Eerie Embroidery and Startling Stitching with Robert Mahar!

Covid-19 Precautions Updated – August 11, 2021

Please read our updated policies found here: Current Covid-19 Precautionary Requirements

Kristin

Eerie Embroidery and Startling Stitching

Class sizes: Minimum 8; Maximum 16 (No experience necessary, but there will be stitching! Minimum age to participate: 18. 

Friday morning: Anatomical Embroidery

Perfect your hand embroidery as we embellish beautifully macabre imagery sourced from 19th Century French anatomical teaching charts and botanical illustrations custom printed on linen-cotton canvas.

Select one of designer and maker Robert Mahar’s original designs (heart, hand, skull, rib cage, or ear) on the day of the workshop and learn a unique approach to needlework utilizing these non-traditional, free-form samplers that allow you to utilize your favorite embroidery stitches and their placement. A workshop designed for both beginners as well as more advanced students – clear and concise instruction will cover solid core basics to more intricate embroidery stitches.

What to do once you’ve completed your anatomical embroidery at home? These samplers feature wide margins making it easy to hem the edges for a wall hanging or incorporate the panel into a pillow or larger quilted project! We’ll discuss a world of options in this workshop.

Friday afternoon – Embroidering on Photographic Images: Halloween Edition!

Re-imagine the family photo album and learn how to transform classic black & white photographic images with colorful embroidered embellishments with a Halloween twist. Join designer and maker Robert Mahar in learning core embroidery basics, essential stitches, and how to apply them to a selection of vintage photographs custom printed onto cotton linen fabric.

Give a classic yearbook photo a Halloween make-over. Provide a group portrait of participants with a much-needed spooky costume change. This workshop is a unique approach to needlework utilizing a non-traditional, free-form sampler that allows you to utilize your favorite embroidery stitches and their placement. While you’ll experiment and play with some of Robert’s favorite vintage photos, you’ll also learn how to have your own images printed on fabric for future projects, turning your own photo archive into wall-ready works of art.

This class is well suited for beginners, however, students with more embroidery experience are encouraged to join for a fun refresher course and the opportunity to apply their skills to photographic imagery.

Saturday morning – Sugar Skulls!

Join us in a handcrafted observance of Día de Muertos, celebrating the lives of those dearly departed, as we stitch non-traditional sugar skulls!  Join designer and maker Robert Mahar in transforming a beautifully macabre 1903 medical illustration, custom printed on linen-cotton canvas, into an ornamental embroidered Calavera. 

This workshop is best suited to those with very basic embroidery knowledge and experience.  Instruction will focus on composition, design transfer techniques, and building on basic stitches for more advanced, decorative effects.  This workshop is a unique approach to needlework utilizing a non-traditional, free-form sampler that allows you to utilize your favorite embroidery stitches and their placement.

Supplies:

All materials are provided! For each workshop, you will receive a custom sampler, a limited palette of 6-strand embroidery floss, wood hoop, and needles along with instructional diagrams included in the cost of the class.

However, if you have favorite embroidery tools or prefer specific colors of embroidery floss (6-strand or perle) you are encouraged to bring these items to the workshop.

Additional Cotton-Canvas designs will be available for purchase on the day of class!

JUST ADDED! Robert’s incredibly popular U.S. Map Embroidery Sampler!

SATURDAY AFTERNOON, 10/30  2 – 5 PM

Celebrate your home state, commemorate a recent road trip or stitch connections between you and your loved ones on a beautiful 1906 map of the contiguous United States custom printed on a half yard (27” x 36”) of cotton linen canvas. Perfectly suited for beginners, instruction will cover embroidery basics and essential stitches. However, students with more embroidery experience are invited to join for a fun refresher course and the opportunity to stitch a large-format map.

Equal parts handicraft and storytelling, this self-directed map embroidery sampler allows you to select your favorite stitches, floss, and colors and placement to stitch your own narrative. Learn the perfect embroidery stitches to create pathways, designate destinations, add your own imagery and text, accentuate geographic features, create a map legend and explore options for edges and borders. Please note that this map is 100+ years old and some cartographic changes have taken place in the intervening years – however, the state borders and city names remain largely accurate. Cleverly designed with guides, you’ll find it easy to sew finished edges at home or wrap your map around a corkboard to pin photos of your friends, family, and travels – and we’ll explore all of these options during the class.

All materials are provided – custom printed fabric sampler, a limited palette of embroidery floss, a wood embroidery hoop and needle for each student, along with instructional diagrams. However, if students have preferred embroidery tools, they are encouraged to bring them.

Minimum 6 needed to make this class; Maximum 16. No experience is necessary, but there will be stitching! Minimum age to participate: 18

Before registering for this workshop, please familiarize yourself with our Cancellation Policies.