This intimate little book reflects Susan’s abiding devotion to Japan and her undying love of textiles while expressing the concept of “mottainai”: that even the smallest remnant of something made by hand has worth… Susan has taken the traditional Japanese folk beliefs and imbued her 100 talismans with prayer and love and beauty—and yes—Magic.
From the Foreword by Amy Katoh
Tokyo-based Author and Collector, and Owner of Blue & White Shop in Tokyo
Book Review: Vivien Zepf reviews Susan Ball Faeder’s Book “100 Amulets”
Vivien Zepf is a museum docent, curatorial research assistant, photographer and writer based in Jackson, Wyoming. She enjoys writing book reviews on fiber and fiber-adjacent topics. Check out this review she wrote on Susan Ball Faeder’s book “100 Amulets,” which was featured on Surface Design Association’s website.
See the completed 100-day series of amulets by Susan Ball Faeder here. To learn how this series came about, click here. For information on purchasing the complete series, please contact Susan.
100 Amulets by Susan Ball Faeder is a charming, 6”x 9” treasure of a book that features 100 unique, hand-quilted amulets, each one small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. The first printing by Pretzel City Press will be a limited edition of 400.
Known as Omamori in Japan, these little charms are considered to be veritable talismans, offering luck and protection in many forms. In the book, each amulet has its own special page for the image with the corresponding text on the opposite page. The evolving story of Susan’s amulet challenge is told in the original timeline, that is, making one amulet per day for 100 days in a row, while revealing her 50-year connection to Japan through fabric, fabrication, and folly. Hold the book in your hand and take a journey with Susan!
Her amulets project a profound beauty of the heart and eyes channeling through human hands—fingers, palms, wrists. They’re un-glossy yet perfect; individually and as a collected family of 100 pieces, they shine like small “idea planets” that embrace all seasons of life, orbiting around their humble, determined maker.
Marian Frances Wolbers, Publisher
Pretzel City Press
Where to purchase “100 Amulets”
You may order 100 Amulets directly from Pretzel City Press by visiting their website here.