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One of the many things we get asked at Inspirations Studios is how do we ensure the love of needle and thread will be passed onto the next generation? To be honest, we don’t always have as coherent an answer to this as we’d like, but the truth is it’s happening regardless!
While there are times the rumour mill makes it sound like the skill of hand stitching is becoming a dying art, the evidence we’re seeing around us couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, we’re actually seeing more of a renaissance taking place and in some areas that have taken even us by surprise.
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Whilst we acknowledge we have the joy of operating within a ‘needlework bubble’ with our days filled with curating, publishing and distributing all things needle and thread, we’ve come to realise the passion we have for this art is being seen further and wider afield than we’ve noticed in quite a while.
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A resurgence is defined as ‘ an increase or revival after a period of little activity, popularity, or occurrence’ and indeed it would seem there’s been a resurgence of needle and thread outside our tribe’s bubble!
Instagram is filled with insta-worthy needle and thread images, many of which have been created by a generation that shall we say are ‘somewhat’ younger than us?! It takes but a weekly read of the newsletter from ‘frankie’ – a trendy, but somewhat sassy, Australian magazine - to notice the regular inclusion of needle and thread throughout.
Then there’s location scouting in the South Australian wine region of the Barossa Valley, only to find an exhibition featuring needle and thread used in surprising ways – from delicate embroidered coral that highlights the plight of our oceans’ health right through to immaculate Hardanger created from wire.
And did you know there are three separate categories for bunting in the Guinness World Records?! The longest bunting line, the longest knitted bunting line and the longest bunting line made with crochet. Out of interest, the overall winner stretched some 17.6 kilometres (11 miles).
All of these things speak to the resurgence we’re seeing around us and we, for one, couldn’t be happier that the rumour mill has been proven wrong and that our love of needle and thread is anything but a dying art!
Have you noticed a resurgence of needle and thread in places you haven’t expected to see it? We’d love to hear all about it! Email us at news@inspirationsstudios.com
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This week we’re starting a conversation that we’re hoping you’ll join in on.
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With Christmas day just over four weeks away now, many of the conversations here at the Inspirations office are all about what each of us are doing to celebrate this significant day, what traditions we uphold that have been passed down to us from generations past, and whether we’re on track with our Holiday To Do Lists!
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And that got us wondering… what do you do to celebrate the Holiday Season?
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Are there traditions from past generations that you uphold each year? Are you on track to have everything done before Christmas Day? But most importantly, how is your love of needle and thread woven into your Christmas celebrations each year?
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We can’t wait to hear all about how you’re preparing for the festive season. Oh, and by the way… no pressure or anything, but to make sure we’re able to share your festive preparations with the Inspirations Community before the end of the year, please email us no later than 3rd December at news@inspirationsstudios.com
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Christmas Gift Pack | Stitcher’s Stocking
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Have you ever noticed how some people are extremely thoughtful and very creative when it comes to buying gifts for others? They always seem to find the perfect gift for every occasion. If you’re not one of those people – join the club… but today that is all going to change!
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Introducing the Stitcher’s Stocking Gift Pack which is the perfect gift to give to any stitcher at any time of the year, but especially at Christmas.
This is one of those gifts that when someone opens it, they think you are so very thoughtful and clever for finding it – which of course you most certainly are!
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Inside you will find:
- Inspirations’ 'Coloured Stitches' Colouring Book & Coloured Pencils
- 3 Inspirations tea towels from the Needle & Thread Collection
- Pack of 12 ‘Postcards from the Sewing Room’ featuring 3 designs
- Enamel Pin | An Apple a Day
- Enamel Pin | Flights of Fancy
- Inspirations Ceramic Thimble
The individual items in this pack total over AU$91 when purchased separately, however this Christmas, the Stitcher’s Stocking Gift Pack is only AU$30, and it even comes in a box ready for you to gift wrap!
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At this price you could even splash out and buy one for each member of your stitch and chat group – how very thoughtful and creative of you indeed!
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By now you may have heard the exciting news that, for the very first time, Sue Spargo is coming to teach at our needlework convention Beating Around the Bush in 2020.
To help begin spreading a little Sue Spargo magic, we’ve got a limited range of her bespoke threads in packs available for purchase.
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Designed to meet the specific needs of hand stitchers, embroiderers and embellishers alike, Sue Spargo has created an exclusive line of threads in collaboration with Wonderfil Specialty Threads.
The Sue Spargo Eleganza perlé cotton collection is made from 100% Giza 88, the highest calibre Egyptian cotton, which, when combined with Sue’s unique dying processes, results in superior quality threads that deliver outstanding stability, uniformity and sewability.
Sue’s Ellana range of wool appliqué threads are among the finest available on the market today. Engineered and finished to the highest standard, Ellana wool threads are fray resistant and offer unparalleled smoothness, making them perfect for both hand appliqué and machine work.
Our Sue Spargo thread packs are ideal for anyone who is yet to try out her range, or you can use them to top up your existing collection and add new colours to your palette.
Thread Pack #1 - Eleganza Variegated
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Contains 5 x Eleganza Size 8 variegated perlé cotton spools in the following colours: Island Oasis; Pretty Please; Wildfire; Saltwater Taffy & Solar Yellow.
PRICE - AU$33
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WARES
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Sue Spargo Thread Pack - Eleganza Variegated
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Thread Pack #2 – Eleganza
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Contains 4 x Eleganza Size 8 perlé cotton spools in the following colours:
Orange Crush; Sea Glass; African Violet & Union Blue.
PRICE - AU$23
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WARES
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Sue Spargo Thread Pack – Eleganza
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Contains 8 x Ellana wool/acrylic appliqué thread spools in the following colours: Dark Cerise; Very Berry; Pumpkin; Flame; Cloud; Mango; Goldenrod; Creamed Butter.
PRICE – AU$32
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WARES
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Sue Spargo Thread Pack – Ellana
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Ready-to-Stitch Christmas Decoration Kits
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If you’re looking to embrace the festive season this year by stitching some of the world’s most beautiful Christmas decorations, here are a few ideas to get you started…
Season’s Greetings | Snowflake
By Ana Mallah from Inspirations issue #96
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Stitched with stranded cotton, silk and metallic threads this gorgeous Christmas decoration is worked using surface embroidery techniques and finished in glittering metallic thread and hangs from a beaded loop ready to adorn your tree.
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READY-TO-STITCH KIT
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Season’s Greetings | Snowflake
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Instructions for this kit can be purchased in both print and digital:
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DIGITAL PATTERN
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Season’s Greetings
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PRINTED MAGAZINE
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Inspirations Issue 96
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Double Delight
By Jennifer Kennedy Inspirations issue #92
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Pulled thread work Christmas stockings with contrasting lustrous perlé threads and satin ribbon with a hessian ground fabric. Each stocking is lined and backed with white taffeta and hangs from a fabric loop. Ready-to-Stitch kit includes materials and threads to create both the large and small stocking.
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READY-TO-STITCH KIT
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Double Delight
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Instructions for this kit can also be purchased in both print and digital:
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DIGITAL PATTERN
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Double Delight
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PRINTED MAGAZINE
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Inspirations Issue 92
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Snow Blossom by Catherine Laurençon
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Sometime in the late 1660s in The Hague, Netherlands, a little girl took up a paint brush and crept into her father’s workroom. Unlike many children her age she was not intent on mischief, rather she was so fascinated with her scientist father’s collection of mineral and botany samples that she simply had to paint them. This little girl was Rachel Ruysch, and she was to become one of the most talented still-life painters of flowers ever to put brush to canvas.
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Portrait of Rachel Ruych and one of paintings (source)
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Rachel was remarkable for many reasons. Most importantly, her ability to capture the minutest detail of her subjects with almost photographic perfection was like no other. While she at first studied with a number of highly skilled masters, she quickly developed her own unique style. Another aspect that made her so remarkable was that, unlike many artists of the day, her works commanded high prices while she was still alive.
Perhaps even more remarkable was the fact Rachel became highly successful during a time when women weren’t encouraged to have careers and yet somehow still found time to give birth to ten children. Her prolific artistic output allowed the family to hire help with the children and brought in an excellent income.
When Rachel died at the age of 86, there was evidence she was still painting right up till her final days. Today, her floral still-lifes appear in galleries all over the world and are still admired for their perfection.
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Although not the first artist to seek out the fine art of recreating the beauty and perfection of flowers, Rachel Ruysch stands as one of the inspirations for floral artists today such as Catherine Laurençon, who has created the exquisite piece ‘Snow Blossom’ from Inspiration issue #104.
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While Catherine uses needle and thread instead of paint, the verisimilitude of this little edelweiss echoes Rachel Ruysch’s work perfectly. Like Rachel, Catherine has picked out every detail of her subject, rendering it on to the fabric with carefully blended threads.
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The centres of the dainty flower have been accurately re-created using closely trimmed Ghiordes knot to represent the gentle fluffiness perfectly.
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Catherine has also picked out the fall of light and shade, boldly including touches of blue and pink in a manner so similar to her artistic predecessor, one wonders if the spirit of Rachel Ruysch isn’t guiding Catherine’s hand just a little.
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Threadpainting, perhaps more than any other style of embroidery, requires you to let go of strict structure and work with the flow of your subject. Perhaps this is why this technique seems so daunting to many of us. Structure is safe. But the play of light on a flower is constantly changing and catching the exact moment feels impossible.
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However, rather than seeing it as impossible, the fact you have an infinite number of moments to capture is actually liberating. Your still-life will not be exactly the same as anyone else’s, but by observing the details you will be guaranteed to produce a work that appears as if it could be plucked off the fabric at any moment.
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This may be the first time you have heard of Rachel Ruysch, but as you work Catherine’s project, think on the challenges and successes of all of the women artists who came before and who are still working now to capture their individual love of nature and immortalise it.
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Every stitch you lay mirrors each of Catherine’s stitches, Rachel’s brushstrokes, and the loving rendition of flowers practiced by artistic women through time.
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Make Your Own Snow Blossom
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Step 1 – Purchase Project Instructions
Snow Blossom by Catherine Laurençon depicts dainty, white edelweiss in gently-shaded threadpainting.
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PRINTED MAGAZINE
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Inspirations Issue 104
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DIGITAL PATTERN
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Snow Blossom
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Step 2 – Purchase Ready-To-Stitch Kit
The Inspirations Ready-To-Stitch kit for Snow Blossom includes everything you need to re-create this beloved mountain flower: Fabrics (unprinted), embroidery threads and needle.
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READY-TO-STITCH KIT
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Snow Blossom
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Please Note: To cater for flexibility of purchase, instructions are not included with our kits. For step-by-step directions on how to create this project, please refer to our magazine or printed/digital patterns.
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Looking for More Picture-Perfect Flowers?
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Still Life with Flowers by Helen Eriksson from Inspirations issue #89 is a sumptuous bowl of flowers worked with silk ribbon.
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DIGITAL PATTERN
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Still Life with Flowers
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Reflections by Susan O'Connor from Inspirations issue #69 is a superb floral embroidered mirror frame.
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DIGITAL PATTERN
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Reflections
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PRINTED MAGAZINE
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Inspirations Issue 69
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Simple Pleasures by Maree Moscato from Inspirations issue #19 is a beautiful table runner featuring a tulip, daffodil, bluebells and violets.
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DIGITAL PATTERN
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Simple Pleasures
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Kakisubata by Margaret Lee from Inspirations issue #74 is an elegant and refined Japanese embroidery study worked in lustrous silk.
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DIGITAL PATTERN
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Kakisubata
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PRINTED MAGAZINE
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Inspirations Issue 74
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Flowers are often described as dainty and delicate as their graceful, but fragile petals colour our world in a variety of shades, shapes and sizes. This week we’re sharing the flowers that have been created with needle and thread by the Inspirations Community, all of which could also be described as dainty and delicate! Enjoy the many shades, shapes and sizes as you enjoy a walk through our flower beds of needle and thread…
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‘A little over a year ago, my sister was on a business trip to Kenya and brought back some Kenyan tea for me in a unique banana leaf box, confessing that she bought the tea because she fell in love with the box! I noticed that this box was perfect for an embroidery insert, so I decided I would embroider something on it and give it back to her for her birthday.’
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‘I thought it would be wonderful if I could find some type of Kenyan flora or fauna to incorporate into the design. During my research, I came across a photo of a Gold-Banded Forester Butterfly and I knew that I wanted to attempt it. As this butterfly lays its eggs on the dune soapberry plant, I wanted to include that as well.
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I was pondering how to get started, when to my delight Inspirations Magazine issue #102 arrived in the mail with not one, but two articles on stumpwork butterflies!
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I was able to adapt one of the wing patterns from Lepidoptera by Fiona Hibbett for my butterfly and Flights of Fancy by Nina Burnsides was a great help in the construction of the body.
I am very happy with the results. But more importantly, my sister loves it! Thank you so much for your wonderful magazine and newsletter. Like many of your readers, I so look forward to Friday morning when I grab my cup of tea and relax in front of my computer, soaking up all the beautiful things found in All Stitched Up! - what a perfect way to start the day!’
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Cynthia, your Kenyan Tea Box would have to be the best form of regifting we’ve ever seen! What a delight for your sister to receive a gift she’d put thought into purchasing for you to then see it transformed by the thoughtful work of your hands. The box is now rich in culture, story and a bond between sisters. We were more than pleased to hear Inspirations issue #102 arrived at just right the time to be a part of this stitching journey!
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‘In 2017 I was fortunate to be able to take a tour with Textile Support who offered four workshops focusing on four different techniques in Tuscany and Umbria, Italy. We had a workshop with local ladies in the delightful village of Panicale and began to learn from the experts how to do Ars Panicalensis.
Panicale is a tiny hilltop walled town which breathes history in all its narrow streets. The people of the town welcomed us and were very gracious in their hospitality. I was totally absorbed in the process and managed to complete two small projects.’
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‘It was an absolutely inspiring experience! Aurelia and Mary showed us some of their exquisite work - seen below - which included the traditional style as well as the more modern adaptations using the same technique.
They are anxious to teach the traditional technique so it is not lost. The recent project Belissimo from Inspirations magazine issue #102 has inspired me to try another piece of this technique.’
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Mavis, could there be a better way to learn an embroidery technique than from where it originated?! The pieces of Ars Panicalensis you created are every bit as detailed and delicate as Aurelia and Mary’s and we look forward to seeing Bellissimo once it’s complete.
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‘I seem to be on a purse making journey lately! The small photograph you can see which I included in my design was the source of inspiration for this crazy quilted purse. I used bits and pieces of vintage lace, and lots of beads, ribbon embroidery and ribbon flowers.’
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Nina, your purse has a delicate, vintage appeal that provides the perfect backdrop for the photo you integrated beautifully into the design. It must be a delight to use!
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‘A few months ago I stitched this center piece using the traditional technique of Hardanger that I reinterpreted. I used both the structured technique of Hardanger and freeform embroidery to complete the piece.’
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‘I enjoyed combining various techniques such as 3D and Silk Ribbon Embroidery to make it modern for the students of my Embroidery School.’
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Sonia, what a beautiful table runner! Hardanger and freeform embroidery have combined perfectly to create a piece that is both dainty and delicate and would be the perfect centre piece on any special occasion table.
Have your needles and threads created a flower? Whatever its shade, shape or size, we’d love to see it! Email photos of your stitching along with a few details about your journey to news@inspirationsstudios.com
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Subscribe to Inspirations Magazine
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Not a Subscriber? Join Today!
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Become part of the Inspirations family by subscribing to the magazine... we'd love to have you join us!
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Carnation Tile by Fiona Hibbett is an ornate carnation in elegant stumpwork embroidery.
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PRINTED MAGAZINE
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Inspirations Issue 104
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DIGITAL PATTERN
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Carnation Tile
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Natural Beauty by Fiona Hibbett from Inspirations issue #87 is an 18th century naturalist's study interpreted in stitch
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PRINTED MAGAZINE
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Inspirations Issue 87
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Lepidoptera by Fiona Hibbett from Inspirations issue #102 is a stunning panel of nine stumpwork butterflies.
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DIGITAL PATTERN
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Lepidoptera
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PRINTED MAGAZINE
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Inspirations Issue 102
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This One’s for Betty Etui
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This One’s for Betty by Betsy Morgan from Willing Hands is a biscornu-shaped etui adorned with beautiful floral, fruit and geometric designs.
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PRINTED BOOK
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Willing Hands
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READY-TO-STITCH KIT
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This One’s for Betty
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Renaissance by Elisabetta Holzer Spinelli from Inspirations issue #74 is a brightly coloured biscornu pincushion decorated with innovative Estense embroidery.
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PRINTED MAGAZINE
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Inspirations Issue 74
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DIGITAL PATTERN
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Renaissance
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Sollerösöm by Christine P. Bishop from Inspirations issue #101 is a pretty biscornu pincushion and pouch worked in a Swedish counted technique.
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PRINTED MAGAZINE
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Inspirations Issue 101
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DIGITAL PATTERN
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Sollerösöm
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Jenny McWhinney design, stitched by Ann Rowley
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Stitched by Angelique Bzh
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‘I want to be a part of the resurgence of things that are tangible, beautiful and soulful…’
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~ Jack White ~
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Stay informed of upcoming needlework events taking place all around the world in our new What’s On page on the Inspirations Studios Website HERE.
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If you’re holding an event or would like to suggest one to be added, we’d love to hear about it. Email us the details at news@inspirationsstudios.com
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© 2019 Inspirations Studios
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