Kanji Portraits -- and my own

Kanji Portraits is a great web site for identifying clumps of kanji with a common radical, and learning them in groups, which I think is easier.  For example, I recently went through a lot of kanji with 糸 (thread), 玄 (short thread), and 衤(collar).

It's in blog format, which makes little sense for that site (or this one?), so don't bother with page 1, but go to PREVIOUS POSTS AND SEARCH, which lists all the clumps they've done so far.

Meanwhile, partly with their help and Henshall's, I've come up with my own mnemonics that have the memorization of related kanji work together more.  I show this more because I think it's fun than because I think you'll want mine in particular.

The two shy brothers.  Here they are as a radical not used as its own kanji in Japanese: 㑒.  They're under their roof, with their heads together (maybe they're holding each other in fear?) and their topknots or hats are together.  They know a lot about horses, so we get 験 (test, examine).

What are they afraid of?  Whatever it is, they hide well:  their house is beyond a hill 険 (inaccessible place, steep, dangerous).  But someone is coming and sees their house through the trees 検 (investigate, inspect).  That person is the tax man, and they're too cheap to pay 倹 (frugal, thrifty).  What'll they do?  Uh-oh.  Look what they have behind their house: 剣 (sword).

The pot of baby limas.  Here it is with the lid, the bean, and "child" below showing it's a baby lima: 享 ; it translates as "enjoy."  Put it in a round 丸pot on a fire 灬and it'll be ready to eat: 熟 (boil, mature, ripen, complete).  You stuck it on the ground 土instead?  That's not how to cook beans!  Looks like you need extra schooling 塾 (cram school, private school).

It really wasn't that hard to come up with the stories; it was more work to find the groupings, which weren't in Kanji Portraits or Henshall.