I began the monthly studio check-in as a way to hold myself accountable for the projects I take on. (According to Gretchen Rubin’s The Four Tendencies, I’m someone that needs outside accountability to get anything done!) That being said, March was not a productive month in my studio practice. The big reason? I moved! Across the country! My husband got a job in Seattle, so over the course of four weeks, we packed up our life in Minneapolis and found an apartment in the Pacific Northwest. Now that we’re here, things are slowly beginning to resemble a new normal.
I still managed to finish a small embroidery and made progress on my 1 Year of Stitches project. To see what I’m doing in near-real time, follow me on my embroidery-only Instagram account, @brwnpaperbag_stitch.
1 Year of Stitches
March 5
I started March with leaves—very typical for this project—and then zagged to a poodle. Inspired by a ceramic spaghetti poodle statue that I own, I drew the profile of one of these creatures. I started by sketching onto the fabric itself, which is almost always a mistake; rarely do I ever like a drawing on the first go. But, having learned some strategies from last month’s Staffordshire dog, I didn’t fret and calmly resketched the pup.
After settling on a drawing I liked, I made a time-consuming decision. Because of the highly textured nature of these ceramic pieces, I decided to recreate their “fur” using the bullion stitch. The bullion stitch takes some time to master, but once you do, it becomes easier and easier to recreate. But, it’s time-consuming and tends to hurt my fingers after long periods of time—hence why I’m still working on the hair! My goal for April is to finish the poodle and get back to cats.
March 17
March 21
March 27
March 28
Cat and Plant Embroideries
I finished one four-inch embroidery in March. Similar to my kitty surrounded by calathea leaves, the recently completed embroidery features a tabby surrounded by plants native to the PNW. (It’s a commemoration of my move!) There’s a big leaf maple surrounded by wild ginger and flanked on the ends northern lady fern. It’s now available in my Etsy shop.
Embroideries in Progress
Now that I’ve settled into my new studio space, I’ve been able to sketch four (!!) new embroideries. Two are on chambray shirts which will be listed on Etsy as soon as they’re done, and the other two are further explorations of cat portraits and vintage dog statues. I’m excited about all of them. I’d love for you to see my progress over the course of April on Instagram.
The chambray shirt on the right will have either end of the collars flanked by cats.
