Thanksgiving: Folding Napkins, Dining Elegance!

Photograph by Karen WithakI cannot believe it is Thanksgiving already!  Things here have been so busy that the whole holiday just kind of "snuck up" on me.  Jon and I went to the store today to buy some holiday supplies (he is making garlic mashed potatoes and I am creating stuffing with sausage, apples, and cranberries!)  

I was going to post some holiday origami for the kids, but I wanted to try something different.  I absolutely love it when I go anywhere and napkins are folded into origami -- it gives it such a wonderful flourish!  So I thought what better way to ring in the season than to share some tips for Turkey Day napkin folding.  Folding napkins can either be really easy or really difficult depending on what method you are using, but in general it is pretty simple to make beautiful creations in only a few seconds.  I found this helpful video to get you started.  (The fan fold seems especially appropriate for Thanksgiving!)

 
How to Fold Napkins for Thanksgiving Place Setting -- powered by eHow.com

Some other helpful links: How to fold a pocket napkin, how to fold a turkey napkin, how to make a simple lunch napkin fold

Little Peter Cottontail, Hoppin' Down the Bunny Trail!

For those that celebrate, Happy Easter!  Now that I live across the country from my family and friends, the holidays have gotten a little lonely for me.  Phone conversations just cannot replace dying eggs with my younger sister, playing hide and seek around the backyard, and getting together with my extended family to eat good food and sweets!  This year, J. and I are going to go get ourselves a ham and make some devilled eggs to "celebrate" in between the reading that I need to do for my meeting tomorrow. It is not nearly as festive, but it is just going to have to do.

When I was a little girl, my mom always looked at the holidays as a time to create.  I cannot even count the amount of craft kits she used to bring home for us to make gifts for friends or decorations for the house.  Origami decorations are one of my personal favorites and so I folded a few of these bunnies from the water-bomb base to decorate the apartment.  The little guy in the photo is about to attack his Easter egg M&M in my front yard.  I made a couple to hide near J.'s desk for when he comes home from work as a little surprise!

They are *very* easy to make and here is an online video that outlines the process.  This one is a great project to do with the kids to keep them busy if you are anything like my mother!

Happy Easter!

Happy Girl's Day! Hina Matsuri 2010

Happy Girl's Day Everyone!  March 3rd is the date of "Girl's Day" in Japan (also known as "Hina Matsuri" or Doll Festival  and "Momo no Sekku" or Peach Blossom Festival).  I thought it was especially appropriate to celebrate the holiday here considering the fact that making dolls compromises a large part of my business!  (Edit: One of my dolls, Ichigo, was featured in the Etsy Storque today in an issue about Hina Matsuri!)

On this day families with young daughters celebrate this event at home to ensure their daughter's future happiness. That is, they decorate hina-Ningyo (special, beautiful dolls which are replicas of an ancient emperor and empress and their subordinates).

The dolls are not the everyday dolls usually played with but are ceremonial dolls, a heritage of the household, handed down, many of them, from generation to generation. They are displayed for a few days in the best room of the house at this festival time, after which they are carefully boxed and put away until the next year. Parents who are able to do so buy new sets of dolls for a girl baby born since the preceding festival, and relatives and friends make gifts of dolls.

Peach blossoms, symbolizing a happy marriage, are indispensable decorations of this festival day. The blossoms signify the feminine traits - of gentility, composure and tranquility.

A set of Hina-dolls usually consists of at least 15 dolls, all in the ancient costumes. The display also includes miniature household articles which often are exquisite artistic productions. The dolls most highly valued are the Dairi-sama, which represent the Emperor and Empress in resplendent court costumes of silk. They are attended by their two ministers, three kanjo (court ladies), and five court musicians. All are displayed on a tier of steps, usually five, from 3 to 6 ft. long and covered with bright red cloth. This stand is specially set up in the home only on this day.

The Imperial couple occupy the top step, the Emperor at the left of the Empress. Court ladies and banquet trays and dishes occupy the second tier; the other dolls are arranged on the lower tiers. (Quoted from Ginkoya.com)

I celebrated my first Hina Matsuri while living in Japan in 2005-06.  The dorm parents at my friend's dormitory (@metal_wings) had a beautiful display of dolls they had collected.  I spent a lot of time photographing each one so I could remember them all!  We all got together on Girl's Day to celebrate and it is a memory that I will never forget.

So, whether you are in Japan or any other part of the world, Happy Girl's Day!  Have a cup of shirozake and celebrate!

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