*posted March 26
Blog Post for Feb 28th - March 6th
Ever since I took a break from making tsumami kanzashi, I feel like my knowledge and "professionalism" as a crafter has gradually just...seeped out of me. In a terrifying one-way traffic kind of way, and while being asked to decorate for weddings and other events helped the creative juices to continue flowing, I never felt quite as accomplished as the days that I made tsumami kanzashi on a weekly, if not every other day, basis.
There was a great sense of "I did that..." whenever I finished a piece, all the more so if it was for a photo shoot (that I would also take the pictures for and edit). While I do not regret taking the break (as it was HIGHLY HIGHLY NECESSARY for my general health and well-being), Japan House, where my sister interns in Champaign, IL, provided me with a rare opportunity to revisit those days.
-------------------------
Hinamatsuri "Hype-Sesh" at Broadway Food Hall
THEIR event was going to be Saturday, but they had a "inform the public about Japanese culture" kind of event the Friday before, and asked if I'd be willing to go up. Going up meant one more evening with my dear sister, so of course I said yes.
So, Friday, as soon as I finished my weekly Friday lunch with my girls, I drove up with a full car of tsumami kanzashi stuff (some personal stash tsumami kanzashi to show off in addition to 1/2 of my library) to Champaign where I picked up the sister and we drove to Broadway Food Hall. We then got dressed in yukata, popped tsumami kanzashi into the hair of all the female interns, and set out the stuff for the Champaign public's viewing.
sister with wisteria (fuji) tsumami kanzashi made by my friend, Arleen
GORGEOUS black and pink kimono from Japan House (for viewing)
people here to view the stuff
tsumami kanzashi (my stuff) is what's closest to the camera, further down was some information stuff about Hinamatsuri and some origami crafts for them to do
people flipping through my "library", my tsumami kanzashi stash, and tsumami kanzashi displayed on one of my favorite mid-length wigs on a figure head
I have a string of these (in other colors) that was given to me as a gift from another Champaign trip (by the sister and dad), and these lovelies were on display at the event. I LOVED the color scheme, particularly in the cold wintry/soon-to-be spring weather in which everything is grey...
Sorry, guys. No pictures of me here. I was "working", but while it was very long...it was also a welcome "return" to my craft sale days. I wasn't there to sell anything (are you kidding? Those tsumami kanzashi are MINE. My own. My preeeeeeeciousssss!! lol XD ), but it was nice to be able to don the professional face and talk about tsumami kanzashi for 4 hours. :)
-------------------------
Saturday morning was gonna be really important to get a good start on for me and Ash because we would be working for the next few hours in a high-stress (unintentional, but it was going to be) environment and we KNEW it. So Ash took me down to the Union building on U of I's campus for some yummies. I honestly didn't really know what to expect and I was a very happy foodie when we were done.
Yep, we went to Einstein's Bros Bagels. Had never been, will definitely go again.
Good coffee. Good morning.
Just look. At all. The bagels.
The logo, bag, and cup were ADORABLE. Good branding, EBB.
I couldn't help it. I got mini pepperoni "pizza" bagels (to split with Ash) and an Applewood Bacon and Cheddar bagel sandwich for breakfast/brunch.
NOM. Picture taken by Ash, to whom I gave free reign of which filter from the Snow app she'd use
All in all, a good start to the busy day and boy, did we need it!
-------------------------
Girls' Day Event
After breakfast, Ash and I headed out to Japan House where we would be busy working for the next few hours. There, I met (again) the Director of Japan House, Dr. Jennifer Gunji-Ballsrud. I had met her VERY briefly the first time I visited Japan House for the Bazaar back in Dec, but this was the first time that I really got a chance to see what kind of person she was.
Can we just say "Asian woman goals"? Altogether now. Jennifer is LITERALLY the most gracious, equal parts sweet and elegant, mild-mannered, mature, and put-together Asian woman that I've ever met in my life. All 5 ft and a couple inches of her.
ULTIMATE. RESPECT.
Jennifer and her niece. SO KAWAII. Look at that...little...chibi... <3 <3 <3
also, can we talk about Jennifer's platform slippers? A-MAZE-ZING.
(you don't wear shoes in Japan House, you're in socks or in indoor/bedroom slippers)
an intern explaining to the first "tea group" (this is the 12 and younger, their moms are sitting in chairs) what would be going on in a few minutes
Typically speaking, you have to pay to take part in a Japan House tea, even if you're a student. This helps pay the interns and also pays for the materials and upkeep of Japan House. I was getting this amazing experience FOR FREE. And now you understand my excitement.
The only dampener on the whole experience was the fact that I have something like a semi-handicapped right ankle due to an injury that has never properly healed due to never having actually been "broken" back in 2010. It's bothered me ever since, with varying degrees of intensity. While the ankle itself was okay that day, I was worried about the state of it because I had already been on my feet for the 1st tea + workshop, the tea ceremony would mean about 30 min of sitting seiza (link here for some info on what that entails) which would put all my weight ON my ankle, and then I'd be on my feet for the rest of the workshop after the second tea was over. To make matters worse, the joint from my big toe that connects to my foot was swelling and in all kinds of pain that past week and seemed to only be getting worse as the days went by. Thanks for all who have been praying, by the way. At the time of this posting (March 26), it's improved somewhat.
In conclusion, it was a special, albeit painful, experience, and I'm still very grateful that I got to be a part of the tea ceremony as the guest of honor. Hopefully my next time won't be quite as painful.
-------------------------
KO-Fusion Dinner + Coco Mero
After a LONG, arduous day of making TONS of tsumami kanzashi (which were, given the time constraints and additional untrained help which was the fault of no one, of questionable quality) that had me limping slightly with a sore ankle and Ash who had gotten burnt by the glue guns that were too big for the fine work we were doing, we went to KO-Fusion for dinner (located near Caffe Bene).
interior of the restaurant and the menu
these...fried rice, crab, and (I didn't know till I bit into it) cream-cheese balls
they were...okay. If you like crab rangoon, you'll probably love them, but for someone like me...not so much.
I DID eat it all though, because you don't waste food (unless it's like...gone bad).
As a treat to ourselves for a long day of work and a "last treat before I go" kind of thing before I headed back to C'dale, Ash and I went to our favorite fro-yo place in Champaign, Coco Mero. I got the original flavor (kinda tart) and green tea with mochi bits and adzuki red bean. I think I'll skip the original next time and just go for the super Japanese combination. haha
And that was my super packed weekend! It was actually nice to get back to the regular swing of things afterwards, but the trip was SO MUCH FUN and brought me such fun moments with my sister (in addition to reminiscing about my tsumami kanzashi making days).
-------------------------
Thanks again for being patient with me during the hiatus!
Backlogged blog Post 3 / 3...DONE! :D
No comments:
Post a Comment