Sunday, November 18, 2007

Maneki neko

Yesterday I had a creative morning. I spent most of it up in the sewing room and I have made another cat block and have put all cat blocks together into one big block. I hope to get the dogs put together this week too and then I'll show you what I've got.

Anyway, here is my cat block just because I wanted to explain what I was aiming for. This is a maneki neko. In Japan you can find them at the entrance to many shops or over the doors. Maneki means welcome and neko means cat. While in America, you call to someone to come by moving your fingers towards you with the palm facing upwards, in Japan, the palm is facing down when the fingers are moved (try it) and this means "Come here." When cats wash their faces they move their paw up over their eyes and down and Japanese interpret this to mean that the cat is calling to you.

There is a legend that a samurai warrior saw a cat waving him into a small shop and because he made the slight detour he was saved from an ambush. Hence the belief that a maneki neko brings good luck. Some maneki nekos hold gold coins which is supposed to mean the cat is calling in wealth to the home or shop. The shopkeepers probably display the maneki neko in hopes that both customers and money will feel welcomed to the business. My maneki neko does a good job of welcoming many people into my home, but his monetary powers seem to be somewhat lacking...

My maneki neko wonky block is calling you to come and visit my blog again!

12 comments:

Quilt Pixie said...

your cat is great! and a wonderful explanation of the "good luck cats" I see around various ethnic stores here in Canada

Katie said...

I love your maneki neko block.

Hmmmm...I think I need one of those. :)

atet said...

I love that block -- the kitty looks so sweet!

Hedgehog said...

Your pieced animals are great, Tanya. Love the story behind this, too.

Lazy Gal Tonya said...

I knew the little cats were good luck, but didn't realize why. your block is marvelous.

Shelina said...

How inspired to make a welcome cat in fabric! It's adorable. I noticed the gold fabric you used over the heart.

Quilt crazy said...

Love the cat block and appreciate the story behind it. It's wonderful to now understand the whole story! Can't wait to see all the blocks together in a quilt.

Lynn said...

Thanks for telling us about the good luck cat! I see it everywhere in Vancouver, B.C., and I always wondered about the story behind it. When my friends and I were in a competition last year, the image of the cat was our "mascot"...!

Mrs. Goodneedle said...

I always feel welcome at your blog. Your cat is adorable.

comicbooklady said...

Your maneki neko is so awesome! I love all your pieced animals. Do you do a lot of sketching before you begin?

The Calico Cat said...

How cute! At first glance, the floral that you used for th ehead looked like a face. :o)

teodo said...

Thanks for your MANEKI NEKO is a good welcome for me.
ciao ciao