In the April issue of Bustle & Sew Magazine we were delighted to feature an interview with Nadine from Thread Meadows. Nadine Reilly is an Australian fibre artist who has always surrounded herself in the creative world, having studied fine arts in school and university. A principal theme in Nadine’s embroidery work is nature – she loves to embroider flora and fauna, often using vibrant colour schemes and experimenting with new materials and techniques so that each embroidery artwork is full of character.
We asked Nadine to tell us a bit about her design process, she told us;
“Most of my embroidery starts as you’d expect: lots of messy sketches. I typically sketch out generic shapes so I know the general placement and how the embroidery will sit within the hoop. From there I’ll refine it a little with more definitive shapes, paying mind to what stitches I want to use. I don’t get too attached or set on the original sketch, because I know that it can change once I start stitching if I’ve thought of a better way to do something. Picking a colour scheme is often the most difficult part of the design process – I can spend hours deliberating!”
We also asked Nadine if there was anything she wishes she knew before she started her own business, she said;
‘The amount of non creative processes that go on behind the scenes. I was very much a novice and had it in my head that I’d just open a shop and it would be as easy as that. Little did I know I’d be battling algorithms, figuring out how to not have videos upload in potato quality, learning what SEO is and how to use it, networking, and planning my months in advance. And how much time I’d spend picking random bits of floss off every surface in my home every day. I don’t know how it gets everywhere but it even ended up in my dishes once!”
Do be sure to visit Nadine’s Etsy shop to see all of her gorgeous creations. You can also find her on Instagram too!
*Read the full interview with Nadine in the April issue of Bustle & Sew Magazine
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