I Did A Thing, Vol. 15

I should start calling this series “I Made A Thing” because, let’s face, it’s mostly an excuse for me to show you my most recent craft projects. With that warning in mind, let’s proceed, shall we.

After finishing a slew of Xmas crafts for friends and family, I felt re-energized to tackle some personal projects. First up was a project I had been wanting to do for some time: a portrait/cartoon of Frida Kahlo.

I love Frida’s use of colour and abstract imagery in her art, and recently ordered a biography by Hayden Herrera to read up on her life. There are lots of examples of Frida-inspired embroidery online, and after much deliberation, I chose these two pictures as my inspiration:

I made a quick sketch that incorporated elements from both, and once I was happy with it, I traced it again with a Sharpie then copied it onto my muslin canvas.

I ended up incorporating a few touches of my own into my project; I decided to use scraps from an old thrifted skirt for Frida’s blouse, and a vintage earring (with the original clip back removed) as a brooch. I also bought some metallic gold-tone thread for the earrings, and used beads as accents there and on the flower crown. The eyes and hair were made from felt. The most nerve-wracking part was the eyebrows; it’s tricky to get them to be more or less symmetrical, and this was a pretty iconic pair of eyebrows to begin with. Still, they turned out ok.

As I was working on the piece, I came to be quite fond of the back/reverse side – still recognizably Frida, but in a cool, abstract way:

And here is the final result – it’s one of my favourite pieces, and one of the most fun to make.

I feel like I’m a roll with this portrait thing — and I tend to go through phases with my embroidery – so I’m currently looking for my next subject. Possible contenders include Anne of Green Gables or maybe Elizabeth I (can you tell I’m dying to work on a redhead?); another option is a portrait in the style of Tamara de Lempicka. If you’ve got suggestions, let me know in the comments.