Mini Tip: Tsumami Kanzashi Supplies

I've been getting a lot of questions about supplies. I know there isn't much info out there, and a lot of it is scattered. Whatever I can do to help people learn, I'll be glad to. Let me know any questions and I'll be happy to help.

Here's some info you might like to know:::

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CHIRIMEN AND HABUTAE::
Chirimen has a twisted, textured look. I don't think it makes as elegant or delicate a kanzashi, but they're bright and beautiful. Chirimen doesn't fray much when cut. Wonderful to use.

Habutae is a dream to work with. It's so light and folds as crisply as paper. It will take to the starch quite well and you likely won't need a glue gun, like I was using. But it -is- silk for all I can tell (hence the word silk in the title?) so I prefer to avoid it unless I'm recycling it from another item. Personal reasons. Someone let me know if they find super delicate Ahimsa Silk. n...n

**You can use any fabric you want, but a really close, tight weave is best. Course fabrics will be likely very unattractive and look like a bad 70s brooch.

**Starch well! The more I practice, the more I see how important it is that your fabric can hold the folds.

ON STARCH::
There is a recipe to make your own glue in which you boil 1 cup rice, 1/4 cup salt and 3-4 (or more) cups water that I found online. You boil it into a nice sludge and then put it in the blender. I've made this and frankly, I'd rather spend the dollar and get a tube of it pre-done. It's less lumpy and fussy.

OTHER TIPS::
All I can say is practice, practice, practice. Experiment. Like every skill in life, you will only get better with dedication. The more you improve one skill, the more quickly new arts will come to you. If you are willing to learn all you can of everything you come across, you will find greater satisfaction and success in your final product. Think of it as power leveling in the RPG of life. It's a good thing. : )

Look at the folds you make and the way the petals change depending on how much you trim it. Observe as much as you can. Don't just blindly fold the fabric the way it's demonstrated, -understand- how folding those certain ways actually make the shape.

The best thing you can do for yourself is learn to learn from observing. Take in the small details and begin to practice them. That way, in an art form like tsumami kanzashi where you would be hard pressed to find classes or live demonstrations, you will have the capacity to learn from nothing but looking at photos of finished pieces.

If you're curious how something works, try it on a scrap piece of paper or fabric. Don't be afraid.

When you fold and glue, always -always- take the time to make sure your folds are still true and that the tips and sides match up and that you make all trims equal. Even very slight deviations will effect the final look of your flower and it's a real bummer to spend an hour of your time making a flower and then see that some petals are slightly larger or smaller or don't sit right and know it was all because you didn't take the second to readjust if it shifted while in glue. Tsumami kanzashi aren't difficult to make because they're complicated (sometimes,) they're difficult to make because they require a good deal of focus, perfection and patience. Think of it less a task or project and more an experiment in peaceful focus and conscious creation. You can't zone while you're doing this and have it come out as beautiful as you may hope it will. No TV for you. XD

The single most important thing is to just -do- it. n...n!! Don't think about doing it, just DO! Be the artist you wanna be, damnit! n....n!


========================
If there's anything else you want to know, I'll do my best to let you know.

Happy folding!

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• how-to
• how
• to
• DIY
• Tsumami
• Kanzashi
• Zipangu
• Japan
• Geisha
• Maiko
• chirimen
• fold
• hair
• habutae
• silk
• supplies
• fashion
• fabric

[Dragonlet176]

I think the website no longer exist, as it seems to link me to a blank page...:(

[meandrousart]

@Dragonlet176 Yes, I've been told that, unfortunately. I have the contact for the gentleman I worked with and I'll e-mail him and ask him if he's opening up again. I'm also going to upload a new video soon that will be trying to show how to make them without as many foreign supplies that are sometimes hard to find. : ) Sorry for the late reply-!

[lexygaga]

I cant find the video you mention at the beginning on how to make the flowers can you tell me where can i find it I'm really interested....... Thanks

[meandrousart]

@lexygaga Sorry, my video on that was taken down. I've agreed to make another one soon so please come back later. : ) Sorry for the late reply too, btw.

[ShoujoAkuma]

My friend, thank you so much. I was going nuts trying to figure out how and where to get supplies, and how long.... It was getting frustrating....

[meandrousart]

I'm glad it's useful to you! The owner of this website approached me about the subject and I was able to work with him and tell him the kinds of items people outside of Japan sometimes find hard to locate and he arranged to have those items just for that reason! I think that if you're ever looking for anything else specific, just ask and maybe he can find it.

[mexico1568]

@Phoenecian84

[meandrousart]

Each flower you make is usually on a wire. You wrap the wires around each other and onto an armature made of wire or onto the clip or comb you're using. I hope that makes sense! I have to make a new instructional video soon so I will try to cover that in better detail. Sorry for the long delay!

[aquastarz]

I was wondering: How do you connect different parts together? Do you use string to connect multiple pieces? Thanks!!

[Phoenecian84]

After using a couple differnt methods I found that using Rice Flour is also a really great sub. It's quicker and less waste. ;)