How does embroidery artist Yulia Sherbak illustrate the fuzz, fur, and feathers of cute animals with a needle and thread? What is thread painting?
In this Moss and Feather video, Sherbak uses DMC embroidery floss on cotton muslin fabric to illustrate a portrait of a European Robin.
She starts by neatly stitching black thread across a circle that defines the bird’s eye. She then fills in the beak and the eye highlight before continuing into the plush yellow-orange feather work.
From embroidery blog Crewel Ghoul’s Essential Guide To Thread Painting For Beginners:
“Thread painting is a hand embroidery technique that uses stranded embroidery floss (traditionally cotton or silk thread) to blend together colors similar to painting. This technique can make embroidery appear realistic and 3-dimensional.”
Keep an eye on the varying lengths of stitches on the bird’s feathers. The long and short stitches next to each other are what blend the colors, creating a “painted” effect. The cotton thread’s soft sheen also brightens the portrait.
Find Moss and Feather on Instagram, YouTube, and Etsy.
Then watch these related videos next on TKSST:
• The Embroidered Art of Meredith Woolnough
• Threads, an animated short by Torill Kove
• Making hyperrealistic cat portraits with wool felt
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