I'm so thrilled to be launching my first collection of 2020: hand embroidered monograms with floral embellishments. Last year I experimented with my first monogram, creating a special guest towel design (read more about that here). Fast forward about 6 months and I began working on monograms again in late 2019.
These one-of-a-kind monograms may appear machine stitched, but each was delicately and precisely hand embroidered with a single strand of thread. Floral embellishments were then added to the letters. I finished them with a mat and frame, with my hope being that they will feel like modern heirlooms.
You can shop the new collection here.
It's hard to believe that Christmas is just a few short weeks away! I wanted to share my top gift picks from my shop at varying price points.
$20 and Under
After the gift giving comes the thank you notes! I created stationery sets featuring high resolution images of my hand embroidery that are like no other note cards out there.
$30 and Under
Tiny hand embroidered pins - for your jacket lapel, your tote bag or backpack, or Christmas sweater. These are little wearable miniature pieces of art.
$75 and Under
Guest towels make the perfect hostess gift. Growing up in the South, it was not uncommon to go into someone's powder room and see towel bars full of beautiful hand towels. I decided to create my own this year - one of a kind designs on beautifully soft Italian linen.
$150 and Under
I have a wide variety of hand embroidered artwork in the shop and many pieces are currently on sale! Design motifs include bold florals, tiny cacti, and modern monochromatic designs.
$350 and Under
My one of a kind pillows take many months to create, from stitching the design to sourcing the trims to having the pillows professionally finished. They are truly home decor pieces to be treasured.
In the late spring and summer, I took a few road trips through northern New Mexico, including visits to the towns of Abiquiu and Santa Fe as well as the reservations between Durango, Colorado and Albuquerque, New Mexico. I always find the landscape in this area so inspiring. I especially enjoyed visiting the Santa Fe Botanical Garden. These trips inspired me to create some new Desert Southwest inspired pieces of embroidery incorporating the colors, sights, and scenes I came across. Here are two new pieces available in my shop.
Cactus Grouping (2.5") on Pink Linen
Agave Plant and Mountains on Pink Linen
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I've created a handful of white embroidery designs on black linen and have been pleasantly surprised by their popularity! The previous pieces of artwork have all sold out and I've received a number of emails asking if I will be creating more...YES! I anticipate releasing some new black and white designs later in October.
Want to be the first to hear about Happy Cactus Designs' latest products and promotions? Sign up for our newsletter here. Curious about my favorite embroidery tools and resources? Find my new comprehensive guide here.
I've been stitching up a storm lately. After returning home from some recent travels, I settled down to re-focus on a variety of hand embroidery projects. The holidays will here before I know it, so I've been busy building up an inventory of new pieces.
Here's a peek at what I've been up to!
The white on black pieces have been very well received, so I'm working on a few more.
I call this my "Desert Southwest" color palette because it reminds me of the terrain, flora, and fauna around these parts. I first used this palette when I created a piece for House Beautiful magazine.
Experimenting with black floral outlines.
Little blue flower.
Another monochromatic floral design experiment - this time using white perle cotton on blue linen.
Want to be the first to hear about Happy Cactus Designs' latest products and promotions? Sign up for our newsletter here. Curious about my favorite embroidery tools and resources? Find my new comprehensive guide here.
Summer is in full swing and when I'm not exploring the great outdoors, I'm at my home studio juggling a variety of hand embroidery projects. I always try to spend some time during the summertime building up inventory for the busy holiday season and experimenting with new ideas and materials. Here are some peeks at what I've been working on.
Stitching a monogram
Working on a blue floral piece I've been stitching on and off for months!
Adding a floral motif to a linen guest towel. You can find my favorite water soluble fabric pen here.
Rainbow flowers on turquoise linen
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I shared some thoughts on Instagram last week about the time and patience that hand embroidery requires. I started a new rainbow flowers piece and it took about 25 minutes (or one episode of Younger!) to complete 5 small motifs.
Embroidery is a slow and meditative process. It doesn’t bother me that it takes a long time; on the contrary, the slowness is something I’ve really grown to really appreciate - especially in today’s world where we want everything faster and instantaneously.
And a little more done!
I typically do not track my time, but was curious just how long it was taking to create these tiny little flowers. I use a mix of simple and more complex stitches, I switch colors often, and I add intricate little details here and there. Find similar rainbow flower embroidered designs in my shop here.
A different piece that took many months to complete. It became a pillow.
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I'm excited to add a few new pieces of hand embroidered artwork to my online shop later this week. Each design features intricate white stitch work on black linen with a white mat and black frame. I love the tonal contrast! You can sign up for my newsletter to know when they are added to my shop!
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If I could only pick one color combination to use for the rest of my life, it would easily be blue and white. I'm definitely team #blueandwhiteforever. One of my favorite pillows that I've ever created is this one featuring floral motifs in different shades of blue (click here for more details about this pillow in the shop). The pillow itself is about 8 inches x 8 inches - a perfect accent for your living room furniture.
Creating pillows is quite an ambitious process for me. First, I spend months stitching the design, figuring out how I want the piece to look and what size I want it to be.
Then I source trim that coordinates with the embroidery. In this case, I found the perfect periwinkle blue grosgrain trim. I then work with a wonderful local upholstery partner here in Durango, CO, who expertly works her magic to make my canvas into a pillow.
This one-of-a-kind pillow is available in the shop.
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Monochromatic hand embroidery is equal parts challenging and enjoyable. As someone who tends to use a variety of color in most designs, I find that using only one color of thread makes me plan out my particular motifs with more careful consideration.
I particularly love working with white cotton floss on white linen. While it can be a bit challenging on the eyes - I find myself taking frequent breaks - the subtle texture is so pleasing to the eye.
Here's some favorite white on white pieces I've created. A few of these are available in my shop at the moment - click on the link under the image for full details.
Monochromatic White Floral Hand Embroidered Artwork
Hand Embroidered White Floral Pillow
White floral embroidery in progress
Pillow canvas in progress
White floral embroidered paperweight (sold)
A tiny design in progress
Despite my company name, it had been a few years since I had created any cactus embroidery designs. Within the past 6 months, though, I stitched a revamped and more detailed cactus series, designs that I'm really proud of.
I wanted to create very small groupings of different cacti, including prickly pear, organ pipe, saguaro, agave, and cholla, using only 1 to 2 strands of thread. By using fewer threads, it was possible to create very intricate details, including subtle variations in color and tiny needles and cactus flowers.
Much of my inspiration for this series came from a few trips to Arizona. The Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix is one of the coolest places I've ever visited and I referred to the many photos I took there when brainstorming these new designs.
Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, Arizona
A number of these pieces have already sold, but there are a few framed designs available in my shop now. Click on the links below for more details.
Cactus Grouping on White Linen Hand Embroidered Art (in the shop)
Recently, I got my hands on some linen guest towels and decided to do a bit of experimentation ahead of Mother’s Day. I thought it would be fun to stitch a monogram onto a towel as a gift for my mom. I’ve create a few hand embroidered monograms in the past, but haven’t stitched one in a long time as I don’t really do much personalized work.
I sketched out a cursive “C” on paper to figure out the shape I wanted, then drew it freehand onto the towel using a water soluble fabric pen. I knew I wanted to use shades of blue and to incorporate some florals into the letter design.
Once I finished stitching the “C,” I added some tiny florals in a lighter shade around the letter. I didn’t plan out the flowers ahead of time, but just stitched them as I saw fit.
To finish the piece, I wet the towel to remove the fabric pen marks, then pressed the towel with an iron. Voilà! I’m so happy with how it turned out and am thinking about creating some more for my shop...stay tuned!
