Shannon Carter: Thanksgiving in Japan
Name of the Piece: Thanksgiving in Japan
I hooked this rug for a Face Book challenge "family memory/event".
Design inspired from family photos during our tour to Okinawa Japan. My parents decided to come visit us during Thanksgiving of 2010 while living in Japan. We decided to have some traditional Japanese photos taken during their visit and it happened to take place on Thanksgiving Day. We all got to pick out our kimonos and accessories. Traditional hairstyle and makeup was professionally done. Our youngest daughter who is always cheerful and happy had a rare moment of not wanting to smile in the pictures. I tried to capture the facial expression in the rug with her frowning. One of our memorable experiences during our 5 year stay in Japan while enjoying the culture, food and local traditions. This one really took me out of my comfort level as I primarily hook primitive, wide cut with room for errors. This was my first piece doing people with faces. I struggled a lot with capturing the face, lips, eyes, feet, and body proportions. I had to use finer yarn with the kimonos to get the desired design which I found is a bit harder. Also, I wish I had hair spray to keep some of the yarn in place, facing a certain direction, as it would keep turning on me. Overall I am very pleased with this rug and will cherish it and the memories.
