YoYo/Suffolk quilting

My secondary school teachers, Mr. Johnson and Miss Mamora. At the right is me, you see my very beautiful Sarawak beads. (Photo taken in Dec 1999)

Making rosettes or “Yo-Yo” or Suffolk puffs. A pair of very sharp scissors, a round shape like a can or CD disc to make your template. Trace out circles on fabric. Fold over/hem at the edge and make neat tiny running stitch to the entire edge. Gentle pull the thread to form gathers. You should get a round rosette. To the Chinese, you will think they look like Cha Siew Bao or Chinese roast buns.

When you have enough discs, join them side by side to get strips and lastly join the strips so each disc is attached at four ends.

I added a pair of reading glasses. When you reach half a century, you need glasses to make neat dainty stitches.

make tiny running stitch round the fabric before you pull the thread to make gathers.

Cut disc left, rosette right, the rosette is less than half the diameter.

Choose a not too stiff material. My friend's top was made with silk cotton. If you look at the red discs, the hole in the centre is too big. No good for quilts, but ok for making toys. The lime green and purple material is soft, so the gathering is done beautifully and the hole is very small. For the bigger disc, I made lace disc to cover the big hole. You can also make lace discs and use them to make hair accessories. These ones are experimental ones, it was more than 25 years ago when I last made them to make a clown.

  I have been wanting to make these discs since Christmas. My colleague wore this top to our Christmas function. At the collar of her top, were these disc. It brought me back to my childhood. Known in USA as yo-yo quilting or Japanese Fabric embroidery.

I dedicate this post to my domestic Science teacher Miss Ada Mamora.( The woman in the photo, taken with my British teacher Mr. Johnson during my 28th reunion of our fifth formers in 1999. )It was 26 year since I saw my teachers as I finished my form 6 in Methodist school in Sibu.

Miss Mamora taught me domestic science when I was 13. She taught me to make things made by hand.  We did fabric dying, cross stitch and others I couldn't name or forgotten. She didn't teach me the above Japanese fabric embroidery. She taught my older sister, and I learn it from her. My sister made a clown in school. In 1985 I made one for my first baby who is now my 27th year old daughter.  It was one of it's kind and I was very proud of it. I had friends from all over the world and they had never seen something like that.

Going back to my colleague's top, I told her, I know how to make the discs. She was surprised because she had never heard anyone making them. Earlier this year, a student was wearing a dress with a few of these on the front of her dress. I was more determined to make it as I couldn't explain to my friends from Germany, England and Fiji. 

I asked my second daughter if she like a quilt made with these discs, since I had made a quilt for big daughter, and a cross stitch picture for my son.  It doesn't take a lot of time to make one disc, but it takes very meticulous and nimble fingers to make them, I will let you know if I do finish the quilt. You need to make thousands and thousands of these discs. So I am not very hopeful. Yo-yo quilts were very popular in the 1930′s and 1940′s.

Black-Eyed Susan vine (Thunbergia Alata)

http://floralfridayfoto.blogspot.co.nz/

The Black-Eyed Susan vine (Thunbergia Alata) is a tropical plant that originally came from parts of Africa, Asia and Madagascar. The only real similarity between the two is that both bear flowers with dark centers surrounded by bright yellow or orange petals.

 

Extraordinary People

a man born with cerebral palsy and whose parents have disabilities, but who is making the best of his challenging circumstances.
Read more at http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/extraordinary-people-in-a-life-of-limitations-frustration-slowly-9151198

When I watch this, my tears wet my eyes. If I thought my life is hard, these people have it worst. The boy have Cerebral Palsy. I had students who have CP. Seeing their struggle in walking, sometimes I wish I can just scoop them up and carry them.

Sarawak Liberation day

Today is Sarawak's LIBERATION DAY.....The Japanese surrendered at Pending at about 5p.m. September 11, 1945

The Japanese Occupation had particular significance to my family.

From the onset of the occupation, the Japanese had chosen my dad to be a civilian worker, a dangerous and hated job. He was only seventeen. Mum was twelve when they came, her parents hid her from forcefully taken to be a Japanese sex slave., when she was fifteen, they reckoned it was too dangerous to hide her anymore. They sought a complete stranger to be married. They married in March 1945, and the war finished in September.

That was the way the world turned, and there won't be me.

Thursday Challenge: Remembrances

	Thanks Dale, I enjoyed participating your meme.
				ann: World War 2: WW2,In Borneo What is the book about? It talks about the Japanese occupation 1942-1945. Location Kwong Tung Bar from Sibu to Kanowit. . http://www.spunwithtears.com/thursday.html

Chinese rice flower （Aglaia Odorata）

http://floralfridayfoto.blogspot.co.nz/

my flower friend Francis Phang posted his rice flower. My Chinese rice flower （Aglaia Odorata）- My Grand pa/Ah Kung planted a bush when we moved to Dad's new house. All of my siblings no longer live in our home town, and we often wonder what had happened to Ah Kung's plants.

SCONTENT.FAKL2-1.FNA.FBCDN.NET

http://ourauckland.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/articles/events/2017/09/taiwan-day-2017/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=ourakl_edm&utm_content=Taiwan%20Day%202017%20%7C%20OurAuckland

Taiwan Day 2017

09 Sep 2017 - 10 Sep 2017

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• 
  Taiwanese folk dance on Taiwan Day
• 
  The Acrobatics Troupe of National Taiwan College of Performing Arts will be on the stage of Taiwan Day 2017
• 
  Multicultural performances
• 
  Taiwanese folk dance on Taiwan Day
• 
  The Acrobatics Troupe of National Taiwan College of Performing Arts will be on the stage of Taiwan Day 2017
• 
  Multicultural performances
• 
  Taiwanese folk dance on Taiwan Day
• 
  The Acrobatics Troupe of National Taiwan College of Performing Arts will be on the stage of Taiwan Day 2017
• 
  Multicultural performances

When

 Saturday 9 September 2017, 10.00am - Saturday 9 September 2017, 6.00pm

 Sunday 10 September 2017, 10.00am - Sunday 10 September 2017, 6.00pm

Where

Aotea Square & Aotea Centre (Limelight 1 & 2 and BNZ Foyer), 50 Mayoral Drive, Auckland CBD

Show map

Cost

Free admission

Contact

Stella Lu

slu.pfeng@xtra.co.nz

021 255 8606

Website

taiwanday.nz

facebook.com/taiwandaynewzealand

Taiwan Day 2017 is a two-day event designed to celebrate and publicise Taiwanese culture to our Auckland communities.

As one of the major cultural festivals in Auckland, it provides opportunities for the public to experience Taiwanese culture and arts.

Activities include multicultural performances, music, crafts, indigenous culture, an indoor art and photography exhibition and, of course, wonderful Taiwanese cuisine.

This year, a special Acrobatics Troupe from National Taiwan College of Performing Arts will be performing on Taiwan Day. They are proficient and skillful in a spectrum of acrobatic techniques and assemblies. Their performances are fun to watch for whole family.

Most importantly, this event provides the opportunity for our communities to come together to experience fun, cultural flavors and friendship.

There's also a lottery raffle with hundreds of great prizes to be won, including air travel for four.