We often describe our time with needle and thread as our happy place.

Whilst we’d certainly never disagree with this sentiment, we recently read an article by Kinga Lewandowska that challenged the semantics of it somewhat.

Flourishing is ‘a richer and more holistic concept that is closely related to but extends beyond the confines of happiness.’

Happiness is often a result of how we feel about particular circumstances, whereas flourishing requires action and effort on our behalf. Dr Martin Seligman believes flourishing is the result of five factors he refers to as the PERMA model:

Positive Emotions & States: that include happiness, fulfillment, serenity and joy
Engagement: the state of mindfulness that comes from immersing yourself in a project
Positive Relationships: interactions and bonds we form with our community
Meaning: having purpose in life
Accomplishments: big or small, mastering an endeavour

We don’t know about you, but we quickly realised that our time with needle and thread could in fact achieve each of those five factors!

Whilst Dr Seligman also emphasises the importance of optimism, physical activity, nutrition, and sleep as necessary conditions for the PERMA model to work, we love that once these are considered in equal measure, our needlework is indeed the perfect means by which we’re able to declare that we’re not just happy, we’re flourishing.

One guaranteed thing about needlework is that there will always be leftover threads, fabric and notions after any project is completed. While some of these extras are thrown away, others are saved for another day. They get tucked away (sometimes neatly, sometimes not!) with all the best intentions to use them up in the future.

For many of us, that future never seems to come. However, for some the future is the part they look forward to as they devise ways to use up their scraps, orts and leftover bits and pieces.

We were inspired by the emails we received in response to our welcome about waste in All Stitched Up! issue #283, so we’re sure you will be too!

Carol Lynn Stratton told us that she has made art quilts for many years using leftover and throw-away fabric and threads. In fact, all of the members of her guild collect their orts for her so she can use them in her creations. We have included a few photos of her wonderful pieces that have made use of materials as diverse as lace, threads and even alpaca hair.

Carol Lynn's skill and creativity are fantastic. We are particularly taken by the Stitcher’s Nest that has a darning egg nestled in the centre. This piece is made exclusively from orts and bits from other projects and, Carol Lynn tells us, the egg represents the ‘goose eggs’ we all make every now and then.

Roberta Kenney also collects orts that she says make perfect stuffing for pincushions or small ornaments. We had come across this idea before and always marvelled at the thriftiness behind it.

Heather Grover works with used textiles frequently and enjoys deconstructing damaged pieces and saving all of the materials to work them into something new. Her orts include bits of lace, threads, ribbon and scrap tulle and all kinds of other goodies. To find some kind of order, Heather sorts the piles by colour using a muffin tin or egg carton to hold them. She then stores the piles of colourful orts in plastic bags so she can take them with her to classes.

The question she hears most often from her students is ‘what can you do with them?’ This is where one’s creativity can really fly. One technique Heather recommends is turning the bits and pieces back into fabric using a technique called ‘entrapment’. This is where you take two pieces of tulle, lay one down and spread your orts on to it. When you’re happy with the effect, pin the second piece on top and machine stitch all over to bond the three layers.

Several readers were inspired to write in concerning the wooden display boxes we also featured in All Stitched Up! issue #283. Boxes, as we have said before, are a perfect way to display your work. But finding the right box isn’t always easy.

Jackie Williams suggested a carpenter in Yorkshire, UK, who makes bespoke boxes. When Jackie was working in retail, she used to have a customer who would buy every blackwork design Jackie could supply, then work the piece and mount it in one of these bespoke boxes to give as Christmas gifts. We can but envy the lucky recipients! Jackie advised that if anyone is fortunate enough to return to the Harrogate Stitching Show that is generally held in November in the UK, the carpenter usually displays his work there.

We heard from a reader who isn’t even a stitcher (yet!), but who was inspired by Susan Casson’s Tiny Turtle project. Margrethe suggested mounting the project in a small table shadow-box. That way, you can look down on the little turtle and view it from the right perspective. This seems like a perfect idea – now we just need to figure out where to get four-legged table shadow boxes. Does anyone know?!

Finally, Joanne Gealta shared with us some wonderful pictures of her stitching space with the most adorable baskets imaginable. Each of the baskets holds a different colour or type of thread, and the drawers hold six-stranded thread and perlé cotton. No-one could fail to be inspired in this working space.

If you have innovative ways of using your orts, recycling old materials, organising your stash or anything else to do with embroidery, come and join in on the conversation. There are always comfy chairs available. All we need to know is whether you like your tea with sugar or without. Email us at news@inspirationsstudios.com

Now that we’ve got over the New Year celebrations… what’s that? What do you mean we’re nearly halfway through 2021?! Where has the time gone? We know it is difficult to believe, but we’re already thinking about 2022, so much so we even have next year's calendar now available to pre-order.

The 2022 Inspirations calendar is a gorgeous and practical addition to any home or stitching space. Filled with full colour images of some of your favourite projects, the calendar has plenty of space to add all of your appointments and reminders.

You’ll never need to look far for inspiration with the Inspirations 2022 calendar on your wall and with the 2021 calendar having sold out fast, be sure to get in early this year to avoid missing out.

Do you still have random needles in your needlebook or pincushion that you don’t know the size of? Our newly updated and refreshed needle guides are just what you need! Never again be left wondering if you’ve got a no. 10 or a no. 7, a darner or a sharp.

The Inspirations Needle Guide is a handy card with images of the most popular types of needles in actual size. All you need to do is match your unknown needle to the card and voila!

An essential item for your embroidery bag and a perfect idea for a gift with a choice of two different designs.

If you asked everyone to select their favourite project from the hundreds that we’ve published over the years, there would be numerous contenders. One design we get asked for time and time again is ‘In Flanders Fields’ by Jo Butcher. It doesn’t matter how many kits we produce; they always sell out.

In fact, just now our amazing kit team have finished producing a brand-new batch of kits complete with printed background fabric and all of the threads you need to complete this stunning piece.

Plus, for those who would like to kit the project yourself but need the unique printed background fabric, we also have pieces available for purchase separately.

Now, if you do purchase our Ready-To-Stitch kit or the pre-printed fabric, you’ll still need the most important part - the instructions! Originally published in Inspirations issue #99, printed copies of the magazine are still available or you can purchase a stand-alone digital pattern for the project.

Now there’s nothing to stop you from joining the ever-growing fan club of ‘In Flanders Fields’, a true perennial favourite.

Subscribers and readers of Inspirations Magazine will undoubtedly be aware of Ansie van der Walt. Ansie has been part of the Inspirations team as a writer/article contributor for many years. As well as being responsible for bringing us some of the most fascinating front page articles included in the magazine, Ansie also writes the Loose Threads segment where, in every issue, she shares her own thoughts and experiences on the subject of needlework.

Would you believe it, but Inspirations issue #110 contains Ansie’s 30th Loose Threads contribution! For the past seven and a half years, she has been entertaining us, giving us things to think about, and sharing her wonderful ideas and musings. That final segment always closes off the magazine with a wonderfully warm, comfortable glow.

We know everyone loves this section, but are there any Loose Threads that have really resonated with you? Was there a particular article that made you feel like Ansie was talking directly to you, or understood an experience you have had precisely? We’d love to hear from our All Stitched Up! readers about their love of Loose Threads and, indeed, any of Ansie’s writing to date.

From all of us here at Inspirations HQ and on behalf of the loyal readers of Loose Threads, we wanted to say congratulations to Ansie for her 30th piece. We’re looking forward to reading the next 30 in the coming years.

NOT A SUBSCRIBER?
If you’re missing out on reading the fabulous articles included in Inspirations Magazine such as Loose Threads and the featured stories from all over the world by contributors such as Ansie, why not subscribe?

Join the Inspirations family today by subscribing to the magazine through us direct and enjoy the benefits of a 15% discount off all our kits.

In previous generations, making your own clothes was a necessity. You couldn’t just walk into a shop and buy what you wanted straight off the rack like you can today. However, just because we have quick and easy fashion at our fingertips does not mean that sewing our own clothes is a thing of the past.

In fact, more and more people are discovering the joy of making their own. Whether it’s so they can choose their own fabrics and styles, or because they don’t fit properly into the limited sizes the shops carry, or simply for the pleasure of it, ‘home sewists’ represent an ever-expanding community.

Luckily, thanks to the internet, there are patterns, groups and advice galore if you are just starting out or getting back into it. Male or female, old or young, everyone can make their own.

There are some inspiring stories of why people sew on the Frankie website HERE where you can read to discover more about this growing trend. Perhaps it might even inspire you to dust off the sewing machine and try it yourself!

From wares to kits and all kinds of tricks, if it has recently come back in stock, you’ll discover it below.

Over recent weeks we’ve been working our way through all the projects from Inspirations issue #110, but the one design we have yet to highlight is the glorious cover piece: Paradise by Laurence Lieblich. We’ve had so many comments on the cover this time around, mainly due to the brilliance of the colours and the wonderful style of this unique design.

Laurence’s name may seem new, however, she has been a valued contributor to Inspirations in the past with her first design featured way back in issue #56.

Although Laurence always had stitching in her life, thanks to her mother and grandmother, it was only in 2006 when she moved to Nyon, a town on the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland, that an opportunity arose for Laurence to take over an embroidery studio. From there, Canevas Folies was born.

Since that time, Laurence has gone from strength to strength as a designer, teacher and embroiderer. She has found that the internet has helped her expand her business and community so much, but what she values above all are the wonderful variations in culture and tradition that she loves learning about from the global embroidery community.

If you take a look at Laurence’s website, you’ll see her fabulous style in all its glory. Paradise is a perfect example of the kind of embroidery that Laurence excels at. Combining a magnificent array of colours with a range of stitches and a design bursting with detail, Paradise isn’t just fantastic to look at, we’d say it is stitching paradise to work, from the first stitch to the last.

What sets this particular project apart is the wonderful blending of colours, particularly in the plumage of the birds. With purples blending into blues and yellows into reds, Paradise will allow you to enjoy working with long and short stitch to produce a stunning, jewel-like effect.

Each of the three birds is perched upon various branches that are dripping with leaves and flowers. Then the whole scene is framed to perfection with elegantly shaped corner foliage and capped off with a purple flower at each corner point.

Paradise works perfectly on the natural linen background, but you then get the pleasure of deciding whether you’re going to work this project in stranded cotton or glorious, shimmering silks. We have kitted up both to give you the option, knowing that the brilliance of the colours will show out whichever thread you choose.

Some people are afraid of colour as they worry that they might get the combinations wrong. With Paradise, Laurence Lieblich has been courageous for you and boldly combined colours to create a stunning rainbow-like effect.

You can rest assured that the colour combination works beautifully, leaving you to simply get on to produce a piece that will look wonderful on any wall. As you complete this beautiful design, the world of colour will open up to you in all of its glory giving you confidence to try more bold and exiting designs just like Paradise.

Step 1 – Purchase Project Instructions

Paradise by Laurence Lieblich features brightly coloured flowers and birds in surface embroidery.

Step 2 – Purchase Ready-To-Stitch Kit

The Inspirations Ready-To-Stitch kits for Paradise include everything* you need to re-create this dazzling scene: Fabric (unprinted), embroidery threads (stranded cotton or stranded silk) and needles.

*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.

Prism by Natalie Dupuis from Inspirations issue #103 is a sparkling brooch with a burst of coloured silks worked in Italian shading over silver passing thread.

Bright Bouquet by Sue Spargo from Inspirations issue #94 is a vibrant appliqué sewing roll with fun embroidered embellishment.

Tuscan Landscape by Trish Burr is an enchanting landscape scene reproduced from an original painting.

Who doesn’t love colour? It really is one of the pleasures of embroidery, isn’t it? There’s nothing much better than standing before a wall of coloured threads or digging through a drawer full of coloured fabrics trying to decide which ones to use. Some people prefer muted shades, but others love colours that just say ‘wow’! The projects we’re highlighting today fall in that latter category… and they look amazing.

‘I am doing the Diploma in Hand Embroidery at the Royal School of Needlework and I couldn’t resist sending you a photo of my project for the appliqué unit. It features two parrots, Persephone and Pamela. Their beaded talons are gripping a corded branch surrounded by stumpwork leaves and tropical ferns.’

‘It was great fun to stitch because of the bright colours and the endless possibilities for materials, threads and notions to add dimension and sparkle to the piece.’

What a beautiful pair of parrots, Tricia! They look so striking on the black background as well. We can see why they were so much fun to stitch, you have done a superb job.

‘I have just completed the Twitter cushion from Inspirations issue #102 and thoroughly enjoyed the embroidery. I am very pleased with the result. Sue Spargo is a very talented designer.’

‘Although the amount of cotton supplied was very generous, I still needed a bit more material for the backing. Luckily, I have a friend who makes curtains for a living so she finished the cushion for me.’

This is a fabulous finish, Jan it looks exactly like Sue Spargo’s original design. You have re-created all the details perfectly, including all the different shapes of each bird. We hope you get many hours of sitting pleasure accompanied by this bright and cheerful cushion.

‘This embroidery on felt was inspired by my childhood home on a farm in Minnesota. Our house was on the edge of the woods. The woods offered a peaceful, quiet place to stroll and view wildflowers, plants, and native birds. It is a free-form embroidery stitched on felt with hand-dyed threads.’

‘Wishing You Joy! is a holiday greeting card made for my daughter. I so missed seeing her last holidays. We are separated by the Canada /US border and by a tiny virus that affects our lives in big ways. But neither border nor virus can stop the joy of having a beautiful child or friend.’

Thank you for sharing your wonderfully colourful and creative projects, Laura that are fabulous. We love your positive attitude and all hope that the holiday season in 2021 allows us all to reconnect with our friends and family and once again.

‘I recently completed a series of workshops with students in a local secondary school showing them the benefits of sewing and once the world is back to ‘normal’ I intend to continue on my quest to promote the benefits of this ancient art.’

‘Creativity is a vital part of my self-development, resilience, well-being and positive mental health. Studies have shown that engaging in creative activities can improve happiness, reduce stress, improve cognitive ability, reduce dementia and boost the immune system. Just doing some sewing can help the body to release endorphins, the body's natural anti-depressant!’

You are spot on Sally-Ann, very wise thoughts and ideas about the benefits of needlework indeed! Reading your encouraging words was inspiring, and we can clearly see the practical outworking of these benefits on display with these highly creative and wonderfully colourful pieces you have created. And the fact you are in turn teaching all of this to others, is just the icing on the cake. Brilliant!

Do you love to work with colour? Do you often wonder whether there’s such a thing as ‘too bright’? Or do you prefer pastels and muted shades? Whatever colour combinations you prefer, or however bright or subtle the colours you prefer to work with, we’d like to see the results. Send us a picture of your work with a bit of information about the project and your stitching journey to news@inspirationsstudios.com

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Summer Blooms by Ana Mallah is three charming needlework accessories featuring pretty, garden flowers.

Perfect Pansies by Carolyn Pearce from the book A Passion for Needlework | Blakiston Creamery is a vibrant set of needlework accessories decorated with enchanting pansies.

Little Bits by Barbara Jackson from Inspirations issue #78 is a set of delightful crewel embroidered accessories.

French Style by Angelique Benseghir-Vergnault from Inspirations issue #59 is a superb sewing bag and accessories simply oozing with Parisian grace and charm.

~ Dr Lynn Soots ~

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.