I am now the proud mother of two 🙂 Baby number two is a healthy girl, growing rapidly. I’m finally getting the hang of managing two young children, so I am ending my maternity break and adding the business back into the equation. In addition to tweaking both this site and adapting to the changes that Etsy made during my break, I am working on expanding my product lines in preparation for the holidays.  Keep an eye on instagram for more updates!
This Saturday I’ll be selling at the Prospect Heights Craft Fair. The show is located at P.S. 9 and the proceeds benefit arts programs at the school.
I haven’t had time to sit down and photograph things properly, but these are a preview of what I’ll have available. Above is geometric line art in a chevron pattern.
This one I’m pretty sure will be a hit. Pretty Mother’s Day cards available with rose, yellow or orange flowers. Once I get these photographed nicely I will list them in the shop, but that may be awhile so your best shot is to come to the show this Saturday 🙂
I was very sad to discover that my notebook supplier discontinued my standard notebook, which I used in my DIY kits and completed embroideries. Their replacement had a cover that was totally unsuitable for embroidery, so I had to go looking for an alternative so I could restock my popular DIY kits.
I still haven’t found the perfect replacement, but I have found a great way to continue to offer DIY kits: embroidered cards!
Each kit comes with a pre-punched card, an envelope, embroidery floss, an embroidery needle, and detailed instructions to create each card.
There are three designs available right now: dual circles (which can be used to create a variety of designs), a red heart, and a “Mom” script typography –listed early enough that you can finish the card in time for Mother’s Day! You can find all three available here.
In preparation for the upcoming holiday season I’ve been working on some new products! Since I’ll be selling at a holiday market in New York I’ve focused on making a few NY themed items. First, above, an embroidery in gold thread of the iconic Chrysler building, my favorite architecture in the city.
Next up, an embroidery of the Brooklyn Bridge, with special focus on the interweaving cables of the bridge. It’s the first mixed media work I’ve created.
Finally, to add to the series of “circular ceilings” that I made earlier this year, I made a version for New York City featuring the glass ceiling of the Guggenheim, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright of course. I kept it monochromatic since a bright multicolored approach seemed like it would fight the design.
Lots more in the works!
Saint Patrick’s Day is generally not a card holiday in my experience, so I thought I’d try a project more relevant to the holiday: coasters for beer! Full instructions and template after the jump.
Saving the best for last in this five-part series! I present the rotunda of the Capitol in Washington DC!
Photo by o palsson
So the painting in the center was just not going to happen, but given how busy the rest of the ceiling is, I thought the center would provide some nice white space to balance things out.
This embroidery took me the longest to complete, by far. I thought I would never finish punching and sewing those little hexagons.
I also changed up the hues of blue for a gradient feel, to add some interest.
The fourth ceiling to be featured in this series of five is the stained glass ceiling of the rotunda of the Allen County Courthouse in Fort Wayne, IN.
I really love the criss-crossing in the center circle panels, but unfortunately I couldn’t figure out how to make it work with the scale I was working in (8″ x 10″ cardstock). The holes would have been so close together that I wouldn’t have been able to make separate stitches.
Another fun fact –this location was the spark that spawned the idea for the series. I was racking my brain (and Google) for something unique to identify Fort Wayne that could be represented in embroidery.
When I found images of the courthouse ceiling, I thought about the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco…
and then I thought of the rotunda at the Capitol …which leads me to the grand finale, number five of five!
Presenting a tutorial for one embroidered Valentine heart! Complete with template downloads and step-by-step directions. Check it out after the jump.
Embroidery number three in this series of five features the stained glass of the Grand Army of the Republic dome at the Chicago Cultural Center.
Photo by fusionpanda
This design had to be rather substantially simplified since the original is so incredibly ornate.
The gold, green and blue thread are a bit of a hat tip to the original stained glass.
The next embroidery in the series of five is my best representation of the ceiling of the capitol rotunda in Sacramento.
Photo by Willivolt
As you can see, I took a few more liberties with this representation in order to make it work in the medium.
I also stuck with a warmer color palate to reflect the sunny warm climate in the Central Valley.
Koto Embroidery 