Tip Jar Thursdays! No. 6 - Embroidery and Stitching • Art House Co-op

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Tip Jar Thursdays! No. 6 - Embroidery and Stitching

Happy Thursday sketchers!

While our Sketchbook Project Road Crew are working their way down to sunny Florida (jealous much?) for the final stop on the Sketchbook Project Tour 2011, we’re holding the fort at the Brooklyn Art Library where the 2010 Project is on view at the moment! And some fine specimens of sketchbook they are too. Some of you are probably starting to work on your book for next year’s Project right now, taking that first great big leap into the sketching universe! When you first receive your book, it may seem a tad daunting to think about filling each and every one of its pages. That’s what Tip Jar Thursdays are here for! Remember, a “sketch”book is not just for sketching, and a browse through our online Digital Library will quickly help you realize that the more creative and unusual the media you use, the more spectacular the result. So this week, we’re encouraging you to set down your pencils and pens, and pick up a needle and thread as we show you the ins and outs of embroidery!

I’ve always been a big closet fan of stitching, knitting and crochet and it’s so exciting to see how these age-old traditional handicrafts can be transformed to bring the pages of a sketchbook to life. I love how Lisa McKinley uses machine embroidery to accent my other big obsession… hand-drawn typography.

Check out Stephanie Tichenor’s embroidered bee on a background of stitched yellow honeycomb. Stephanie replaced the pages of her book with sheets of fabric, and there is a real focus here on the detail and tactility of the stitching. Sweet as honey!

A sewing machine isn’t necessary to get in on the embroidery action either. Pat Holten’s collage of vintage zoological illustrations are really set off by her embroidered borders and glued on yarns.

An oft-thumbed through favourite of mine, Tim Abel’s fold out map of Ohio and Illinois may not be the most useful for roadtrippers stuck on the side of a highway with a flat tire, but his intricate stitching is absolutely beautiful.

Why not take a look at our Digital Library for more inspiration? Head straight to Kym Strom’s sketchbook, where tactile and chunky hand-stitched pages really bring her illustrations to life. Or check out Lyndsay Dooley’s sketchbook, full of stark architectural imagery and maps, contrasting perfectly with stitched lines and grids.

And, if you’re in the ‘hood, swing by the Brooklyn Art Library to take a flick through By Hand, the perfect reference guide featuring the work of contemporary artists, such as Rob Wynne and Tucker Schwarz, replacing their paintbrushes and pencils for methods and materials traditionally associated with needlecraft.

We can’t wait to see what you come up with. Get stitching!

- Fiona.