Member Spotlight | Eleanor Kilpatrick

We love encouraging our members' creativity and while kits are a fantastic and relaxing way to produce a beautiful finished piece, what we really want is for you to feel comfortable creating your own designs.​

To help encourage this, we decided to create the Member Spotlight series, to give our members a chance to talk through their creative practice, including their process, tools, and how they build up the confidence to push through any blocks.​

Hopefully the answers and photos shared in this section will help you feel inspired to persevere with your own work, and maybe one day to be featured in our Studio Dispatch to help encourage other members!

A little about Eleanor... Eleanor Kilpatrick is one of our Maker members, who currently lives in Windsor. During the day, she repairs and sells vintage knitwear in her online shop (Eleanor Rose Knitwear), then in the evenings and at weekends she enjoys working on her own creative projects with a focus on embroidery and appliqué.​

Eleanor posts about her current creative projects on her Instagram account. ​You can browse her vintage finds on her website or on her other Instagram account.

How did you first get into your current creative craft/ artform? Has your way of working changed at all since then?​

I’ve always been drawn to textiles and clothing from a young age, which led me to study Textile Design at university a few years ago. However, I only properly got into embroidery in the last year after discovering The Fabled Thread. I’d say I enjoy making pieces more now, as there is less pressure; I can create things I want to without being graded or needing to build a portfolio. This has also meant I work more quickly, as I don’t have to develop highly detailed concepts before starting and can simply begin once I have an idea I like.​

What are you working on at the moment?​

At the moment, I’m enjoying upcycling secondhand garments using appliqué and embroidery, working with scrap pieces of linen that I’ve collected. I’ve been inspired by Asafo flags, which are appliquéd storytelling textiles made by the Fante people of Ghana. I’ve also been influenced by an appliquéd nineteenth-century British Mummers costume I found in the Philadelphia Museum of Art archives, which features similarly bold appliqué.

Do you tend to plan out a piece in detail beforehand, or do you prefer to make it up as you go?​

I tend to plan my framed embroidered pieces in detail before I start, creating a final design, colour palette, and stitch plan. However, I’ve found it challenging to make and stick to the stitch plans, as I’m still learning how different stitches translate from paper to the finished piece. For my upcycled clothing projects, I work a little more intuitively. I decide on the colour palette and create a rough design before starting the appliqué, then use Procreate on my iPad to experiment with different ideas for the embroidered details once it is in place.

What part of your creative process do you find hardest? I.e. composition, colour, finding time, drawing, feeling uninspired? And how do you try and overcome this?

I love collecting inspiration from lots of different places, but I can sometimes find the amount I’ve gathered overwhelming. It can be difficult to pull everything together and decide what to focus on for a project. Over the last year, I’ve found The Fabled Thread’s YouTube videos on “How to Find Inspiration” really helpful in addressing this. Following Eppie’s approach, I now keep all my inspiration on a single Pinterest board, then select a few key images that resonate with me before each project to use for drawing exercises and to spark ideas.

How important is colour within your work? Are there particular combinations you feel drawn to time and time again?​

I’ve always been drawn to bright, bold colours and enjoy using contrast in my work. I’m particularly attracted to complementary colour combinations, especially blue with orange or yellow tones. More recently, I’ve been exploring new and less familiar colour palettes, inspired by the V&A’s book Spectrum: Heritage Patterns and Colours.

Is there a piece you have made that you feel particularly proud of?

When I discovered The Fabled Thread, I decided to purchase their Start Stitching and Freestyle Embroidery courses. Through these, I designed and stitched my first framed embroidery piece, inspired by the wildlife that visits my parents’ garden at night. I’m proud not only of the finished design, but also of how it represents rediscovering my creativity and gaining confidence in my own ideas again. Recently, I entered the piece in the Royal Windsor Flower Show embroidery competition, where it was awarded first place!

What do you long to make next?​

For the last two years, I’ve been enjoying working through cross stitch and needlepoint kits, including The Fabled Thread’s “The Crab Who Played With The Sea” design. I’d love to design my own needlepoint wall hanging or cushion cover one day, as I really like the texture of the stitching and the tactile quality it creates. It will definitely require some patience; it’s probably the slowest craft I’ve tried so far.​

What advice would you offer to others who are worried about sharing their work?

I would suggest not placing expectations, whether positive or negative, on how your work might be received by others. Ultimately, the most important thing is that your creative work brings you joy. You can only control the pieces you make, not how others respond to them. One of the nicest things about sharing your work, however, is the opportunity to build friendships with other creatives, both online and in person. These are great for sharing encouragement and swapping tips and ideas.