White Stripes Embroidery

This amazing portrait of the White Stripes is by Jenny Hart, truly the queen of alternative embroidery. I had been previously familiar with her Sublime Stitching kits - both Purl Soho and The City Quilter carry them in New York. I had tried out a kit when I first started doing embroidery. But I had never seen her embroidered portraits before last night, and I must say I am blown away.

The $1000 Pillow, again

So, a sewing machine, three patchwork and quilting classes at purlsoho, a shelf full of books, two cartons of brilliant, delicious new fabrics, miscellaneous rulers, mats, seam rippers, rotary cutters, and ziplock bags full of embroidery thread later...

... and that first pillow isn't done.

However, I have spent the last year making and selling original embroidery designs, and I am ever so grateful to k studio for inspiring me to get started.

The $1000 Pillow, continued

It took me about a week to unlock the mystery of transferring images to fabric - old fashioned carbon paper. Helpful hint: look for a dusty, local stationery store for the best prices on this stuff. Staples is dreadfully overpriced, and I haven't had consistent luck at craft stores with this particular supply. You can reuse the sheets, so a little goes a long way. (Update on this: try dressmaker's transfer paper instead. It washes out.)

Another great way to learn is to pick up one of Sublime Stitching's kits. It contains everything you need to start, including transfer paper, a nice wood hoop (I have tried plastic and find it un-yummy to work with). I prefer the kind of embroidery thread that comes in a ball, but again, this is a great way to dip your toe in the water.

The chicken and I attacked this first project together. It was a combination of xeroxing and recreating images from scratch. I must say the chicken did an excellent job on the squirrel - he really made it his own.



After I had finally traced the images on fabric and finished embroidering the first creature, i had the first "aha" moment.

Aha! I can actually do this.
Aha! I like doing this.
Aha! There's no way this pillow is going to save me money.

I have seen the future. And it's going to be expensive.