Thank you Joyce for including me in this article! I admit I had a giggle at the “modern love” comment. If you only knew the endless commentary we’ve received on our journey but I’ll save that for another writing. I’m so pleased to have fallen into your post - it was by pure accident as I Google elin Petronella substack simply to see how my page looked like (I opened it yesterday) and I was surprised to not find myself on top but rather this lovely article. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you’d like to have a chat about more creativity and embroidery - it’s what keeps me sane through the insanity of the world. Cheers, Elin
Thank you so much for the mention and also for sharing this terrific embroidery by Elin. I learned to embroider from my grandmother as a child and because of that have a really soft spot in my heart for it even though I don't really do it much myself. My sister doesn't do it often, either, but she really does an amazing job when she takes the time. I have a pillow she embroidered with "I love you" for me in super simple stitching when she was a very little girl and since then she's done some fun pieces like Starry Night and an elaborate tiger.
If you ever want to share a guest post or interview on my page about your thoughts on the relationship between handcrafts and mental health, I'd be thrilled to host it.
Hello Kathryn, considering your love for crochet I’m absolutely convinced that you’d fall in love with the creative freedom of embroidery as well. They share the sense of rhythmic repetition of stitches, which is part of what I find to contribute to a sense of mental and physical calm. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you want to chat more about it. cheers and keep up the great work - it’s an important topic! Elin
Thanks Elin! I do think that there's amazing power in the meditative stitching of it. I have a weirdly specific thing that makes me tend to like embroidery and hand sewing less than knitting and crochet ... it's the cutting of the thread to a specific length to work with, the knotting, the having to repeat that throughout the project. In crochet, I can just keep going and going as long as the yarn ball goes (I tend not to change colors often for this same reason.)
If you're ever interested in sharing a guest post or doing an interview about the benefits you've experienced in embroidery, I'd love to share that with my readers!
Thanks for sharing your reflections - I actually never considered the cutting the thread part as an obstacle, but now that you say it I can totally see your point related to the crochet! It creates an ongoing flow of sorts that is definitely different in embroidery.
To be frank, I don’t even notice when I change floss haha I do it so frequently that my mind is hardly paying attention to it at this point...
Yes long projects like this are lovely! Behind the scenes I’m currently working on a slow stitched diary (part of healing from post partum depression with my second).
Thank you so much for your proposal, I’d be very happy to! Whatever you think would be of most value? Please let me know how I can easiest contact you without bothering the thread :)
Thank you, Kathryn for the invitation. I don't think I have the depth of insight about the subject to make an interesting interview, but I appreciate the invitation.
I'm always interested in every perspective and there's no wrong way to contribute to the conversation - totally okay if you don't want to but just letting you know that it's an open invite any time.
Thank you for highlighting embroidery, and The Sewing Songbird - her work is so beautifully vibrant. I have done embroidery on and off throughout my life, alongside other crafts. I never thought it helped my mental health, but I now realise that it has been a huge help in times of stress.
I also realise that my embroidery is linked to my love of documenting our lives. I embroider words on my quilts and once embroidered a family tree on a christening gown, of all the people who had worn the gown.
Those embroidery pieces are absolutely stunning! It must take quite a bit of time & effort to finish each one. I don’t do any of the crafts you listed on your poll too often -- just the occasional slow stitching. But I do paint most days, something I picked up during a period of confusion and depression.
I will try! but I am not sure how to do it. do i make the note first, then comment and share note here? It's not as amazing as her work, but it is pretty amazing in its own way so am happy to share! Maybe because I have a free account I can't make or share notes but I want you to know I am grateful for this substack.
Not quite sure what you want to do, however, you can always make comments here but Substack does not support images on comments. If you make a comment here (or on any free post anywhere (posts here are always free) and then use the share icon, it sends it to Notes where you can add photos. Thanks for all your response.
That embroidery is magic!! And yay for being included in your list! Let me know if I can do anything to help. Would be happy to draw up a little something or whatever else you think might be fun 😁
Medha ... I'm referencing your "make memories" post along with a capture of two images from that post. The lead-in material is about optical illusions and the power of words and images. If you want to "draw up a little something" I'll find a way to use it if you send the image to jwycoff@gratitudemojo.com. Whatever comes to you, I'll find a way to work it in so feel free to follow your muse. And, thanks!
Ooohh interesting! I haven't quite connected into what you're doing enough to get a drawing inspiration though. Do you wanna email me more details when/if you have them? medha.murtagh@gmail.com x
What gorgeous inspiration! thank you so much! I tried pasting a pic of an old embroidery - one part of a yoke I did on a top i made many years ago - but it didn't work. that yoke took over 600 hrs to complete. I traveled by bus all over North America with it for several months, and it took me 3 years, between life's other callings. I always had a hand project with me in those days. Now at 70, my hands have painful arthritis and my thumb joints are wearing out from years of hard but beloved manual labor as a gardener, and hand work.
These ladies make me want to get back into it, though! Maybe looser weave fabric would work! I LOVE and adore these embroideries you've shared with us - and your post.
How about tapestry work? It is on a frame so you don't have to hold it, and you can be as inventive as when doing embroidery. I think you can also get tools to help if you can't hold the needle.
I think hand crafts are a double joy - it may take 600 hours to sew on a yoke top but it gave you 600 hours of pleasure (okay maybe subtract a few hours for the frustration when it went wrong), and then many hours of joy looking at or wearing the finished work.
Thank you Joyce for including me in this article! I admit I had a giggle at the “modern love” comment. If you only knew the endless commentary we’ve received on our journey but I’ll save that for another writing. I’m so pleased to have fallen into your post - it was by pure accident as I Google elin Petronella substack simply to see how my page looked like (I opened it yesterday) and I was surprised to not find myself on top but rather this lovely article. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you’d like to have a chat about more creativity and embroidery - it’s what keeps me sane through the insanity of the world. Cheers, Elin
Thank you so much for the mention and also for sharing this terrific embroidery by Elin. I learned to embroider from my grandmother as a child and because of that have a really soft spot in my heart for it even though I don't really do it much myself. My sister doesn't do it often, either, but she really does an amazing job when she takes the time. I have a pillow she embroidered with "I love you" for me in super simple stitching when she was a very little girl and since then she's done some fun pieces like Starry Night and an elaborate tiger.
If you ever want to share a guest post or interview on my page about your thoughts on the relationship between handcrafts and mental health, I'd be thrilled to host it.
Hello Kathryn, considering your love for crochet I’m absolutely convinced that you’d fall in love with the creative freedom of embroidery as well. They share the sense of rhythmic repetition of stitches, which is part of what I find to contribute to a sense of mental and physical calm. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you want to chat more about it. cheers and keep up the great work - it’s an important topic! Elin
Thanks Elin! I do think that there's amazing power in the meditative stitching of it. I have a weirdly specific thing that makes me tend to like embroidery and hand sewing less than knitting and crochet ... it's the cutting of the thread to a specific length to work with, the knotting, the having to repeat that throughout the project. In crochet, I can just keep going and going as long as the yarn ball goes (I tend not to change colors often for this same reason.)
But, I've always wanted to try quilting by hand and I do have fond memories of learning embroidery, so maybe at some point I'll be called to try again! I love the long term embroidery projects by: https://www.mutuallyassureddeconstruction.com/embroidery/stitchaday
If you're ever interested in sharing a guest post or doing an interview about the benefits you've experienced in embroidery, I'd love to share that with my readers!
Thanks for sharing your reflections - I actually never considered the cutting the thread part as an obstacle, but now that you say it I can totally see your point related to the crochet! It creates an ongoing flow of sorts that is definitely different in embroidery.
To be frank, I don’t even notice when I change floss haha I do it so frequently that my mind is hardly paying attention to it at this point...
Yes long projects like this are lovely! Behind the scenes I’m currently working on a slow stitched diary (part of healing from post partum depression with my second).
Thank you so much for your proposal, I’d be very happy to! Whatever you think would be of most value? Please let me know how I can easiest contact you without bothering the thread :)
Your long project sounds very special. <3
Email: Kathryn.vercillo on gmail and we can go from there! A guest post with your thoughts would be ideal as I love your natural writing.
But if you prefer an interview, that works too, and I have a form that gets us started at: https://forms.gle/JqqXCasWuAjf7F4MA
Or whatever combo thereof ...
Thank you, Kathryn for the invitation. I don't think I have the depth of insight about the subject to make an interesting interview, but I appreciate the invitation.
I'm always interested in every perspective and there's no wrong way to contribute to the conversation - totally okay if you don't want to but just letting you know that it's an open invite any time.
Appreciate that and i'll think about it.
Thank you for highlighting embroidery, and The Sewing Songbird - her work is so beautifully vibrant. I have done embroidery on and off throughout my life, alongside other crafts. I never thought it helped my mental health, but I now realise that it has been a huge help in times of stress.
I also realise that my embroidery is linked to my love of documenting our lives. I embroider words on my quilts and once embroidered a family tree on a christening gown, of all the people who had worn the gown.
Thank you also for the links.
What a treasure that christening gown must be!
Those embroidery pieces are absolutely stunning! It must take quite a bit of time & effort to finish each one. I don’t do any of the crafts you listed on your poll too often -- just the occasional slow stitching. But I do paint most days, something I picked up during a period of confusion and depression.
I will try! but I am not sure how to do it. do i make the note first, then comment and share note here? It's not as amazing as her work, but it is pretty amazing in its own way so am happy to share! Maybe because I have a free account I can't make or share notes but I want you to know I am grateful for this substack.
Not quite sure what you want to do, however, you can always make comments here but Substack does not support images on comments. If you make a comment here (or on any free post anywhere (posts here are always free) and then use the share icon, it sends it to Notes where you can add photos. Thanks for all your response.
That embroidery is magic!! And yay for being included in your list! Let me know if I can do anything to help. Would be happy to draw up a little something or whatever else you think might be fun 😁
Medha ... I'm referencing your "make memories" post along with a capture of two images from that post. The lead-in material is about optical illusions and the power of words and images. If you want to "draw up a little something" I'll find a way to use it if you send the image to jwycoff@gratitudemojo.com. Whatever comes to you, I'll find a way to work it in so feel free to follow your muse. And, thanks!
Ooohh interesting! I haven't quite connected into what you're doing enough to get a drawing inspiration though. Do you wanna email me more details when/if you have them? medha.murtagh@gmail.com x
Wow! what an offer ... let me think about it.
Joyce, Glad to be included in this stellar list of writers. Thanks! Russell
Russell ... thank YOU for all the inspiration.
These look so lovely, a bloody good post
Wow, I'm making progress ... my first "bloody good." Thanks!
Another brilliant post with lots of things to find!
Ah what a treat to be included - thank you, Joyce! Can second a lot of the other writers mentioned, and add yourself!
What gorgeous inspiration! thank you so much! I tried pasting a pic of an old embroidery - one part of a yoke I did on a top i made many years ago - but it didn't work. that yoke took over 600 hrs to complete. I traveled by bus all over North America with it for several months, and it took me 3 years, between life's other callings. I always had a hand project with me in those days. Now at 70, my hands have painful arthritis and my thumb joints are wearing out from years of hard but beloved manual labor as a gardener, and hand work.
These ladies make me want to get back into it, though! Maybe looser weave fabric would work! I LOVE and adore these embroideries you've shared with us - and your post.
How about tapestry work? It is on a frame so you don't have to hold it, and you can be as inventive as when doing embroidery. I think you can also get tools to help if you can't hold the needle.
I think hand crafts are a double joy - it may take 600 hours to sew on a yoke top but it gave you 600 hours of pleasure (okay maybe subtract a few hours for the frustration when it went wrong), and then many hours of joy looking at or wearing the finished work.
600 HOURS! WOW! And we can't add images to the pst replies, but we CAN add them to chat. Just saying 😜
and also we can add images to Notes.
Oh yeah! That too.
I'm so glad you enjoyed them and I would love to see that yoke that collected so much of your attention, time and creativity.
I am delighted and grateful to be on such a list, Joyce.