Sashiko Sakura

 I was given a Sashiko piece and thread for my birthday. It is the sakura (cherry blossom) pattern and involves a LOT of stitching.

Looking at the package, I'm worried the one spool of thread won't be enough. It looks like this pattern requires five 20m hanks of thread or two 80m balls of thread. Oh dear. I just checked the spool I have and it only has 30m of thread so I definitely will have to source more. Probably three more spools.

A little later...

I found the same thread and colour on Etsy from a seller in Hong Kong and ordered them. Arrival time will be between June 19 and 27. Shipping was only $8.38CAD from Hong Kong. Shipping the same items within Canada would have cost about $25CAD. I already had sashiko needles. 

It's already looking really nice.

There are English instructions on the accompanying sheet and diagrams. First, all the stitches are done through both layers of fabric back and forth. Once all horizontals are done, then I'll do the vertical lines. 

I'm simply covering the printed lines with the thread.

Then all the diagonals are stitched on one slant, (edges of petals, lines near centres of blossoms) then on the other slant.

Once all the stitching has been done, it is rinsed in water so all the printed lines will disappear. I think it's going to look really spiffy. It will just be a decorative cloth.