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Embroidered Laputa: Castle in the Sky clock catches the attention of Studio Ghibli

Oona McGee Mar 8, 2022
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Anime fan’s year-long embroidery project gets a magical ending.

Studio Ghibli is famous for its old-school ways, preferring hand-drawn animation techniques over computer generated ones. The process requires a lot more time and effort, but the hand-crafted touch creates a warmth and beauty that gives Ghibli movies their unique charm.

Someone else who knows about the charm of creating things by hand is Japanese embroiderer and Twitter user Wsyow (@wsyow_washi), who makes beautiful designs inspired by manga and anime.

One of their latest works isn’t just an embroidered piece of cloth — it’s an embroidered cloth that functions like a clock, and it’s been inspired by Ghibli’s 1986 anime film, Laputa: Castle in the Sky.

▼ Check out the beautiful creation in action below!

ラピュタ無限おかわり時計
やっと完成しました！

シータがドーラ一家のみんな(+部外者1名)に24時間無休でシチューを盛り続けます🔥#刺繍 #天空の城ラピュタ
↓その他詳細リプに続きます pic.twitter.com/iSk83DQfWy

— ウショウ@モノグサ刺繍 (@wsyow_washi) March 2, 2022

As you can see, the clock is inspired by the scene from the movie where protagonist Sheeta serves stew to the crew on Dola’s airship and it’s so good they all ask for seconds.

Image: Studio Ghibli

Seconds is exactly what the crew is getting with this clock — in both senses of the word — and it happens over and over again, as Sheeta rotates her ladle of stew amongst the characters on the dial, all while holding out a piece of bread for them as well.

▼ The creator has dubbed it the Laputa Infinite Refill Clock, as Sheeta serves up refills nonstop, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Enjoying Sheeta’s stew with the crew members are a couple of noticeable guests, namely Pazu…

▼ …and Colonel Muska.

Sheeta’s double-jointed serving skills are only upstaged by the incredible way the ladle manages to stay upright all around the clock, and it’s all thanks to the creator’s cleverly thought-out design.

These beautifully embroidered pieces form the centrepiece of the dial, and the way the hands are positioned give the action a good sense of realism in all directions, which is no easy feat in a circular design like this one.

Wsyow says they used a 35-centimetre (13.8-inch) embroidery frame for the project, and it took them a whole year to complete.

▼ The detailed work in each piece is incredible.

The thought behind the project is also evident in the placement of characters around the dial. Key characters of Pazu, Muska, Dola, and Dola’s eldest son, Louis, occupy the 6, 9, 12 and 3 o’clock positions respectively.

▼ Plus, check out Muska’s bowl — no stew for you, Muska!

Like many creators, Wsyow is quick to critique their own work, pointing out its “many problems” like “the balance between the long hand and the short hand, and the movement of the ladle is unstable”.

People online were quick to disagree, sending the tweet viral with over 104,000 likes and 1.4 million views as of this writing, while leaving comments like:

“This is absolutely amazing — genius-level work!”
“Too incredible – I have no words!”
“The angle of the ladle is so impressive!”
“I had no idea you could make embroidery look like a clock!”
“I love that you included Muska in this, and with no food too!”
“Such a fantastic concept, executed with brilliant skill!”

Ghibli fans and embroidery enthusiasts weren’t the only ones to be impressed by Wsyow’s talents, because three days after the tweet was posted online, Studio Ghibli appeared in the comments section, with a sweet message for the creator.

▼ The tweet from Studio Ghibli shows Sheeta saying “ありがとう” (“thank you”).

https://twitter.com/JP_GHIBLI/status/1499989308601618433

It’s always a big moment when senpai notices you, but when it’s the globally lauded Studio Ghibli thanking you for your fan art, well, that’s a moment that nobody can prepare themselves for. Wsyow was understandably surprised and thrilled at the acknowledgment, replying with:

“Wowowowowow!!! Thank you!!! Studio Ghibli staff saw this, I’m too happy 😭🙏✨✨ Thank you very much!!!”

Studio Ghibli rarely acknowledges fan art so publicly, but it’s not every day you see fan art like this. As a longtime proponent of old-school handiwork, though, Studio Ghibli, and its director Hayao Miyazaki, know the time and dedication that goes into making things the old-fashioned way.

It’s one of the reasons why this project stood out for the studio and got the recognition it so rightly deserves. And it’s also one of the reasons why we’re still waiting to see Miyazaki’s upcoming film How Will You Live?, two years after its original 2020 deadline.

Source: Twitter/@wsyow_washi via Net Lab
Featured image: Twitter/@wsyow_washi
Insert images: Twitter/@wsyow_washi (1, 2, 3) unless otherwise stated
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