Museum workshop to teach Japanese art of making Temari thread ball

The ancient Japanese art of Temari Thread Ball will be demonstrated in a class set Monday, Oct. 22 at 2 p.m. at the Union County Heritage Museum. The teacher is Peggy Russell from Myrtle, who has made more than 200 of these intricately crafted thread balls. There is a current exhibit of a number of Russell’s temari work at the museum.

Historically, temari balls were constructed from the remnants of old kimonos. Pieces of silk fabric would be wadded up to form a ball, and then the wad would be wrapped with strips of fabric. As time passed, traditional temari became an art, with the functional stitching becoming more decorative and detailed, until the balls displayed intricate embroidery. With the introduction of rubber to Japan, the balls went from toys to art objects, although mothers still make them for their children. Temari became an art and craft of the Japanese upper class and aristocracy, and noble women competed in creating increasingly beautiful and intricate objects.

The Temari thread ball which will be taught in this class is the one used to introduce people to the techniques, and is one of the more simple ones.

The cost for the workshop is $20 and materials will be provides. Call the museum at 662-538-0014 for more information. The museum is located at 114 Cleveland Street in New Albany.