Embroidery | Week 1

During the first week, I have learnt basic skills and techniques used in embroidery, including machine bernina stitching, embellishing and hand embroidery. The task was to create 10 samples using a monotone palette. I used my visual research from the trip to London as a starting point. A lot of my imagery had bold, abstract shapes, which I have applied to my work. At the beginning, I found it quite difficult to create my samples, as I was making them for the sake of it, rather than thinking about the overall content and compositions.

 

After the Tuesday crit, I have come to realise that the above sample was most successful, and therefore would like to push forward. On this sample, I free machine embroidered an abstract pattern taken from a laser cut pillar (found in Anthropology). I think the simple lines work well with the denser spots of embroidery. I also really like the heaviness of the black wool, and would like to continue working with it.

I think I need to explore more techniques, and combine them in a way that gives them the best quality. This week I would like to experiment with layering my fabrics and using both appliqué and reverse appliqué. I also need to consider my fabric choices and try to push the boundaries of what can be embroidered into.