Tuesday 7 February 2017

The 8th of February and a special significance.

Hello all  , this must be a record of sorts - I seem to have bombarded you with Ollie  the last 2 posts so I  have now  picked  myself up  and although he is missed soooo much, it is getting better. I expect  you will be wondering what significance the 8th is, a date  which I found a few years ago and thought I would share it with you.
If you have already heard about it then ignore the article I am  about to share with you. I have done a few of "my" news  to share too. 
In Japan on the 8th of February is held the Festival of Broken needles.
This is the day when Japanese needleworkers will lay their broken pins and needles to rest.Woman take a day off from their sewing chores and take their old or broken needles to the shrines or temples.
Hari Kuyo is a 400 year old festival  held in Buddist temples and Shinto shrines, Broken pins and needles are thanked for their work and laid to rest in a bed of soft jelly or tofu cakes. Stitchers pray for the repose of their needles ,improvement of their sewing skills and safety from injury when sewing.

Some people believe the tools have souls and they are treated with care and respect.We rely on countless helpful tools which are the result of ingenuity and craftsmanship.Perhaps celebrating pins and needles and  the service they provide reminds us of the many small  things we should be thankful for.

Another aspect of Hari Kuyo is the letting go of personal burdens.Concerns and complaints are shared with their needles passing the burdens onto them so that when the needles are put to rest they take the cares,worries and sadness with them /Who amongst us has not found solace and respite in our stitching.
I just had to share that on here.

So now onto other things,  stitching of my own . I have started the New Year by taking part in the monthly challenge on Needlecraft Haven  ,we are given a free pattern by Christine to download  and stitch however we like last month was a penguin with Happy New year 2016 on ,  as you know 2016 started pretty grim family wise and has gone best forgotten ,I  did not want to put this years date on either so I opted for something different on mine.
I made mine into a little bag with a penguin bar inside. I stitched it over one on 28 which I love doing. That is my first finish of the year. If you want to know how to join us in our Monthly Challenge ,put Needlecraft Haven in your search engine (technical speak here lol).I have had intermittent days stitching lately due to events but I am loving Winter the sal I am  doing with Sally.  Here is how far I have got ,finished R last evening.

Not a very good pic I am afraid.
The sheep one I am doing again with Sally although I am not sure which sheep one she is doing , is Spring Makeover and I have added another sheep to the queue for the bath and some grass and flowers.
I shall start the next row on Friday. I also have  to choose a new  start for tonight and something to stitch in the parlour again at NH . Not sure what to choose. 
Just had a phone call from  the vet ,so I am in  bits again ,Ollies ashes are ready for collection. Oh dear its  hard.
The day after he went we decided to go for a walk  and chose the Radipole  lake  bird reserve. It was a place we had never taken him too and water and birds  to chase would have been too  much temptation for him. The header was the  queue forming  for  lunch.
Some  pics of where we went.
It was a trifle muddy in places but it was nice to get out and see the occaisonal birds.

Lots  of ducks  and  feeding time was in progress,with wellie booted children  clamouring for  food to throw. I remember  doing it  with mine when  they were small.
 We have been trying to get out most days , today I popped into town on  the bus as Martin  is working . I have more than enough ironing to get done  tomorrow .
I  am hoping to get to see some  snowdrops  next week on  my birthday,  another year older. I had to go to Poole hospital  last Thursday to have a MRI scan on my back. I saw the consultant on  Monday last and  he wanted me to have a scan . So we caught the train and  the deed was done . I couldnt believe how quick it was between  seeing him and getting  a phone call to say they could do it  the next day if I liked. Anyway those are the days Martin works  so we went on  Thursday. I  have to see consultant to get results and see where we go from here.
I have been reading and I am well into my 3rd  book of the year. I have of course bought some more and  they are sitting on the ever increasing pile  to read. I find I can  lose myself in a book . These are 3 I have bought last week.
So my dear readers once more I have come to the end  of my post.  Take great care of yourselves and I will be back ,not sure when as it  all depends on  the mood I am in  , hope this has not  been too depressing  a read.
hugs to all .
Barb,

14 comments:

Christine said...

Great challenge finish Barb, and I'm loving the sheep queuing up for the bath.
The bird reserve looks like a lovely place

butterfly said...


Love your challenge what a cute design.
All your stitching looks so lovely .
Like your header , and the bird reserve , I spend hours watching the birds , hugs.

Justine said...

I love the Winter piece you are stitching with Sally - it's gorgeous! Your little sheep queueing up are very sweet and I love how you finished the penguin stitch.
8th Feb is my birthday too! I had heard of the Festival of Broken Needles but didn't know the date. I love the idea of putting our burdens to rest too, I wish I could do that.
Thinking of you at this difficult time too.

angelasweby said...

Barb, dear friend :-) I just popped by on the off chance, I like to call in regularly, and there, to my great delight was another post. I was warmed by the knowledge that things were no longer quite as bleak although I know it will be a long journey coming to terms with the absence of Ollie in your lives.
I loved reading about the Broken needles ceremony especially the letting go of personal burdens part of the ceremony. It sounds soothing just reading about it.
Your SAL is coming along so well. I love your progress on Winter. It sounds as if your stitching is helping you in times of sadness . I know it helps me.
Hope everything goes well with the scan. What a relief to get it over and done with without worrying too much before hand. keep us posted on your news.
Radipole lake looks so inviting. I know Jack would love to be there, who knows, maybe one day.
Your birthday next week...hmm, now that is a surprise...haha!
Take care dear friend. xx

angelasweby said...

PS Was intrigued by the Arthur Pepper book, nipped onto Amazon, checked it out and it should be here by tomorrow :-) Thank you for the recommendation.
xx

Vickie said...

Your penguin stitching is so sweet Barb. Your stitching with Sally is great! I am glad you are getting out. Take good care of your back.♥

marly said...

Interesting. I don't like winter but it's adorable in stitches!

Mary - Lecoeurceltique said...

A lovely challenge finish, Barb. I like your SAL projects with Sally. It's good to get out and clear your head. Hope your MRI scan results are OK.

Julie said...

I'd never heard of this, what a lovely thing to do.
Fancy us both making little bags with the Jan design, great minds think alike lol.
The sheep design is funny, the bath did make me smile.
Winter looks great, I hear we might her some flurries of the white stuff this weekend.
Radipole does look nice, so many differing birds to admire and nice to walk somewhere different, the new header is a great pic you captured.
love and {hugs}, hope the wait for news from the consultant isn't too long. xx

Cindy's Stitching said...

I had no idea about the needles. pretty finishes. the pictures of the ducks are so cute.

Carol said...

How interesting to read about the Japanese needle festival, Barb! I had never heard about that...

Lovely stitching--I especially enjoyed seeing your progress on Winter :)

Andrea said...

Beautiful WIPs, love the Spring sheep design.

Tiffstitch said...

Beautiful stitching on everything! We lost our beloved basset almost 3 years ago and we're still not over it. It gets easier everyday, but there's such a hole. Sending you lots of love and empathy!

Barbara said...

I have heard about this custom in Japan but I didn't know the date of it. Thank you for posting this. Our grand daughter is marrying a man who has a Japanese heritage and I was lucky enough to see the geisha dolls that his grandmother stitched by hand over her lifetime. To say they were beautiful is an understatement. The Japanese are very patient and to work for a year on one small project is customary. I love your finishes....you do beautiful work.
Hugs

Hawthorns Scavenger Photo Hunt June

Well hello everyone ,super sets of photos last  time. Mine this time  again has been last  minute so shall we begin. The  words this month ...