Exquisite Korean embroidery

Recently I was given a rare opportunity to have a close look at the most exquisite Korean embroidery. My friend (and embroidery buddy) Yumi Wong-Pan let me borrow and take home six vintage silk wedding panels (yay! And eek!) The panels are about 70 years old and their luxurious feel and stunning thread work cannot be described in words nor can it be conveyed in the photos I took. The panels were approximately 1.2m long and 40cm wide. From what I could tell by looking at the work, most of the embroidery was done in single strand some details with 2 strands. It's not just the technical skill that is to be admired here but the colour choices and illustration are equally awe inspiring. The majority of stitches are sarin and stem stitch. The person who created these was evidently a very skilled needle worker as well as a highly talented artist. Yumi is planning to hand them to a museum. I am so grateful that I got the opportunity to handle these and examine them closely. I feel so inspired!

 

Detail of the back side of the flower pictured above.

New embroidery kits

I've just designed a couple of new embroidery kits for sale through my Etsy shop. Here they are pictured below, they are now available for sale from here...

http://www.etsy.com/au/shop/KasiaJacquotShop?ref=l2-shopheader-name

and delivery to anywhere in Australia is free :)

 

The patterns are very easy to embroider. You can do the whole thing in a single colour and a single simple stitch, even the running stitch will look good! Or if you're fairly experienced you can cover the whole image with a myriad of stitches and colours. A design that is also easy for kids to follow. Just get a hoop, some threads and a needle. I'd love to hear from you with photos of your finished pieces. Please send me your pics to kasiajtextiles@gmail.com

Screen prints on hemp and linen cushions

Here was a most unusual commission. Three years ago a friend asked me to create a set of cushions for their lounge room neutral and earthy in colour and using natural, hardwearing fabrics. Easy. The designs on the cushions? African animals... mixed in with my Polish folksy motifs... errrr ok...

I admit I took a moment to let that sink in. This was going to be a challenge. But since my friend Valerie was confident about the result I decided to be confident too! So using the traditional folksy elements of floral and decorative motifs as well as symmetry, I married lions, zebras, a cheetah, gazelles and a boab tree together with the decorative elements that I know and love so much. All the designs were cut out of paper and silk screen printed onto hemp and linen. After three years of loving use the cushions look fabulous, they are soft and look like part of the family. So thank you Valerie, Carrington and Billy (and Scruffy I'm sure has had an afternoon nap or two on them) for this fun project!

 

Please contact me at kasiajtextiles@gmail .com for details and quotes on commissioned work.

Painting on fabric

 

This is an old painting I did a few years back and gifted to my auntie in Perth. (she loved it :)) The full shot is at the top but I also included some close ups which I absolutely love and feel that they could be artworks in themselves. The texture comes through with such warmth and the coloured layers give it such a happy and light feeling.

Pocket embrodiery

 

 

I have recently added some simple orange embroidery to an old linen dress. It's really given this dress new life. I added the word "here" on one pocket and the word "now" on the other pocket to remind myself that I should be spending most of my time in the present moment :)

Beaded necklace made from berries

 

Autumn is not far away. Last year I made some lovely necklaces out of autumn berries that grow on my street. I'm not a jewellery maker and it took me some time to work out how to get that clustered effect going. The necklace looked stunning and more importantly felt amazing to wear. It's so rare to wear something natural against your skin. Try making some out of the myriad of things that grow on trees and bushes. If you're not up for this style you can make a simple single strand necklace. Oh and the other lovely thing about this was that as the days went by the berries dried and changed colour. I didn't photograph them but they looked quite magical.

Painted floor

 

 

This was by far my absolutely favourite job in 2013. I was commissioned by a fair trade shop in Lane Cove to paint their floor. It's the biggest canvass I have ever had and took about 60 hours of painting to complete, not counting the design work ahead of the job. The shop, called One Village, stocks fair trade, ethically made products from all over the world. Joanna Gurung (owner) wanted this reflected in the design of the floor. I decided to represent each culture by a small design element inside each circle on the floor. The designs I used came from places like India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Tibet, Uganda, Spain, Turkey, Pakistan, to name a few. I was given free reign of the design and loved every minute despite having a very sore back at the end of the week of painting!

 

For comissions and quotes please contact me at kasiajtextiles@gmail.com