Stitchy Snippets - Drips of Thread

Ghada Amer is a multi-media artist based in New York. She expresses her political and feminine views and ideals in a unique style of painting with thread.

Amer studied Fine Art in France in the early nineties and this is where she first developed her unusual approach to embroidery. To create the painted aesthetic, first the canvas is prepared then the composition is stitched, leaving many loose threads which resemble painted drips, in the last stage the entire work is coated with a gel giving the work a painted, gloss finish.

In her collection 'Rainbow Girls' Amer has married imagery with text. Choice quotes rest inconspicuously between the trailing drips of thread. This juxtaposition of strong political messages created with the delicate medium of embroidery makes the art even more compelling.

Friday Instagram Finds No. 4

Today I'm going to share with you three needle artists I "discovered" because they used the hashtag #feelingstitchyig on Instagram. You can click on any of their user names (at the beginning of each section, or on the Instagram photo) to go directly to their Instagram feed.

@cozyblue
Among other things, Liz, a.k.a. Cozy Blue, is an embroiderer and illustrator who creates detailed hand embroidery pieces. She uses texture and color to tell a story with each of the pieces she creates.

This beautiful piece is one she created based on a photo of a beautiful filed of yellow flowers with a backdrop of mountains in Asheville, NC. As a big fan of French knots, I just love all of the French knots, and the variation in the shades of yellow. It looks like she used paint on the fabric to create the beautiful clouds.

A photo posted by liz (@cozyblue) on Apr 25, 2015 at 1:57pm PDT

This beautiful closeup is a poppy that Liz designed. Isn't it neat when an artist creates something that isn't an exact replica of what it's supposed to be? I think this shows a high level of creativity and cleverness.

A photo posted by liz (@cozyblue) on Apr 14, 2015 at 11:07am PDT

This neat piece combines embroidery with weaving. Isn't it clever?! It reminds me of the sun.

A photo posted by liz (@cozyblue) on Apr 2, 2015 at 5:38pm PDT

@bustleandsew
Bustle & Sew is a mother (Helen) and daughter (Rosie) team who create original applique and embroidery designs and put out a monthly magazine. Their embroidery work features gorgeous florals, whimsical motifs, and beautiful color schemes.

This workroom hoop is so pretty, and would look great on any workroom wall (or door). The stitching is precise, and, again, I just love the colors Helen and Rosie use.

A photo posted by Bustle & Sew (@bustleandsew) on Mar 27, 2015 at 2:55am PDT

This pillow has an interesting blend of embroidery and applique, that Bustle & Sew is known for. They used freestyle machine embroidery to affix the applique and create stems.

A photo posted by Bustle & Sew (@bustleandsew) on Apr 15, 2015 at 10:15am PDT

This cute fox looks like felt applique with embroidery accents, and the texture is what gives it such great character.

A photo posted by Bustle & Sew (@bustleandsew) on Mar 23, 2015 at 12:35am PDT

@cotton_clara
Cotton Clara, a.k.a. Chloe, creates needlepoint kits that she sells, and her Instagram feed is filled with color and her cutie kids.

This little robin is made up of lots of seed stitches in different colors. I think it had to take a lot of patience and a vision for what it should and would look like in the end. Personally, I have a difficult time working with seed stitch, and I always end up making too many. Chloe has the perfect number, in the perfect alignment.

A photo posted by Chloe Hardisty (@cotton_clara) on Apr 18, 2015 at 6:55am PDT

I'm going to continue with the bird theme with these plastic canvas birds Chloe created. I have never tried plastic canvas needlepoint before, but these make me want to try!

A photo posted by Chloe Hardisty (@cotton_clara) on Apr 11, 2015 at 10:48am PDT

Here's another plastic canvas needlepoint design that Chloe created. This little bunny is super cute, and I think it would have made a great addition to an Easter basket or Spring-themed wreath.

A photo posted by Chloe Hardisty (@cotton_clara) on Mar 10, 2015 at 7:45am PDT

I hope you've enjoyed edition number four of Friday Instagram Finds (FIF) on Feeling Stitchy! Please leave comments below to let me know what you thought. If you'd like to be considered for FIF, or if you find a great embroiderer or stitch-related needle worker who you think I should feature, be sure to tag one of their pictures with #feelingstitchyig, and I'll take a look!

While you're on Instagram, make sure you follow Feeling Stitchy! We're @feelingstitchyish. We'd love for you to stop by and say hello :)

Friday Instagram Finds, No. 5 will be published Friday, May 15, 2015.

Texture and leaf

Fall Leaf Embroidery, originally uploaded by flossbox.

This is a lovely piece, isn't it? Perfect autumn colours, great texture and a lot of different stitches.

How many different stitches do you see?

Fluffy letters

nervous closeup, originally uploaded by forestine.

This is unusual, isn't it? But absolutely fabulous.

Those letters look all funkylicious in all their mohair-y goodness! And I love the contrast with the French knots. :-)

Blossoms

Stitched by Kirsten's Fabric Art

Wow. Simply wow, Kirsten!

Gorgeous stitches

Stitched by glazedangel101

Look at that stitching! I love it when you peeps are imaginative and embroider in double lines with different colors... I feel like I could stare at these lovely textures all day. Bravo glazedangel! Oh, and yes, that's from a Sublime Stitching pattern.