How to draw SASHIKONDA

Hi there my tangling friends!

Today’s lovely Sashikonda tangle is from Spanish CZT Carmen Menchón, This is Carmen’s second tangle on the site, the first was the cool Cantebano.

Carmen writes,

I have deconstructed Sashikonda by looking at Japanese sashiko style embroidery. They are gorgeous!

Its name is a mixture of the words “Sashiko” and “onda”, which means wave in Spanish.

As you can see, it has many possibilities for variations that make it look different.

Before we get to Carmen’s tangle, let’s find out a little more about the traditional Japanese running stitch called sashiko, naturally we turn to Wikipedia:

Sashiko (lit. ‘little stabs’) is a type of traditional Japanese embroidery or stitching used for the decorative and/or functional reinforcement of cloth and clothing. Owing to the relatively cheap nature of white cotton thread and the abundant nature of cheap, indigo-dyed blue cloth in historical Japan, sashiko has a distinctive appearance of white-on-blue embroidery, though some decorative pieces may also use red thread.

First coming into existence in the Edo period (1603–1867), sashiko embroidery was first applied to clothing out of a practical need, and would have been used to strengthen the homespun clothes of olden times. Worn out clothes were pieced together to make new garments by using simple running stitches. These clothes increased their strength with this durable embroidery. …

Sashiko was commonly used to reinforce already-patched clothing around points of wear, but would also be used to attach patches to clothing, making the fabric ultimately stronger. It would also be used to layer thin fabrics to create warmth, and, in the case of some garments such as the coats of firemen (hikeshibanten), to create a thick and absorbent material that would be soaked in water before carrying out duties as a fireman. Though most sashiko utilises only a plain running stitch technique, sashiko is commonly used to create decorative and repeated embroidered patterns, and may be used for purely decorative purposes, such as in the creation of quilts and embroidery samplers.

Detail of a mid-19th century kimono decorated using sashiko, with white cotton threads on an indigo-dyed plain weave background (Metropolitan Museum of Art)

Utilitarian and beautiful at the same time, human beings can be so ingenious.

Carmen’s Sashikonda is a sweet ribbon-style tangle that also has some heart-shapes hiding in it, I may have emphasized them in my example. Sashikonda is easy to tangle and fun to embellish …

Carmen illustrates the step-by-step instructions for drawing Sashikonda below and she includes three lovely monotangle Zentangle® tiles featuring various ways to vary and embellish her tangle.

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Check out the tag carmenm for more of Carmen’s tangles on TanglePatterns.com.

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