A different perspective of Embroidery

There really is no doubt that happiness and creativity go hand in hand. There is something so meaningful when you grab a paintbrush, a needle, a pencil and your heart starts creating. At that moment your hand is only following orders from the heart; that starts creating art. That art creates happiness not only for you, but others that can appreciate it. I don’t believe people have really understood till this day the power of rolling up their sleeves and creating something with their hands. Art is highly therapeutic. And in today’s society mental illness awareness is highly important. That is why my passion for embroidery continues to be alive and growing inside of me. My desire this year is to open up workshops where people can learn a way to release their anxiety, stress, pain, all by stitching away their negative emotions. How beautiful is it to receive freedom from the inside out just by being creative.

I started embroidery in August of 2017 as a hobby and started selling those small items. Which led me to realize 3 months down the road that my hobby had turned into a passion that I wanted to expand; calling it StitchAway Designs. I went to my parents’ home country Guatemala to find artisans I could partner up with and like every business there were highs and lows. But my perseverance didn’t let me give up. Thankfully 8 months later in 2018 I found a fair trade organization that would work with me. I sent them the designs and supplies: fabric, thread, scissors, caps, markers, led light and much more. It was very important for me to give back jobs to women in need and make sure they got paid fairly. I knew from the beginning that I wanted to sell an experience, something special and not mass produced. So with a full time job during the week and part time job on the weekends my time left for this small startup business was after work. And in 2019 the fair trade organization whom I partnered up with sent me the first batch of the embroidery work.

I have gotten many compliments and reviews of how beautiful the craftsmanship is from the handmade embroidery. You see I create embroidery accessories and hoops. My main focus are these cute embroidery necklaces that come in a wooden pendant giving the customer the opportunity to get something special engraved in the back. It’s that little back piece that’s my pride and joy, which is the cherry on top to the whole experience and package. Unfortunately, 2020 did not serve my upcoming company well. But maybe it was also a moment to step back and focus on my health. On a personal level I started suffering from what people today call breast implant illness. Covid-19 cancel my surgery date to take out the implants from my body, leaving me to wait till they opened up again the surgery rooms. All in the mean while leaving me to wait with a lot of physical and emotional pain. Thankfully March 2021 came around and I was able to go through with the explant surgery. So this portrait right here means so much to me! It is an expression of telling myself and many other women that “You are Enough”. That there is beauty in us naturally. Regardless what the worlds says. That is why I know from first-hand experience how therapeutic art can be, I have experienced it myself. My inspiration for this portrait came from an artist in pinterest. And that is the easy part when creating for fun or therapy, ideas can be found just about anywhere.

My passion is to let others experience embroidery in a whole different way! Which I hope to accomplish with time. My goal moving forward is to open up motivational embroidery workshops. I will like to give people an experience whether it be buying a product or attending a workshop. On April 15th 2021 I took a risk to quit my professional job, in hopes to keep pursuing at all costs my project… my passion… my dream! I guess I’m daring to live the life I always wanted as stated by a famous quote I once read. Because truly we will never know the outcome of anything in life until we try it. So try something new today. You'll see what a difference it makes. Get Creative!