I spent most of May writing, drawing, and writing again. As I mentioned, my book project is quickly coming due, and I feel adrenaline is helping me be more productive. As I was writing my book, I was grateful for the help and support I got from my family and friends. Sometimes I get support from a direction I never imagined, which makes me feel grateful and humble. Thank you all! (You all know you are!)

In mid-May, I took a short trip to Boise, Idaho for a photoshoot. I was so excited to have photos of my work taken by Carrie Hoge (co-creator of Making Co. and Making app).
I first fell in love with Making magazine when I saw the first issue at one of my favorite creative places, A Verb for Keeping Warm, in Oakland, CA. I was dreaming about having my own form of making in the Making magazine. As many of you knew, my dream came true and I was so happy to share my projects with the Making community. 
I spent a lovely time in Boise with Carrie and David at Matt's studio. David is also a co-founder of Making, and he is such a thoughtful person. When David and Matt saw one of my stitch sampler books, Matt sent a photo to his wife, Katie. And guess what! Katie had taken my class with Tatter's Hand Sewn Quilting Series a while ago and she is another maker of many things! So she came to the studio the next day while we were shooting photos and helped us with kindness. Matt's support and advice during the photo shoot were additional kindness I received. Our model, Donna (yes, we even had a model for wearables!) was so elegant. I never get tired of meeting people with the same interests and this is the happiness that my bojagi brings me! It's the moment that the work doesn't feel like work anymore. 


   
After I came back home, I jumped into another upcoming project. I've been so fortunate to be a recipient of an apprenticeship supported by the Alliance for California Traditional Arts. I participated in this program with my first apprentice, Steph Rue, in 2019. Last year, Mariah and I applied. I had a great time sharing Korean traditions, culture, and of course bojagi with her. Last week, we installed and opened our exhibit, 'Bojagi: Piecing Time and Tradition Together' at the Hanging Thread Gallery in San Francisco School of Needle Art and Design in San Francisco, CA. If you are in the Bay Area or have plans to visit, please come and celebrate Mariah's accomplishment with us! You will be able to see some of my work, too, but I am a proud teacher at this moment! 
We will have a workshop on June 3. This is an in-person event. We will make Mandu, dumpling mobiles. Please come and join us! 


As promised, Heehwa and I are offering a new online class about Korean Embroidery. I used to take my Korea Textile Tour group to her studio in Seoul to learn Korean Embroidery in the past. Currently, she is living in Edinburgh, Scotland. Please check out her bio, website, and some of her beautiful work. Heehwa will teach a class and I will moderate the class (so I can learn with you!) 

This class will cover a brief introduction to Korean traditional embroidery and the practicals of three essential Korean embroidery stitches.

You're welcome to join us regardless of your level of sewing skill and knowledge.

Heehwa Jo is an embroidery artist, tutor, and the author of the Korean Embroidery Tutorial Book titled “전통자수,한국의 기본 자수 배우기 (Learn Korean Embroidery)”. She currently resides in Edinburgh, Scotland, but is originally from Seoul, South Korea. Jo has always been fascinated by Korean traditions and textile arts and decided to pursue a Bachelor's degree in Korean Language and Literature along with Textiles and Fashion Design. She developed a special interest in embroidery while working for clothing companies and further enhanced her skills during a three-year Korean Traditional Embroidery course at the School of Korean Traditional Crafts and Architecture. Since 2017, she has been teaching people Korean embroidery and has participated in various exhibitions and workshops.

Jo's embroidery is a fusion of ancient Korean tradition and her contemporary artistic vision. She incorporates original Korean stitches and auspicious symbols from artifacts to create new embroidery collections, with the hope that they will become part of the heritage for the next generation. When practicing embroidery, she emphasizes the importance of expressing oneself freely, just like the free-spirited ancestors who pushed the boundaries of their tradition with every new challenge.

 For more of Jo's embroidery work, please visit

-Instagram: @johhembroidery

-Website: johh.creatorlink.net