It has been a long, long time since I put together a new colour palette! I had such a lot of fun creating Crafty Colour Palette #5, which is inspired by my garden.  Sweet peas are my absolute favourite at this time of year (once peonies have gone, that is!). The last couple of years I have either completely forgotten to plant any, or just been a bit too busy with other things to remember to do it. But I know that making the effort is a part of self-care for me really. If I make the effort to plant in spring, July will be full of glorious colour and the beautiful, sweet smell of these delightful flowers. They also keep on giving, just by picking them more often! Nature is amazing, isn’t it? Having flowers in the house is something that really makes me feel good. When I realised that this was the case, I knew it was something I needed to keep doing.

Little One helped me pick these from our garden and we had a lovely time arranging them and matching up the colours. She really loves playing with my threads, so she didn’t take much persuading! It was actually a lovely colour matching activity, so we’ll definitely do it again. The sweet peas have gone now (the bugs got them), so this is a lovely reminder of them too.

Crafty Colour Palette #5

There is such variety in the colours of sweet peas! So this is quite a large colour palette here with 11 colours. You could select just a small selection for a project rather than using the whole thing, but the gradient of the colours from the bright coral red through to the really deep plum shades is just gorgeous.

The DMC thread colours in this palette are:

Cream 3865

Light red 3705

Bright coral 956

Medium bright pink 3806

Bright pink 3607

Magenta 33

Lilac 210

Light purple 155

Bright purple 333

Plum 35

Medium plum 34

Please note that the colour descriptions are my own – DMC might refer to them as slightly different names! If you need to convert to Anchor thread colours, you’ll find a handy chart on my website here.

Deciding what to stitch

I’m still deciding what to stitch with these colours. I’ve been so busy putting my latest kit together that I haven’t had the time to do much else recently! I thought it would be lovely to stitch something as a reminder of the summer, particularly as this one has been a little different to say the least. When I’ve worked out what this is, I’ll edit the post and let you know!

What would you stitch with these colours?

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Describe your work in 3 words.

Cheerful, charming and colourful.

How did you first become interested in embroidery?

My love for embroidery began in my second year at Uni. I had done a short course, learning all the different stitches and techniques. From then on I started to use embroidery in my assignments. I really enjoyed it; I had found my creative niche.

You studied printed textiles and surface pattern design at Leeds College of Art – how do these things influence your embroidery?

My textile course was so inspiring; we had a lot of freedom to do what came naturally to us. For our tutors it was very important that we experimented and perfected our own style. My studies influence my work a lot, especially with repeat pattern and composition of a design.

Tell us about your design process. How do you turn something from an idea to a finished project?

I gather inspiration and ideas from being out and about. I take pictures of things I’d seen and draw from my findings. I embroider from drawings of flowers and birds. I often embroider first and then play around with my final designs on the computer to create designs for fabric and greetings cards. I also sell my embroideries as made to order hoop art’s.

What are your must have sewing essentials?

I have a pair of small sewing scissors that I was gifted a few years ago for my birthday from a friend. They are they really lovely to work with. My other essentials would have to be DMC embroidery thread, a needle, embroidery hoop, music and a cup of coffee.

One of your long-term projects is a family patchwork quilt. What are your favourite and least favourite things about working on such a large-scale piece?

I have been working on it for the past 8 years, I’m not sure when I’ll ever finish it. My favourite thing about it is that I dip in and out of it when I have a creative block and in need of a change and inspiration. I wouldn’t say there was a downside to it as I love working on it but if there had to be one it would be that it’s taking me so long.

Finally, what advice would you give to anyone starting out selling their wares?

The main thing is to create work that you thoroughly enjoy making. Create what makes you happy. Etsy is a great creative platform to sell your items. Instagram is an even greater place to market, promote and create a brand for work. It is also an amazing place to find like-minded makers like you and to have a sense of a creative community.

Thank you SO much for chatting to us, Sally!

It has been great to find out more about your creative process. I think that creating what makes you happy is such an important thing, especially when it’s easy to compare yourself to others on social media. I can’t wait to see what you make next!

For more Sew Sal loveliness, follow Sally on Instagram, read her blog, or support her small business by making a purchase from her Etsy shop. You won’t regret it!

Please note that all photos are copyright Sally Mayer and have been used with permission. Post updated 12th February 2020.

The post A natter with Sally Mayer from Sew Sal appeared first on Hello! Hooray!.