The human body has been hardwired to react to uncertainty. In order to protect ourselves, our nervous systems brace for fight, flight or freeze in the face of unpredictability.

Whist these reactions to uncertainty are most notable when an extraordinary event challenges life as we know it, our natural response in such situations will often be seen when facing anything we deem uncertain. Even the stitching before us.

When faced with a new technique, unfamiliar materials or a particularly intricate or sizeable project, what’s your initial reaction?

Do you set off immediately determined to do whatever it takes to complete what’s before you (fight), drop it instantly in the search for something more familiar (flight) or do you suffer the fate of ‘paralysis by analysis’ (freeze)?

Whilst many of us go to great lengths to avoid uncertainty and unpredictability in many areas of our life, our time with needle and thread may just provide the safe ground on which to overcome our natural inclination of flight or freeze and give us the tools to fight for success.

After reading the above quote from Chris Burkard, we began to realise that challenging ourselves to face the sometimes ‘uncertain’ stitching before us may indeed see us develop the confidence to move on with a level of certainty amidst the uncertain we never thought possible in other areas of our life as well.

Sound easier said than done?!

Luckily we came across an article by Travis Bradberry that helped point us in the right direction! Some of Travis’s suggestions for overcoming uncertainty include:

- Stay Positive | Positive thoughts quiet fear and irrational thinking by focusing our brain’s attention
- Don’t Seek Perfection | When perfect is our goal, we’re always left with a nagging sense of failure
- Don’t Dwell on Problems | Fixating on problems hinders our performance
- When All Else Fails, Breathe | Breathing allows us to remain present and calm

As we near the close of a particularly unpredictable year, some of us have tackled more uncertainty than we ever thought possible, but next time you pick up needle and thread and feel the urge of flight or freeze rising, try applying some, or all, of Travis’s advice and see if you can’t fight for success.

Thank you to everyone who joined our recent conversations by emailing in - so great to hear from you all! We were pleased everyone enjoyed our article on tapestries from All Stitched Up! issue #258, and it was great to read about your own memories as well as receive some of your knowledge on the subject.

Jackie Williams empathised with the tapestry/canvaswork confusion and said that when she worked in retail, she would always try to convert a customer when they came in asking for a ‘tapestry’, lest the confusion in any way takes away from the majesty of the original woven tapestries.

Lynn lives close to both Windsor Castle and Hampton Court Palace where she has been privileged enough to view some of the original tapestries from the time of Henry VIII, discover their history and marvel at their restoration.

Christina also rightly brought our attention to the fact that tapestries aren’t simply the preserve of the royal European houses. She highlighted the Tapestry Workshop in Melbourne, Australia and encouraged readers to explore the wonderful tapestries in Australia’s Parliament House, woven in Melbourne and based on the designs of Arthur Boyd (which we briefly featured back in All Stitched Up! issue #33).

Also in All Stitched Up! issue #258 we wondered what you would ask your fairy godmother to do for you if you were lucky enough to have one.

Your responses were numerous and highly entertaining with your fairy godmothers being gainfully employed throughout all stages within the stitching process.

Rose Broady wanted her fairy godmother to start by deciding for her which project to do next. She then wanted her busy helper to cut out the patterns and gather all the necessary materials so Rose could just get on with the stitching. Lalah would also like all of the threads, hoops, needles and materials magically gathered into a neat project bag so she could just start, and Marie Montalbano was also keen for a bit of help putting materials together.

Marie and Marjorie Collins also wished fervently that their studious godmothers would transfer their patterns onto the fabric – a task which many were eager to avoid as it seems rather unpopular!

Once everything has been magically prepared, our fairy godmothers are being recruited into the stitching process too. Sharon loves learning new techniques, but some are too time consuming. She has some stunning cross stitch patterns which she would love to have completed, hanging on her wall, but they take such a long time and are her least favourite pieces to work, so she’d like her fairies to get them done so she can sit back and enjoy the results.

But it wasn’t just home help that was required of our magical companions. They need to be nursing assistants too, especially for Roberta Kenney who is suffering from a form of carpel tunnel syndrome which slows her right down. She’d like her fairy godmother to wave her magic wand and fix that up. Diane Bishop, who sadly lost sight in her right eye, actually had her wish come true. Rather than an imaginary fairy godmother, she has real fairy godmothers in the form of her EGA friends who help her to keep stitching despite her difficulties.

Although they’re already pretty busy, it seems there is great demand for our magical helpers at the end of our stitching process too. Dora Edwardes, Amy Haffling and Kathy Scioneuax would all like someone to do the finishing. Whether sewing things together, constructing, binding or mounting, as Kathy says, she’d like to wave that magic wand and have all of her beautifully stitched projects ready to adorn her home.

Then, of course, comes the tidying up. Maureen Giuffre wants her helper to put all of her threads away once the project is complete, preferably organised and ready for the next project. Perhaps, while she’s at it, she could organise all of the rest of our stashes too?

It is such a lovely thought and we don’t see anything wrong with dreaming about it. Perhaps we might be lucky and one evening that wonderful fairy godmother might just decide to drop in and see us. But while we’re waiting, we wanted to leave you with an experience from Susan Sammour.

Susan was sitting, stitching, with her 10-year-old granddaughter.

When Susan asked her how that could be so, the response was, ‘You make all my dreams come true, and your magic wands are your needles and pins.’

Perhaps the fairy godmother isn’t as far away as we might think!

It is difficult to believe that December is only a few days away. Throughout this long year, the thought of Christmas was always on the horizon and at last, we can turn to the final page in the calendar and be greeted with one of our most popular Christmas projects to date.

Julie Kniedl’s Mistletoe Bell, from the cover of Inspirations issue #100, is a simple yet beautiful project which expresses everything wonderful about Christmas. Worked as a three-dimensional embroidery in smooth silks, the curved leaves and tiny white berries of the mistletoe which adorn this bell are so realistic it is hard to tell whether they are stitched or simply picked from a tree.

This is the perfect project to decorate the centre of your Christmas table, or anywhere in the house for that matter!

And we couldn’t imagine a better way to see 2020 out than by ringing a bell to signify the end of a difficult year and the start of a new one full of hope and joy.

I see the sea, and the sea sees me!

On any given bright sunny day, we can often find ourselves dreaming of the ocean. Closing our eyes, we can hear the sound of gulls as they wheel about overhead and the whoosh of the waves as they hit the shore. The scent of sand and seaweed hits our nostrils and the cool ocean breeze tickles our skin.

Elisabetta Sforza, who brought us In A Wheat Field, a stunning alphabet formed from wheat and poppies, has captured the beauty of the ocean in her latest book.

Entitled A Sea to Stitch, this book brings all of the elements of the ocean together in a series of mystical letters, entwined with strings of pearls and shells, and worked in magnificent ocean tones of blue, grey and brown.

Like all of Elisabetta’s books, this one provides endless possibilities. Letters can be combined into words or worked as monograms on linens and other household objects. The colours can be adjusted and changed to suit your décor and you can stitch one or all of these magnificent designs.

Now is the perfect time to start working a nautical theme. Whatever the season, bringing the beauty of the ocean into your home is guaranteed to lift everyone’s spirits.

When we first released the wonderful needle keep kits from L’uccello, we received a few enquiries as to what they looked like when they were made up. Well, to spark your imagination, we wanted to show you just how gorgeous these little projects are.

Each kit comes complete with a printed, floral panel all ready for you to stitch however you want. You’ll also receive all of the materials to make up your needle keep as well as full instructions.

These are perfect last-minute gifts for a stitching friend, or an ideal handbag project if you want to make sure you’ve always got something to stitch when you’re on the go.

Available in three gorgeous designs, Dahlia, Lobelia and Verbena, we could never ask you to choose just one… so why not splash out and make yourself the entire set?!

We have often discussed the difference between ‘art’ and ‘craft’ in our newsletter, but when we discovered this article about textile artist, Ciara LeRoy, we found her thoughts enlightening.

Ciara is an artist who uses her embroidery to express that which concerns her in bold and striking ways. Originally inspired at the feet of her now 93-year-old grandmother, Ciara has become something of an online sensation with her thoughtful and impactful embroidered pieces.

When asked about the difference between art and craft, Ciara suggests that, ‘art tells the truth by challenging the status quo, exploring deep themes and societal patterns, and preserving culture.’ Whereas craft is generally for décor only, in Ciara’s mind, ‘art has a deeper concept behind the aesthetics.’

Whatever your views on the line between art and craft, Ciara’s work gives us something more to consider each time we encounter embroidery stitched with such passion.

To read more about Ciara, you can view the full article at the gathered.how website HERE and follow her on Instagram here: @prettystrangedesign

We all know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen. But do you remember Ready and Steady or Racer and Pacer? How about Donder and Blixem? In fact, Santa’s reindeers have a varied and fascinating history before they were even introduced to Rudolph and sent up into the snowy sky to deliver gifts to children all around the world.

The origins of Santa’s eight reindeer come from Clement Clarke Moore’s famous poem, ‘A Visit from St. Nicolas’ which we know more commonly as ‘’Twas the night before Christmas’. Written in 1823, the poem was the first written reference to the reindeer, with Donner and Blitzen at that point being called Donder and Blixem.

Prior to that poem, the first inkling that we had that Santa employed reindeer to pull his sleigh was from a slightly earlier, anonymous illustrated poem from 1821 entitled ‘Old Santeclause With Much Delight’. One of the pictures accompanying this verse showed a sprightly reindeer hooked up to Santa’s sleigh.

So, where did Rudolph come in? It seems he was a much later addition to the original group, having first been introduced in 1939 and finally cementing his place as leader of the pack through the popularity of the famous song, ‘Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer’, released 10 years later.

If it hadn’t been for Clement Clarke Moore, there is a good chance that we’d be looking out of the window on Christmas Eve hoping to spot Ready and Steady, Fearless and Peerless. Frank L. Baum of Wizard of Oz fame actually wrote a story in 1902 entitled ‘The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus’ where he listed ten reindeer, none of which we would recognise today. Flossie and Glossie were Santa’s original pair, but they are soon joined by their rhyming companions, including the sadly forgotten Feckless and Speckless!

But the path of history is a strange one and the result is that we all know and love Clement Clarke Moore’s team with the addition of the red-nosed misfit.

Karen, a student from the Royal School of Needlework in London, is making her Inspirations magazine debut with her spectacular reindeer. Exquisitely worked in gold thread, Dasher is guaranteed to become a favourite.

Leaping gracefully off his natural cotton/linen background, Dasher is formed with a clever combination of couching, chipping and padding. His sinuous lines, complete with swirls, twists and smooth edges provide such an incredible sense of movement you want to grab him before he springs away.

His elegant antlers are highlighted with a perfectly placed splash of colour – a hanging red Christmas bauble, reminding us of Dasher’s important place in Santa’s Christmas retinue.

As we have commented before, success in goldwork comes from careful placement and getting the twists and turns of the thread just right. But the time it takes to perfect this elegant reindeer is worth it.

If there is one project you are going to complete before Christmas arrives this year… or maybe next, it should be Dasher. You won’t ever tire of seeing him when you bring him out year after year, all ready to remind you of the joy, sparkle and exuberance which characterises this most wonderful time of year.

Step 1 – Purchase Project Instructions

Dasher by Karen Newbrook is a magnificent goldwork reindeer with a festive antler ornament.

Step 2 – Purchase Ready-To-Stitch Kit

The Inspirations Ready-To-Stitch kit for Dasher includes everything* you need to re-create this elegant reindeer: Fabric (unprinted), wool felt, soft string, embroidery threads, paillettes and needles.

Due to popular demand Dasher kits are currently sold out. The good news is that more stock is on its way. The not so good news is that due to sourcing lead times and current delivery delays there is an expected wait of 8-12 weeks. Thank you for your patience.

*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 the magazine/digital pattern.

Golden Glow by Penny Wolswinkel from Inspirations issue #104 is an ornamental candle with gleaming goldwork perfect for a Yuletide display.

Touch of Gold by Lucy Barter from Inspirations issue #99 is a delightful floral study using goldwork and stumpwork techniques.

Honey Bee by Alison Cole from Inspirations issue #90 is a gorgeous goldwork motif to frame.

Now who among us doesn’t love a little bit of gold and sparkle? Especially with Christmas coming up, it seems appropriate to start highlighting all of those wonderful, shiny projects glittering with metal threads. Here is a selection of projects stitched by our talented needlework community for you to get excited over:

‘Here is my reworking of an embroidery done by my grandma in the late 1940s, when she was first married. Unfortunately, she passed away in 2012 while I was pregnant with my third child, but in reworking her piece I felt close to her again.’

‘My grandma's piece is the one with the angels. I used DMC Etoile for the Bayeux stitch background and metallic threads for the halo on mine.’

Both versions are wonderful, Victoria. Such a meaningful pilgrimage you’ve been on with your needle and thread and what better way to keep her legacy alive for you and your family. We’re so glad you found comfort and connection in reworking your grandmother’s piece.

‘My latest finish, Simply Irresistible from Inspiration issue #105, has been worthwhile in so many ways. Not least, I’ve taken several classes from Tricia Wilson Nguyen, studying embroidery, stumpwork, and metal work from the 17th Century, so this opportunity to dip a toe into 16th-Century techniques was delightful.’

You’ve certainly done this project justice, Rebecca. It has been beautifully stitched, well done.

‘In October 2018 I won a bursary to study for a City & Guilds Qualification through distance learning with the School of Stitched Textiles. I have slowly been working away on the modules in between a period of illness and treatment for breast cancer. This course has taught me new techniques and challenged me to try new styles and ways of approach to my work.’

‘Stitching is like meditation. Because your brain can only process so much information at one time, when you immerse yourself in creating something you lose focus on other negative things that might be weighing you down. Stitching allows the brain to focus and gives the body something to do, working together both mentally and physically.

Thank you for your insights, Sally-Ann, and thank you for sharing your wonderful work. We completely agree with the meditative aspect of stitching, and we’re sure all of our readers will too.

‘Or Nué has been one of this term’s projects under the guidance of our legendary tutor Beppy Berlin. My first effort was not perfect, but I have made it into a handy box for receipts. The second is an improvement, so is suitable to send to a good friend.’

You’ve done a wonderful job with this, Jenny. We always say that the more you do, the better you get, so well done for persevering and what a lovely gesture of gifting your marvellous stitched art to a friend.

Do you love all things gold, glittery and sparkly? Or do you prefer your colours and textures to be more demure? Do you like to add embellishments to your work, or does the minimalist look make your heart sing? Whatever style of embroidery you enjoy, we want to see it. Send us a picture of your work and a bit of information about the project and your stitching journey to news@inspirationsstudios.com

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Persian Bounty by Anna Scott is a beautiful pomegranate study using a variety of stumpwork techniques.

Pomegranate by Margaret Lee from Inspirations issue #106 is an exquisite, embroidered study in random stitch embroidery.

Pomegranate & Rose by Anna Scott from Inspirations issue #100 is a superb silk and goldwork design of flowing stems laden with fruit and flowers.

Tudor Rose & Pomegranate by Cynthia Jackson from the Handpicked Collection features superb goldwork embroidery showcasing a compelling variety of techniques and metal threads.

The Golden Pomegranate by Margaret Cobleigh from Inspirations issue #61 is a stunning pomegranate, beautifully represented in this richly ornamented goldwork study.

~ Mandy Hale ~

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.