If you like to browse the internet about home/interiors (as I do), you may have come across a blog post or two about ‘how to perfectly/easily hang your gallery wall using templates/with perfect spacing/like a pro’ etc…this isn’t that.
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Sarah Sullivan Sherrod - aka SULLY - is an Oklahoma-based fiber artist, muralist, and everything in between. A self-proclaimed “dreamweaver and rugrat,” Sherrod aims to celebrate the wonder of everyday things we might overlook - chairs, nature, feelings - through the power and endless possibilities of color.
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In my video this week, I show two ways to separate strands of DMC embroidery floss.
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It’s no secret that I love embroidery. It’s also no secret that I love to share my love for embroidery—it’s what I built my career on through stitched artworks and stitch-it-yourself patterns and kits. But I want to share more, so throughout the summer (though maybe not every week if I am being realistic) I will be sharing some of my tips and tricks. This week I’ve got a basic but very helpful way to correct straight lines when transferring your pattern from paper to fabric!
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An interview with contemporary painter and recent collaborator, David M. Esquivel.
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At the start of the year I committed to a daily practice of meditative stitching where I wanted to explore on one stitch technique per month and spend 30 minutes a day focusing on that technique and meditate. I’m here to tell you, that daily practice fell apart for me in February. I was unsuccessful in sticking to that commitment and really developing a habit and routine around it.
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These pieces, made from saved [hoarded] bits of fabric trimmed from the edges of embroideries and stuffed with thread scraps, really began in my ‘Mixed Media’ and painting classes in high school. I developed a deep interest in the process and byproducts of making art—in under paintings, rags for wiping brushes, paint dried on palettes, and other things used in the process of making and then discarded or cleaned up. Back then (2008ish), I started cutting up and stitching back together my painting rags. I was fascinated by the way absent minded wiping and cleaning of brushes created spontaneous and perfect abstract compositions of color and texture and how I could then manipulate those marks into new compositions through a process of deconstruction and reconstruction…
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I think that if you’ve found your way here, it’s safe to assume you love supporting artists and small businesses as much as I do. The holiday season this year is going to look different than previous years because the isolation, the ongoing pandemic, and economic hardship have been and seem likely to continue taking their toll. I don’t want to move forward without acknowledging that. At the same time, I want to celebrate artists, entrepreneurs, and small businesses creating beautiful, life enriching goods for anyone in a position to shop this year. I’m also using this as my own Christmas list so…mom, Davey…I hope you’re taking notes ;)
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I’ll be honest, I did not manage to fit 30 minutes of straight stitch into every day of the month. There was a 9-day stretch where redesigning sarahkbenning.com became all consuming and I did not keep up with my #skbmakingtime project. But I am not here to beat myself up—though there were a few moments where I was very hard on myself for failing to stick to my commitment less than one month into the year.
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Finding this box of old cards sparked a little joy I had lost. Making these was so fun! I loved working with the paper and playing with different color combinations and the extra special tactile feeling of a card made with thread. And the best part was that their very intention was to brighten someone’s day! Because really, who doesn’t love receiving a special note from a special someone.
So with Valentine’s Day just around the corner, I thought I’d share one of my favorite designs as a how-to.
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As 2019 came to a close, I like so many others, took some time to reflect on the the year: what I had accomplished; what I hadn’t; and how I felt throughout. It was a chaotic and stressful year for me; while it was the first year that my embroidery business hadn’t grown by traditional economic measurements, it was also the first year that I really felt I was taking control of my business and life. I made very intentional decisions about stepping back from certain projects and commitments that had been staples for the past few years and Davey and I prioritized a better work/life balance in a much bigger way than we have in the past.
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If you follow me on Instagram, then you may have caught my recent stories discussing my experience with copyright/intellectual property infringement and some tips for how to shop marketplaces like Etsy to avoid the copycats and support original makers. (I won’t re-hash that discussion here, but you can expect some writing on it soon!)
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It happens to all of us. All the time. In so many different ways. But artists might face rejection even more often than others. It is, unfortunately, a part of the job. And if you have recently been rejected—particularly if some of your creative work has been rejected—I am here to tell you that you aren’t alone.
Read MoreBut I won’t be the only one at the market this weekend (obviously)! There will be somewhere between 300-400 vendors all offering up incredible handmade and artisanal goods and I thought it would be fun to share a few of my favorites! Speaking from experience, this event can be a little overwhelming, so it helps to go in with a plan! You can find the entire Renegade Roster here and be sure to check out the map so you can plan your visit (my booth, #311, is one tent block in from the Damen Ave. entrance)! Keep on reading for list of 10 other makers I will definitely be stopping by this weekend!
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As someone who makes hoop art and writes hoop art DIY patterns for a living, I get asked a lot, “But what do I do with it?” Usually my reply is to hang your new artwork on the wall, but maybe that isn’t your style or you have enough hoops on the wall already, or for whatever reason that isn’t an option for you. It certainly isn’t the only option out there, which is where this little tutorial comes in!
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At the start of 2019 Davey and I committed to #ayearofnothingnew, which isn’t to say that we haven’t consumed—we have—but that we are limiting ourselves to shopping only secondhand (or artist made when we can!) for our clothes and home goods. And we have stuck to it pretty well! (Though I won’t lie, there have been a few cheats. Like when we found an amazing and clean king-size down comforter at the thrift store, but despite searching so hard for months never came across a king-sized duvet. I finally broke down and picked up an organic cotton one from Target.)
Read MoreI feel good in the studio these days. My brain is buzzing with ideas and plans and experiments to the point that my hands can’t quite keep up. Thank goodness for sketchbooks + notepads + getting into the habit of writing down my ideas when I have them rather than trusting myself to remember—I never do!
But I digress, things aren’t always flowing this way in the studio. I am coming out of a 6-month slump. The deepest, most intense slump I have ever experienced in the past six years of creative business ownership/full-grown artist-hood (I started this whole thing right out of art school). It was six months of feeling discouraged, and burned out, and overwhelmed, and STRESSED. My creative output is very, very directly tied to not only my livelihood, but my entire household’s livelihood. And when things aren’t gelling, it is hard.
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Most of the time I absolutely love what I do and I am definitely always grateful that it supports me (aka YOU support me and make it all possible). There are also other times when everything feels like a struggle and I feel uninspired or completely overwhelmed and lost about what's next. How will things change and grow--or shrink--in the next six years? I have no idea!
I have started the practice of identifying individual moments of success and moments of struggle in order to keep a handle on feeling and celebrating the progress and to try and analyze and move past the challenges.