We interview Lauren Holton
US-based designer Lauren Holton, owner of Lark Rising Embroidery, teOOs Xs aEoXt her first EooN The Modern Embroidery Workshop…
Lauren Holton’s embroidery business is named after the state bird of Oregon, where she was born. Nature and the wild landscapes of the Pacific Northwest bloom both in her embroidery patterns and in her new book. This contemporary and approachable guide is both gorgeous and useful – extra impressive that it was finished just hours before Lauren gave birth! We caught up with a very busy lady…
Hi Lauren, can you introduce yourself? I’m a crafty mom of two, living in Sea le. Most days my hands are full with my two young sons but during naptimes and evenings I run a business designing embroidery pa erns and teaching workshops.
How did The Modern Embroidery Studio come about?
I was approached by the publisher in the summer of 2018. I was so shocked that I thought it might be some sort of joke, but it turned out to be one of the coolest emails I’ve ever received! Keeping quiet about it was really challenging, especially on social media. I’m so thrilled to finally share it with the world!
The book and your second son nearly came along at the same time – can you tell us what happened?
I sent the last piece of the book to my editor at 11pm one night in early March, three weeks before I was due to give birth. I had a bath and went to bed – then I woke to my waters breaking and my son was born the next morning!
What was the writing process like? There were quite a few times where the fatigue of pregnancy and not ge ing enough sleep were difficult to work past, but I pushed through it because I really needed to finish the book before my baby arrived.
Fortunately, I have a partner that truly shares the parenting and
household duties. My new baby isn’t much for sleep though, so I’ve had to really slow down to try to recover!
Can you tell us more about your creative life so far?
I was definitely a creative child. But since I was never great at drawing I gave up any hope of a creative career – I continued to pursue creative passions, especially in music, and sewing or making things. Only after I was home full-time with my first son did I find and fall in love with embroidery. After a few months I thought I should try to sell a few of my projects to pay for my own crafting habit.
What does stitching mean to you? So many things these days are fast-paced, but stitching can really only go slowly. The repetitive motions and the feel of the thread pulling through the fabric is incredibly calming.
I also find embroidery to be very patient and forgiving. If you make a stitch you don’t like, you can pull it out and try again.
How does nature and creativity go hand in hand for you?
I have a BA in Environmental Studies. I love being out in nature and I love pulling nature into my designs, whether it’s in a landscape, bouquet or houseplants. With two li le ones it isn’t always possible to get out into the wild as much as I’d like, so having visual reminders of it around the house helps to tide me over.
What eect do you hope the book will have?
When you teach someone how to do something for themselves it is a gift that keeps on giving. Knowing that I can teach so many more people through this book is so exciting. I’ve packed it full of every single thing I could think of to help novice stitchers get started, but I also kept experienced stitchers in mind.
What are your plans for 2020?
Folks can expect to see new pa erns from me, focusing on florals, landscapes, and some more colour and shape-based abstract designs. I’m also planning on releasing embroidery pa erns as kits. It can be creatively stifling to only create pa erns – having to keep track of thread counts and colour guides – so I’ve vowed to give myself some time to work freely. I think some of this work is going to involve painting on canvas and then adding embroidery over the top. I can’t wait to get into my li le studio nook to play.
www.larkrisingembroidery.com
The Modern Embroidery Workshop: Over 20 stylish projects to stitch, wear and share is published by Ilex, £16.99, www.octopusbooks.co.uk
So many things these days are fast-paced, but stitching can really only go slowly