have the luxury of free days, ill take a walk, many in fact into the bush, along the creek, and be inspired by the foliage and lichen for more projects. I've recently learned the art of nuno felting so i'm looking for beautiful silks to blend with the wool tops that felt so beautifully into silk fibre.
I enjoy your web site I too have fallen in love with Japan.
Bea
i want to be the last and lucky girl :)
i always heard about these vintage kimonos. they sound so delight.
sorry Mayki you're not the last :-)
I have a 7 month old baby boy so with a day all to myself, honestly - I'd sleep, all on my own - no interruptions, no cats walking up me, hubby snoring, baby skawking. Just me, in a big fluffy bed, and some lovely lovely peace and quiet...
oh and dream about what I could make with this sumptuous bundle of fabrics...
thanks for the lovely give away. I'd feel blessed to win some of this gorgeous fabric.
with a free day, I'd craft to my hearts content. it seems I never have enough time for crafty fun lately.
I hope that I will get the fabric
I love to do doll and with that fabric I could make some dresses. Also I love to make some kimonos
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