There might be other flowers that are worn as part of the kanzashi calendar for April, but I wanted to do a lot of cherry blossoms this year. So, that’s what I’ve been doing; cherry blossoms on cherry blossoms. This week’s update is not the most exciting; I worked mostly on a series of small cherry blossom hair pins in different colors – white, pink, and two tone pink and white – but I still feel pretty proud of what I’ve produced.

But, I will say that when you’re working on a long term project – like I am with my production grant – it does help to break things up. It can be a little mind numbing to produce the same thing over and over.

So far I’ve been working mostly on smaller pieces; I’ve made 200+ lapel pins, almost all 150 sets of hair pin and clip pairs, and quite a few of the medium and small fascinator hair pins. I don’t photograph and post everything I make on the blog, because it would just be a lot of the same – and I want to keep things here feeling fresh.

That said, I think I’m going to start mixing things up soon and working on larger pieces – pieces that are a bit more unique and require more thought and consideration than simple lapel pins do. For example, I’ve always wanted to do a piece that features lanterns – ones that actually light up. I’ve also had a large butterfly base on the back burner for a while, and an idea for bun covers that involves mizuhiki.

Lately I’ve been feeling a little intimidated at the thought of trying new things. Even though it’s a little mind numbing, there’s also comfort in the familiar; in doing something again that you’ve done a hundred times before. But in the end I always find a way to push past that fear and move forward. There will always be bumps in the road, but if you keep putting one foot in front of the other you’ll eventually get to where you’re going.

Anyhoo, that is all I’ve got for today. I hope to see you guys again next week with more crafty creative projects.

If you like this set and want to see more of my work in the future, be sure to join the Mailing List to get notified whenever an update is posted. You can also follow me on Instagram and check out my Youtube for videos showing my crafting process, travel, shopping, and gaming. 🙂 Check back here again next week for more crafty projects, and at the end of the month when this set and more will be dropping into the Shop!