The New Age of Embroidery?

Hi! This week’s blog is from me, Thomas.

I just wanted to let you all know that something new is in the air. Or rather, something old with a new look.

Embroidery has been around for ages. Some of the oldest known embroidery is actually from China, dated to between the 5th and 3rd Centuries, B.C. It turns out that decorative needlework, despite all the pricked fingers and bent needles over the years, is still expressive and beautiful enough for humans to keep around.

Image Credits to Sophie Standing - sophiestandingart.com

But something new seems to be happening in the embroidery world. It seems as if the art has become more complex. The threads transitioning from straight lines and solid color fills to something much more organic. The texture of an individual thread loses its individuality as it becomes part of a much more complex and fascinating texture. You probably think I’m going crazy, but just hold on for a second.

This is the work of Cayce Zavaglia:

http://www.caycezavaglia.com

http://www.caycezavaglia.com

http://www.caycezavaglia.com

See what I mean?

But this is obviously an outlier. Her embroidery looks like a painting and is created through a free motion process on a sewing machine. Let’s bring it down to earth a little more.

Witness Emillie Ferris:

emillie-ferris.co.uk

I have little doubt that we can all relate to this. Let’s be honest; the real reason the internet exists is to share and enjoy funny pictures of cats.

But here’s a bit more of her work. Notice how outlining is almost non-existent whereas the texture and blending of colors really takes the spotlight in her work. It’s fascinating.

emillie-ferris.co.uk

emillie-ferris.co.uk

So what is happening in embroidery?

Here’s what I think: Like with any form of art, embroidery changes. It morphs and develops over time, and is prodded on by individuals who love the process, but want to push it forward. Everyone has their own voice (and amount of patience) with embroidering, and what you see while you’re looking through your social media feeds is just what those individuals want to communicate.

This is one of ours! Link.

Did this inspire you to get into embroidery but you don’t know where to start? I’ve got three solutions to share with you.

1. Workshops. We have them and we would love to see you there. We offer block-printing and embroidery workshops. Find them here!

2. We also have patterns available for you. We just launched a collection of three botanical embroidery patterns available here! We even gave one away to our newsletter subscribers as a free download (sign up here)!

3. The rest of the internet. Look for guides on Youtube and just search around, and you’ll be able to find all sorts of learning material!

Do you have any embroidery to share? I love seeing it all, regardless of your process or style. Inspiration doesn’t just look like one thing. Be sure to use the hashtags #MadeOn23rd and #InspiringMaterial when posting about your new creative pursuits so we can see your work!

Thanks for reading!

Thomas