A Group of 12 Balls of Cotton Yarn: Leftover Pieces for Zanshi ori

early twentieth century
from 1 1/2" to 2 1/4", 4 cm to 6 cm

Here is a group of a dozen small balls of yarn, most of which are the size of a large walnut, many of which that are wound from threads that have been either knotted together--in Japan the kind of weaving done with leftover yarn is referred to as zanshi ori, .

In these balls you can easily see the conglomeration of pieces of random yarns that have been hand knotted together to form one, long filament whose intention was to be used in weaving. One ball, the white one in the back, seems to be made of cotton wadding and then wrapped with white yarn. Perhaps this is the beginning stage of what might become a temari?

It is a beautiful group, with much aesthetic appeal and, as well, the group can be employed in any sort of art or art-related endeavor--or admired as it is.