Sashiko Stars for Christmas

Every year I look for a new quick ornament idea that can add a bit of 'homemade' to a gift package, or be tucked into a Christmas card.

This year the hemp leaf (asa-no-ha) Sashiko design is available pre-printed on red and green fabrics.

Use it to make an Sashiko Christmas star decoration. Simply thread a Sashiko needle with Sashiko thread, stitch over the marked stitch lines and you have a star!  

Hitomezashi sashiko stitching can look complicated but breaks down to a few surprisingly simple steps. 

Instructions for stitching this particular design are a little further down the page but first lets have a quick review. (Obviously if you already know this stuff you can scroll right on by :-D)

 How to Stitch Sashiko Samplers, General How To Information

Not all the sashiko samplers are the same, but they all have some things in common.  Here I am writing some instructions that apply to them all, as well as defining the 4 types of sashiko stitching these samplers are available in. 

How to stitch "Peaks" sashiko design

This is how to stitch the Kugurizashi Sashiko kit called Peaks. I've written it to supplement the Japanese language instructions and stitching diagrams that come with the pre-printed fabric. 

This is a very good first project for trying your first the kugurizashi sashiko technique.