Workshops
Here is our selection of workshops for the 2026 Kagoshima K.I.S.S. convention. You can register for more than one workshop. You just need to go back and click regsiter again!!
Please take note of LIMITS and COSTS. A few workshops have a limited number of spaces, they will be assigned on a first-come basis. All costs will be paid directly to the workshop leader, either in cash on the day, or by prior arrangement with the workshop leader. Your workshop leader should contact you directly a few weeks before the convention with any final details. Please contact me, Rachel Greenwood, at takajolily@yahoo.com if you have not heard from them by the first week of June.
Workshops with limits will close when the limit is met.
All workshops are free unless marked otherwise.
SATURDAY
TOURS
There will be two area tours, to the same places, in the morning and afternoon. You’ll visit a Chinese garden, a Shochu factory, and the Michi no Eki (ie, morning tourists will have an opportunity to buy lunch).
COST ¥2,000 ( this price depends on at least 33 people signing up to one of the tours so tell your friends to join you. Let’s have fun out and about in Kagoshima!)
Maximum 28 in the morning and 28 in the afternoon)
AM: 09:30 to 13:00
PM: 13:30 to 17:00
WORKSHOPS: Morning sessions
YOGA
with SUSIE MARUYAMA (Only with your doctor’s permission if you’re pregnant or have a pacemaker)
7 am - 8 am (60 minutes)
Second floor lobby
No limit on attendance, no cost.
Join Susie for a healthy stretch overlooking the beautiful views.
SHARING COMPASSION AND PEACE TOGETHER
with JANE BLOY
“B” Room 8:45 am to 9:20 am (40 mins, designed so can fit it in before the morning tour)
No limit on attendance, no cost.
In this short session, Jane will share a few simple, effective exercises to help you feel more at peace with yourself and the world.
SEWING WORKSHOP
with Paula Yagisawa
“A” Room 9:00 am to 10:30 am (90 minutes)
Workshop Idea 1: no limit on attendance, no cost.
Workshop Idea 2: limit of 20, ¥500 cost.
Paula has two ideas, and would like to choose together with participants after they have signed up for the workshop.
- Reclaiming Fashion Through Sewing and Pattern-Drafting. This workshop reframes sewing and pattern-drafting as feminist tools for reclaiming agency over bodies, fit, and self-expression. Participants explore how making and modifying clothing challenges fast fashion, standardisation, and imposed norms, transforming sewing into an act of empowerment. This workshop will be free, with no limit on participants.
- Hand-Stitched Patchwork: A Nine-Patch Workshop. In this hands-on workshop, participants will hand-stitch a traditional nine-patch quilt block using simple materials and techniques. Through this process, we explore patchwork as a practice of creativity, sustainability, and connection, transforming small pieces of fabric into something meaningful and uniquely personal. This workshop would be limited to 20, with a cost of 500.
OLIVE OIL
with TIA KUBOTA AND TAKEYASU KUBOTA
“B” Room 10:30 am to 11:30 am (60 mins)
Limit of 10 participants, ¥500
Learn about the history of Olive Oils from Mr. Takeyasu Kubota, former General Director of Shozu Olive Research Institute. Taste and experience a number of olive oils and learn the different characteristics of each one. Learn the differences between 'good' and 'bad' oils and how to find the ones that best fit your cooking and lifestyle.
FINANCE
with CLAIRE SEZAKI
“A” Room 11 am to 12 am (60 mins)
No limit on attendance, no cost.
Finances: From compound interest, to pensions, to life insurance - A checklist for financial health in Japan.
WORLD OF CHEESE
with RACHEL GREENWOOD
COST: ¥3000, to be paid directly to Rachel on the day, or by arrangement beforehand.
“B” Room 12 pm - 1 pm (60 minutes)
(afternoon session also available)
Limit 32 people.
Taste and learn about a selection of cheeses from different countries. Join one of the two tasting slots, or take away your selection. Cost is ¥3000 yen, to be paid directly to Rachel either at the convention or beforehand via postal account, bank transfer, or Wise.
NB: 32 is the TOTAL limit across both workshops, also including those who don’t want to attend a workshop but just want to pick up their cheese at another time. If fewer than 32 people sign up, extra ‘serves’ will be available at the same price.
WORKSHOPS: Afternoon Sessions
WORLD OF CHEESE
with RACHEL GREENWOOD
COST: ¥3000, to be paid directly to Rachel on the day, or by arrangement beforehand.
“B” Room 2 pm - 3 pm (morning session also available)
60 mins x 2 - morning and afternoon sessions
Limit 32 people.
Taste and learn about a selection of cheeses from different countries. Join one of the two tasting slots, or take away your selection. Cost is 3000 yen, to be paid directly to Rachel either at the convention or beforehand via postal account, bank transfer, or Wise.
NB: 32 is the TOTAL limit across both workshops, also including those who don’t want to attend a workshop but just want to pick up their cheese at another time. If fewer than 32 people sign up, extra ‘serves’ will be available at the same price.
PHASE 2
with WINNIE INUI
“A” Room 1.30 pm - 3:30 pm (90 mins)
Part 1, (no limit on attendance, no cost) - 1.30pm-2.30pm
Part 2, (limit of 12, no cost) - 2.30pm-3.30pm
The “After” Life, when you’ve lost your partner; with hints on shaping a new future and learning to use the gift of time.
This will be followed by the second part of the workshop, “Haiku, the Bonsai of Poetry”.
IMPROV and IMPROMPTU SPEECHES
with MAZ CARMICHAEL
“A” Room 3:30 pm to 5 pm (90 minutes)
No limit on attendance, no cost.
Join Maz for a mix of improv games and impromptu speeches.
CRIBBAGE
with ELIZABETH USUI
“B” Room from 3 pm (90-120 mins, or over if you haven’t finished your game)
Limit of 24 players (observers welcome), no cost.
Learn this exciting game in a fun and casual setting. Feel free to bring along pre-dinner drinks.
PLUS:
TECH WIZARDS
with ALEXANDRA HAMBLETON and LAURA MARUSHIMA
Hospitality Room from 3:30 pm to 5 pm.
No limit on attendance, no cost.
Join Alex Hambleton and Laura Marushima in the hospitality room for a tech support session. If you need help learning how to do something on your phone just turn up any time during the session and they’ll help you sort it out. Are they tech experts? Absolutely not. But what they lack in professional training, they more than make up for in enthusiasm and experience.
SUNDAY
YOGA
with SUSIE MARUYAMA (Only with your doctor’s permission if you’re pregnant or have a pacemaker)
7 am - 8 am (60 minutes)
Second floor lobby
No limit on attendance, no cost.
Join Susie for a healthy stretch overlooking the beautiful views.
PRAYER
with PEGGY KANADA
8 am to 9 am (60 minutes)
Banqueting room
No limit on attendance, no cost.
Join Peggy for an interfaith gathering at 8 am on Sunday with brief prayers for peace.
PANEL SESSION
All participants
10 am to 11:30 am
Banqueting room.
