Hello Everyone
Hope the New Year is going well for you so far? My year has started with a bang and I find myself busy busy preparing for Paris, getting translations done, fulfilling a mountain of orders, preparing new kit instructions and getting uniforms ready for the new school term! Two people have come forward and kindly offered to translate for my workshops in Paris, Paola Botti from Luxembourg for my Friday workshhop and Dominique Roubault from Paris for my Saturday workshop. Dominique also kindly agreed to translate all my notes and has even sent me information on the location of my hotel and the surrounding, recommended restaurants – what a star thank you Domini! The workshops are full but if you want more info on the event you can see here and I would love it if you came and introduced yourself: L”aiguille En Fete.
One of my New Year’s resolutions is to try and be more organised – as you know this is virtually impossible for any creative person, we normally have our head in stitching clouds, but in an effort to do this I am giving you an introduction to the blog posts I will be covering on Designing An Embroidery Project.
Having taken this first step I am obliged to carry on so here goes………………:)
There are approx seven stages required to compile a needle painting project for a kit or publication, each one vital to the success of the finished project.
- STAGE ONE – Choosing a project picture & gaining permission.
- STAGE TWO – Drawing the outline, and transferring onto fabric
- STAGE THREE – Choosing threads, colours and preparation.
- STAGE FOUR – Stitching the project – first time round
- STAGE FIVE – Stitching the project – second time round with step by step instructions.
- STAGE SIX – Final publication – putting instructions into step by step booklet form.
- STAGE SEVEN – Purchasing materials, screen printing, printing & kit packing
The process can take several weeks or months to complete and good preparation requires a basic knowledge (or ability to sub contract someone in each field) of the following. I certainly don’t profess to know it all and I do get some help from my daughter with the graphic design but mostly I am a one man band and have had to learn myself through trial and error over the years, so you will forgive me if I make mistakes occassionally!
- Sourcing picture/photo material from internet or other.
- Drawing, tracing and best materials to use.
- Embroidery techniques and materials.
- Sourcing materials for project and kits.
- Graphic design, layout, colours, print and packaging
- Use of graphic design software such as Corel Draw/Adobe.
- Familiarity with Microsoft Office software such as Excel & Word.
- Scanning or photography
- Online merchandizing and coding such as Paypal
- Website and blog hosting and creation.
- Marketing and distribution of products through internet and other.
Over the next several weeks I will post an article on each stage of the process together with photos and some of the ups and downs this entails. We will follow a live project which I will be stitching at the time so you can see how I make decisions for every aspect of the design and how it all comes together. In February I will leave you briefly to attend the L’Aiguille En Fete in Paris and then be back to continue the saga!
It is always a pleasure to talk about the thing I love most and share it with an interested audience (instead of the glazed look I normally get at dinner parties:)) I look forward to sharing this journey with you, in the meantime wherever you are in the world be it winter, spring or summer have a wonderful week and happy stitching. Trish
Dear Trish. I love your work and your books. I am very interested in your series on designing an embroidery project, I only have parts 1& 2 so far. Have there been any more and I have missed them or are they still in the pipeline?
Hi Susan – I have only managed to post part 1 & 2 so far, then was interrupted by a trip to France and since returning a hectic schedule of events! I have been meaning to continue with the series and will do so soon, please keep watching out and my apologies for the delay. Trish
I look forward to each step, and thank you so much for sharing with us!
What a pity Trish : I’ll not be in Paris when you come to l’Aiguille en Fete…I’ll be in Australia !
I am looking forward to this journey over the next weeks.
All the best in Paris.
Armelle
Thank you so much! I am really looking forward to this and as a novice designer I am excited to learn from you. Thank you for being so generous.
This sounds all very interesting. I really enjoy reading how other people build their projects, why they make certain decisions.
Hi Trish,
I will also be in Paris and visiting the Fair. This time I will try and introduce myself as I missed the opportunity in Adelaide last year when I spent a few days at Beating Around the Bush. I won’t be on one of your courses as I am going with a group of Spanish ladies but I hope to stop by and see how the stitchers are getting on.
Keep up the good work.
Gillian Gonzalez
Lovely Gillian look forward to it.
This is going to be particularly interesting to follow. Your internet dedication and wonderful talent and hard work is infinitely valued. Cheers, KathfromOz.
Thanks Kath.
Safe travels to you Trish! Can you believe that you will be actually doing workshops in Paris!? Thanks for sharing the journey from an idea to creating the piece to publication to kit form.
Thanks Laurie, I have visited Paris a few times but never dreamt I would be teaching there – it will shed a whole new light on things. Trish
How exciting! My eyes are hazel – but now more green.
Thanks Marny you always make me laugh:)
hi darling Trish—–from your glazed looking mother who wishes you another successful year in your talent. I just boggle when I look at all the stages and cannot comprhend how any body grasps something like this and finds it relaxing. Good luck to you ALL I will stick to Bridge Mahjong chess etc much more relaxing for me—–and easier to admire all the beautiful work that is produced by my daughter and her compatriots Good Luck for 2013
Thanks Mum:)
Surely I’ll follow you through this wonderful journey! Thanks for sharing your skills and expertise. Happy stay in Paris! I so wish I could be there….
Thanks for your good wishes Meri will tell you all about it when return:)
Wow, this will be an exciting journey. I am about to start on stage two on my first major design piece (I am using my own photographs and only using some on-line photos for reference). Nor will I be publishing or making kits so won’t be doing stage 5, 6 or 7 but I am still interested to learn about it. I will be using your Confidence in Colour book to help me with Stage 3 🙂
That’s wonderful Carol so glad to hear you are putting your skills to work – I know it will be gorgeous as you are an accomplished stitcher, please send me a pic of the finished piece. Trish
Dear Trish, I wish you well in all your endeavours this coming year. My, you are going to be busy Will there be a day in the future you will have a workshop here in Cape Town ? Love Elza Bester
Thanks Elza hoping to host a workshop in Somerset West in the second half of the year, it promises to be exciting so will keep you posted. Trish