Maneki-Neko
Do you think the cat is waving “hello” to you? Let me introduce you to Maneki-neko, the cutest little cat that is found in shops and homes all over Japan. I’m sure you know that gestures vary between cultures.
Maneki-neko has her arm raised with the palm forward and is bending her wrist and moving her fingers downwards. In western culture, this motion might be seen as a wave of salutation. In Japan, however, it is a beckoning call. It means “come here, please,” -----not, “hello, how are you?” Maneki-neko is a symbol of good luck that Japanese shop owners place near the front door to beckon passersby into their stores. I am not Japanese, but I placed a temari ball in my Maneki-neko’s hand to bring me good luck in my temari web site!
Janny's Fish Temari
Do you see 4 white fish all pointing towards the center of this temari ball?
I made this temari for a friend whose husband loves to go fishing in the wilds of British Columbia. This cool effect is achieved by choosing 2 colors of perle cotton for stitching, one which matches the background exactly and another highly contracting color (on this temari, it's the blue).
My husband donated some holographic filament that he uses for tying flies for fishing. I used it as an outline on the very last row of stitching and in the tassel, too. The tassel is attached to the ball with fishing line and a hook.