Zakka Style Pen Cases

Have you heard of the Zakka Style that lives on the edge of the Quilting World?

It is what I call the "Young Girls" are doing.  Those are the older 20/younger 30 somethings that have gone to college and gotten Art Degrees or Graphic Design Degrees but have no background in quilting.  They are the ones who put out modern designs and lots of straight line quilting.

I like a lot of the modern designs.  I don't particularly like the heavily pieced patchwork and the old style fabrics.  So a lot of the changes I think are good and fun.  I don't always think they are better, they are different.

So.....back to Zakka.  When I had those points from Frank's sales awards and traded them for some quilting books (and that Ice Cream maker!) I got a Zakka book by Rashida Coleman-Hale.  It is actually a collection of things by other people in one book.  And there are now many books on Zakka Style things. 

Zakka, as they are defining it, is a Japanese term for "many little things".  There is a whole movement defined by Zakka and all these Young Girls are filling books and magazines with many little things.

Some are cute and useful, most are not.  But that is my opinion, understand that.  Like the bookmark that is the ugliest elephant I have ever seen.  Why? 

But on the other hand, I like the sewing kit and the buckets.  Rashida uses a lot of linen, of which I have little.  (The Young Girls seem to LOVE linen like they line negative space.)

I look at the pictures in bed at night.  It is what I do with my magazines and books that live at the side of my bed, you don't want to see that stack!  But today I decided to try something out of it.

For something quick, I settled on the Patchwork Pencil Case by Shannon Dreval.  Maybe it was because she lives in France even though she grew up in the US, her directions were really confusing.  Once I figured out what she meant, the second one was easier.



It is cute, but mine is not as smooth as I would like it to be.  If you look at the photo in the book, it is not smooth and she used the linen I did not have.  But it will work to hold pencils and pens well.

I guess the Zakka things are no worse than the multitude of totes, mug rugs and knitting caddies made by the traditional quilters!