Thread Web no. 35

Everything I made in June - cross stich journal cover, embroidered bookmarks & more

Hello, and welcome to this months Thread Web studio update.

I have a lot to share with you today, but before we get into it, I invite you to cast your vote on the poll below.

I’ve been playing around with the idea of starting a crafty, seasonal mail club for a while, but of course want to know if anyone would actually be interested in it(before investing the time/energy/supplies).

It would be available to paid subscribers, and members would recieve a physical envelope containing a letter, a fun list of craft ideas for that specific season and art prints in the form of postcards/bookmarks at the start of each season.

Thanks for voting - lets get into everything going on in the studio this month.

Peace is a Ten Petaled Flower embroidered tapestry

my dove will have a head soon I promise

Although I’m really happy with the progress of this piece, it’s made me realize something about the nature of working on larger projects.

Although a piece might be five times larger than what I usually work on, I still somehow expect myself to finish it in the same amount of time. Totally unrealistic, I know.

But all too often there’s that little voice in the back of my head complaining: it’s still not finished, it’s taking too long, it should’ve been done by now. Thoughts that are all undoubtedly rooted in “hustle culture” and the idea that productivity means constantly getting something done.

Unlearning such traits is difficult to say the least. It’s become so embedded into our daily lives to believe that we have to constantly be getting something done in order to be productive, or worthy, even, as if our lives are a test we’re waiting for someone to grade us on.

Toxic productivity has become second nature to a lot of us, especially those who literally make a living off making things. There’s seems to be two sides of the coin, one being the very strong and very natural desire to express ourselves through making art, and the other being the constant pressure we feel to chase results and, to some extent, perform.

In the latter state of mind, the artist or crafts person is only as good as their last piece of work, which we all know is absolutely untrue. So how can we counter the pressure to constantly perform or produce something?

Well, we can start by setting realistic goals and by reminding ourselves that we are not machines. We can schedule in breaks for doing nothing, which, sometimes, is the biggest favor you could do yourself, because even when your doing “nothing,” your still doing something(even if it doesn’t look like it).

Getting back to the piece, I’ve decided to name it, “Peace is a Ten Petaled Flower”. One day while stitching, I counted the flower petals and was reminded that in numerology the number ten represents wholeness and completion, while flowers themselves are ancient symbols of consciousness.

The Wound is Also The Medicine

This is the piece that entranced me the most during those early weeks of June. My favorite thing about working on it was the way that meaning seemed to unveil itself to me organically during the process.

I found so much rich symbolism here, particularly in the french knots that make up the heart, as they feel reminiscent of unresolved wounds and the star-eye in the center which feels reflective of the belief that true healing must come from within.

I could go deeper and deeper, dissecting every aspect of this piece, but I’ll leave some room for you to make interpretations of your own.

Paid subscribers will already know this, but the name of this piece came to me one day while working on it and reminded me of when Carl Jung said, “We become ill, but illness is natures attempt to heal us.”

Incase anyone is interested, here’s the full excerpt:

We should not try to "get rid" of a neurosis, but rather to experience what it means, what it has to teach, what its purpose is. We should even learn to be thankful for it, otherwise we pass it by and miss the opportunity of getting to know ourselves as we really are. A neurosis is truly removed only when it has removed the false attitude of the ego. We do not cure it—it cures us. A man is ill, but the illness is nature's attempt to heal him. From the illness itself we can learn so much for our recovery, and what the neurotic flings away as absolutely worthless contains the true gold we should never have found elsewhere. (CW 10, Civilization in Transition, para 361).

Sacred Heart Mosiac

Because of the repetitive nature of satin stitching, working on this sacred heart felt highly therpeutic. It was also an easy project to work on outdoors/in cafes which is very enjoyable(especially when accompanied by sunshine and iced coffee).

Cross Stitch on Journal Cover

This was definitley a venture out past what I usually do, but totally worth it. Cross stitch was never my cup of tea, at least on fabric, but something about cross stitch on paper/journal covers feels decadent and alluring. I’ve already started experimenting with making my own cross stitch patterns, so I hope to share those with you soon.

Bookmarks

And finally, these are my embroidered bookmarks. The general theme was to be natured based and whimsical, and honestly they came out way better than expected. I really enjoyed making these and am already planning on experimenting with stationary more.

I don’t know if it was the abundance of sunlight or the scorching mediterranean heat, but overall June was an extremely energetic and creative month for me, and it’s left me feeling nothing but grateful that I was able to bring all my visions to life this month.

Thank you dearly for reading - see you in July with more.

Zoya xx

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How you can support my work

I would love to keep exploring new creative ideas, and paid members help me do that. To support my work and help me keep writing, embroidering and writing about embroidering, consider signing up for a paid subscription. For the price of two coffees and a croissant, you’ll be directly supporting my ability to keep creating and sharing those creations with you.

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