Candy Doll Club – Contemporary Embroidery & Textile Art Inspiration

Howdy-do fans of needlecraft! I hope June finds you all well, it's certainly been a busy month for me, so before we dive in to part two of the Etsy patch extravaganza, I thought I'd share some of what I've been up to with you all. At the end of April I was contacted by the lovely people of Farnham Maltings and asked if I'd like to be their featured artist in their Riverside Cafe Gallery during their 'Thread Festival 2018'. Cut to the beginning of June and I've got my first solo exhibition on display in their fab venue! I've got a selection of pieces there including a series of 12 free motion embroideries inspired by classic literature. My work is up until 6th July and their amazing Thread Festival is taking place on 30th June so if you're nearby it's definitely worth a visit. Jane Eyre Free Motion Embroidery You Deserve a Medal - Order of the Black Dog Time to turn back to the wonderful patches. I have designed my first one, which you can see below, inspired by the centenary of the first women getting the vote in the UK and the courageous work of The Suffragettes. It arrived a few weeks ago and is now available in my shop. But enough about me, it's time to visit some of the incredible talent that Etsy has to offer…. Candy Doll Club Jade Boylan the creative mind behind 'Candy Doll Club' is a Girl Gang themed pin and patch maker, illustrator, artist, designer, aspie, book addict, total geek and full time daydreamer based on the Isle of Man. What is your earliest stitching memory? Being taught to cross stitch at primary school aged 6. Eleven of us in a class and we all spent an afternoon learning to thread a needle, knot the thread and stitch basic hearts into strips of cotton aida for bookmarks. What fires your imagination? Anything and everything! I consume a lot of media so I’m mostly inspired by what I read, watch, listen to and see. I also love anything pastel coloured or glitter coated. Little Paisley Designs 'Little Paisley Designs' creates quirky, nature-inspired illustrative goodies for creative people. Working from her sunny home studio in Bristol, Eleanor designs each piece from scratch using hand painted watercolour illustrations. What is your earliest stitching memory? As long as I can remember, my mother has been cross-stitching, embroidering, knitting or crocheting. My earliest stitching memory is probably standing on one of the many needles left around! She tried to teach me to stitch when I was young, but I didn’t have the patience 'till I was older. What fires your imagination? As is evident by my work, nature is a huge inspiration! Getting out and exploring in the mountains always fires my imagination, or a trip to my local botanical gardens! I’ve also got a huge collection of vintage nature ‘guide’ books, which always help to bring inspiration! Luna Lotus The lovely Ella is the brains behind the design brand Luna Lotus, she creates clothing, accessories and home decor inspired by the natural and celestial world. What is your earliest stitching memory? My earliest stitching memory is of my wonderful mum and grandma making me some amazing princess and mermaid costumes when I was about 4 years old! I was a bit too small to have a go myself then but I spent a lot of time making weird stuffed animals out of scraps of fabric with my mum and her friend when I was around 9 or 10! What fires your imagination? I am inspired by all the creative women in my family who have always been so supportive and encouraging to me and all the wonderful creative people I have met online since starting Luna Lotus! In my work I am inspired by natural phenomenon: space, mountains, plants and animals to name only a few! hello DODO hello DODO are playful printmakers and designers from sunny Worthing on England's south coast. Working predominantly screen printing their own prints and clothing range, a few years ago they decided to turn a bunch of designs into embroidered patches and have been completely addicted to the format ever since! Their designs are bright, fun and often punny, featuring lots of their favourite animals and things. They also love seeing what items people decide to attach their patches too! What is your earliest stitching memory? To be honest, neither of us are very good stitchers! The majority of sewing I do is putting the labels into our tees and sweatshirts. I distinctly remember watching my mum stitching my Brownie and Girl Guide patches onto my sash though! We have designed so many patches now though that we plan to fill a jacket very soon! What fires your imagination? So many things! Fun, animals, puns that usually originate from us mishearing things, food, adventures and not forgetting our black pug Hero! Well that's it for our grand patch adventure, I hope these last two posts have you all well on the way to forming your very own patch collections! Every patch by these fab designers is full of amazing detail and it's so lovely to see so much individuality in each one. So make sure to pop along to the fabulous 'Candy Doll Club', 'Little Paisley Designs' 'Luna Lotus' and 'hello DODO' there's lots of wonderful treasure to be found in their shops! ----- Jessica Taylor aka Loadofolbobbins is a Textile Artist and Illustrator based by the sea in Portsmouth. At her happiest with a needle and thread, with a passion for genealogy she often explores old photographs in her Textile art. With her fingers in many creative pies she loves to experiment with new techniques, creating illustrated and stitched goodies for her Etsy shop. Save Save