I discovered Sawako’s work via a twitter comment from Kit Lane telling the world that they had to click over and visit an amazing new Etsy shop. I found the most beautiful and original work at Alleluja, Sawako’s shop, I hadn’t come across anything similar anywhere else, an astounding combination of kawaii, colour and exquisite skill. Really it is so hard to convey just how perfectly made these tiny porcelain creatures are, you need to hold one in your hands, feel the smooth, glassy glaze next to the warm and fuzzy felt. I am a rhapsode for Sawako’s Kigurumi pincushions, oh and you can wear some of them as pendents as well!

Tell us a little about yourself, the media you work with and your creative process.

“My name is Sawako Hayakawa. I live with my partner and two cats in the suburbs of Tokyo, Japan. I work as a transcriber at my home office. In fact, I don’t know how you say my job in English correctly. It is to convert the oral conversation into the reading ones. I keep typing almost everyday. I began to go to the ceramic workshop of the neighbouring town ten years ago. That was my first experience of ceramic work.

“Also, I started to do the needle felt in my own style a few years later. In after years, I combined them with my work as the pincushion. I think it is the natural flow, because I like the wool as much as the clay. Now, I make the ceramics in my spare time. I formed porcelain soil in my home and do the glazing and the firing in the ceramic workshop.”

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From where do you draw your inspiration: music, books, people, nature etc?

“I like movies and music. Also, I like science fiction novels and manga. My work is sure to have all those influences. Usually, I draw rough sketches before making ceramic works. Every time I find any cute thing, I make a simple sketch of them in my notebook.”

“I always listen to music while making my work, and I’m an iPod user outdoors. I like music such as alternative rock, indie rock and folk music. This music uplifts my feelings and it surely leads me to better work. And I like cats. I find the “kawaii” in their casual gesture day by day. I am inspired by their cuteness.”

“Above all, I like movies very much. My screen name “alleluja” was taken from the hero in a spaghetti western movie titled “Heads I Kill You, Tails You’re Dead! They Call Me Hallalujah”. I’m a movie lover. I am dedicating my work to the movie as a hommage in a somewhat strange way.”

If you could talk briefly about the background to one of your pieces which would you choose and why? Please tell us the story behind the piece.

“I want to talk about my Kigurumi pincushion. I have begun to make this works recently. At first I intended to make Kigurumi doll of the porcelain. “Kigurumi” means a stuffed-animal suit in Japanese. I have been interested in the animal suit long before and I tried to make it with the ceramic art work. I molded an animal suit doll with clay and laid it prone. That pose of the tiny animal suit doll reminded me of a scene in a well known movie.”

“It is Hitchcock’s “The Birds”. At the outdoor party scene, a flock of birds descended on the children and attacked them. One girl who was running away fell prone, a bird stopped on her head. She was struggling to escape from the bird. She fell down on the ground and fluttered her foot. It was a very impressive scene. I felt sorry for her, and even more, I was instinctively fascinated. It was really cute! So, I decided to make Kigurumi dolls fall prone and make pincushion in their back. By such a process, the Kigurumi pincushion was completed.”

“I received a lot of responses to my Kigurumi pincushion at Etsy and Flickr. It’s wonderful! It makes me feel really happy! I want to thank KitLane who encouraged me when I was hesitating about having my Etsy shop. And thank you, Lisa! I could think deeply about my work and myself through this interview.”

Find Sawako here:
Flickr
Etsy

What a joy to learn some more about Sawako and her beautiful work. Thank you so much Sawako. I adore the story of the inspiration behind the Kigurumi pincushions, I must watch that scene again. Good bird phobia aversion therapy. Do you lovely kittens have any unusual sources of inspiration? I would love to know. I will let you into a little secret, my pieces for Plush You have been made with memories of Battle Of The Planets swirling around my head, do you remember that cartoon, I was *obsessed* with it is a child?!

Yesterday I was buzzing with ideas and so excited to be planning new projects. I managed to bag a little something on ebay that I am going to use as the starting point for my next piece. There may even be a collaborative project germinating, more on this soon I expect! Today of course things are a little flat, impossible to fly everyday, so I am going to concentrate on planning Ishi’s third birthday celebrations. I can reveal that so far a desire has been expressed for chocolate AND carrot cake, meerkats, a big boy bike and candles, really the cake and candles are the most important element for our son! Happily I am able to meet all of these wishes, including the meerkats as Durrell have just opened a new desert landscape enclosure with a meerkat dome, yes, you can get face to face! Have no doubt that I will be posting a self-indulgent/proud mummy something here next week. Ishi’s birthday is also after all a time for me and Adam to marvel at the fact of his existence and I always enjoy reliving the events of Ishi’s birth, it is a bonding time for all of us. I hope you enjoy the gathering of Etsy wonders I have prepared for you, I can feel a little inspiration creeping in looking at them. Especially true of The Dream Stays With Me print (above) from Gretchen Mist, beautiful colours, they sing, I could gaze upon them all day.

Butterfly Gladness Garland from Royal Buffet

Laptop Bag from Track & Field

Scandinavian Red Hare from Dee Beale

Mr Plumm from Holli

Across – Felt cuff from Drawing Room

Crawler Pincushion-sea green from Alleluja. I am obsessed with this shop! See that little pendant in the middle I have requested one with bunny ears, I can’t wait until it is ready! I love these tiny darlings so much here are a few more images.

Invincible Summer Anthology Vol. II from Spinster Summer

1950′s Housewife Dress in Pink and Grey from Jess James Jake

Nature Lover Necklace in Rock Maple from Naomi Murrell

Hello There Pencils from Simple Song

Early Bird Gets the Worm from BROOKLYNrehab

Flower Quilted Dress – Original 70s Vintage from Celapiu

Ceramic Deer from Fruit Fly Pie

1920s clip board from Blue Bell Bazaar

la dentelle needlebook 2 from Field Guided

Mr. Susan Is Angry Because Deep Down, He’s Really Sad from Mon Petit Fantome

Birch Bark flower vase or votive candle holder from New Hampshire Wood Creations

VINTAGE ISSEY MIYAKE ABSTRACT GREEN SCARF from Ramona West

Trilobite Triptych from Donkey Wolf