Kanzashi in Bloom

Kanzashi Tsumami is the Japanese art of folding delicate squares of silk into dimensional flower petals. The art of Kanzashi is exacting, requiring long years of practice to master - in fact, only fifteen Kanzashi artists currently practice the traditional art in Japan. The online craft culture has sprouted a renewed interest in making Kanzashi, with crafters devising simplified ways to create these gorgeous fabric flowers, and incorporating cotton and synthetic fabrics along with the traditional silks. Author Diane Gilleland's Kanzashi in Bloom takes this interpretation of Kanzashi a step further, presenting modern, simplified flower designs as elements in a variety of fun, hip craft projects for adornments and gifts. The book presents instructions for four simple Kanzashi components, and demonstrates how these elements can be mixed and matched to create 20 diverse projects, including jewellery, fashion embellishments, ornaments and home decor items. It also takes Kanzashi out of the realm of delicate silks, and renders them in more user-friendly and unusual materials like cottons, denim, and recycled jumpers.