One Stitch at a Time: Sanae Suzuki on Sashiko

Sanae Suzuki's journey with sashiko began with a sensational moment in Tokyo, Japan, when a university friend showed her a sashiko project and explained how the stitching helped relieve stress. Though Sanae had enjoyed French embroidery as a child and had seen sashiko in books during her exploration of textile arts, nothing prepared her for the impact of seeing and touching the real thing.

For years, she collected sashiko books and admired the photographs, but life kept her too busy to truly commit. She enjoyed various fiber arts, weaving, knitting, crocheting, and sashiko was just another craft she practiced alongside them. That changed dramatically when she faced the darkest period of her life.

After a near-death car crash left her in a coma for three days and bedridden for a year, Sanae lived with severe injuries and PTSD that kept her from speaking or stepping outside for many years. Later, she was diagnosed with stage IV lymphoma and told she had only weeks to live. In the midst of this profound hardship, Sanae turned to sashiko, discovering in its quiet, repetitive stitches a deeply healing practice. During the pandemic, after losing a dear friend to COVID-19, her grief was overwhelming. While other crafts offered no solace, sashiko became her lifeline. "When I was stitching sashiko, I did not have any negative feelings and felt that everything was all right," she shares.

Through each stitch, Sanae began understanding sashiko's deeper meaning, the sustainable practice of mending and cherishing, the beauty of creating imperfect wabi-sabi with your own hands. She learned to live one stitch at a time, transforming sashiko into daily meditation.

Now, she's honored to teach at JACCC in Los Angeles, the same place she visited as an international student in 1980 and where she later volunteered. After three decades teaching as a macrobiotic educator and herbalist, sharing sashiko felt like coming full circle.

Sanae loves teaching hitomezashi patterns, simple running stitches creating complex geometric designs perfect for beginners. When life feels scattered, she turns to favorites like komezashi (rice stitch) or kakinohana (persimmon flower). She also cherishes moyōzashi patterns: Shippo-tsunagi's endless circles symbolizing peace and harmony, Asanoha's hemp leaves representing growth, and Seigaiha's calming ocean waves.

Her hope is that through her workshops at JACCC, students will find their own path to living life one stitch at a time, discovering the quiet joy that comes from creating something meaningful with their hands.

Join Sanae's Sashiko workshops to discover your own path to mindful stitching.