DIY Life

Kanzashi are traditional Japanese hair ornaments for women, usually worn with a kimono. They are often associated with geisha, but can be worn by anyone. One of the most familiar styles to westerners is the hana (flower) kanzashi. Not many masters are left, and for a long time, tutorials were relatively thin on the ground... I know, I've looked.

Now we have a detailed Tsumami Kanzashi Tutorial, by Christina Stoppa, DeviantArt user Kurokami-Kanzashi. She will teach you how to make a style of hana kanzashi, a trailing cascade of blossoms, out of small squares of fabric. Be sure to take a look at Christina's full gallery, where you'll see many examples of her fine work.

You may also be interested in checking out Kanzashi Core, a gallery of creations by indie fashion designer Vivian Hoffpauir, and other tutorial images by Flickr user SpanglySpangle. This Craftster topic discusses a video series of a Japanese kanzashi master at work, and adds some helpful links, like Ohbara's charming flower-folding tutorial. The results are not limited to use as a hair ornament, even though that's their original purpose; they can be used to make brooches, package decorations, magnets, and anything else you can imagine.

[ via MAKE ]