An Embroidery Story from Laura Bray

Laura Bray is a designer, writer and lifestyle expert.  She inspires creative women to live a life of balance & simplicity by sharing her modern twist on traditional home arts.  Whether you stitch, cook, are raising children or just want to be a better housekeeper, you are sure to find great tips and tutorials on her blog at www.katydiddys.blogspot.com. This is her embroidery story:

I started to embroider when I was about 10 years old.  I stitched a funky, 1970’s mushroom.  (Oddly, it would be back in style now!)  Once I finished that project, I was hooked.  I embroidered so much that I ended up straining my eyes and needed reading glasses!  At some point, I abandoned my stitching.  Maybe all the distractions of my teen years drew me away.  And, sadly, all my childhood embroidery work was lost in a fire on my parent’s property a few years ago.

Then, a few years ago, I came across Jenny Hart’s book, Sublime Stitching.  All my fond memories of embroidering as a young girl came flooding back.  I grabbed the book and some supplies and began to stitch again. 

Now I stitch almost every week.  It’s a wonderful way to relax at the end of the busy day.  My six year old daughter often sits next to me and makes floss recommendations or even works on her own little piece.  (You can see how I taught her how to embroider here: http://katydiddys.blogspot.com/2011/09/teaching-your-child-to-embroider.html)  

I also enjoy embroidering my own sketches.  It’s such a fun way display artwork in a new format.

For my fellow embroidery lovers, I’ve created a cute Thanksgiving themed pattern.  I call it “Turkey in Love”, and I think we all know that this love story will end in tragedy.  Stitch it onto a large napkin and line your roll basket with it.  

My patterns are available for purchase in my Etsy Shop:  www.katydiddy.etsy.com

Readers, please enjoy Laura's free pattern.

Thanks for stopping by, Laura! 

Download here:  Download Turkey In Love