Amina is a passionate stitcher and lover of nature and everything floral. She’s an embroidery blogger and proud muslim.

How did you get into embroidery?

I’m self-taught from scratch. My passion for hand embroidery started around 2013-2014, very unexpectedly for me. Prior to that I already had tried myself at many other crafts like patchwork, decoupage and even soap making but the spark of interest died rather quickly. Then I switched to ribbon embroidery and it served as the trampoline to embroidery with cotton thread which still holds me captive. If anyone asked me “Why exactly hand embroidery?” I wouldn’t be able to give a proper answer, to be honest. It just stole my heart from the first stitch and I couldn’t stop after that. I learned embroidery by reading books and following some of the materials I could find online.

Do you have a background in design?

I used to like doodling in high school but never had any particular talent in drawing or designing. Nevertheless,I believe even that doodling practice was very beneficial later when I attempted to create my own designs. So if you’re a beginner, I would definitely recommend to spend some time practicing drawing and doodling – it makes it easier to reflect your ideas on paper and then plan your embroidery project from these ideas.

What are some of your favourite stitches?

I’m a fan of long and short stitching! I fell in love with works by Trish Burr as soon as I saw them, she is one of my role-models in hand embroidery. So, this technique is something I particularly enjoy and want to keep improving in this area. 

Are there any stitches you’re keen on learning?

Rather than stitches, I would say there are techniques and styles. I’m fascinated by crewel work, white work, stumpwork and gold work. I don’t really aspire to become an “expert” in any of these fields (I wouldn’t mind if this happens, though, haha) since it would require to dive and dig really deep. But I look forward to finding ways on how to implement some of these techniques in my work. 

How do you start a new piece of work, what’s your design process?

When I decide on a particular idea to be stitched, I start by drawing it on a piece of paper and thinking through the colour palette. Then I trace the drawing in Photoshop, print it and once again think through the whole plan of how to stitch it. Then I take a spare piece of fabric and try some of the stitches, elements and colour combinations of the future design there. It is like a draft, a rough sketch, and at that stage some ideas might be reconsidered and changed. 

After the plan is finalized, I start working on the project. While I embroider I try to take a lot of pictures of the process, which is important for PDF patterns. It makes the process at least twice slower but in the end, as long as my instructions are detailed and clear for other stitchers, it’s worth it. 

Are you overwhelmed with designs and ideas or does it take time to find new embroideries to stitch?

I definitely am overwhelmed. They are constantly buzzing around and when I start brainstorming I can come up with literally 20 ideas out of which only several will make the cut. Others stay in my notebook where I look occasionally and visit them like my old friends. I don’t say “no” to them, I still hope to work them too… It’s just not the time yet. Time is definitely something I struggle with, because apart from the designs, I also try to maintain my blog and keep it beneficial and exciting for readers. A lot of beginner stitchers expressed their thanks for the content and tips I post there, so I strive to keep it running. I have to balance my time between all these areas, and I don’t really think I’m doing a particularly good job right now! 

Do you embroider for fun or is it a full time job?

It is my only source of income, yes. Pdf patterns and courses. Thank God, it is still fun!

How do you find using Instagram? Do you ever worry your work will be copied? 

I actually not bothered about that. My bigger concern used to be people reposting my work without any credits and accepting all the compliments as if they made it, which already happened. Well. Islam teaches us to be humble and not hunt for praise, so I try not to be annoyed. If something like this happens, I message the person in question about my concerns and whether they fix it or not, is on them. I detach myself from that matter. 

Do you ever feel nervous or anxious your followers won’t like your work?

Not really… I feel like a certain level of adjusting to the audience’s interest or modern trends is justified, but when you are too bothered or obsessed with that, it’s kind of like… you’re stealing from yourself. 

Art is, first of all, expressing yourself. It is about what YOU feel, YOU think, YOU find attractive and worth attention. What YOU want to put out in the world. If you make it about the audience and what they like, it shackles you down. And I’m afraid, the work will also lack in sincerity. It’s great when your followers like your work. But if they don’t – it shouldn’t stop you from exploring yourself and what you like. Maybe God will bring you in front of another audience which will appreciate and understand your style better. 

Do you ever feel pressured to post images that you know will get lots of likes instead of simply posting what you like?

It is an interesting question because my relationship with Instagram lately has been changing. First of all, I have no idea what “will get lots of likes”. There was time my posts gathered tons of likes, without me even trying. Nowadays I’m happy when I get several hundreds. I don’t really have a clue what changed but I have a suspicion it might be connected with the fact that I’m not very active there. And the thing is… I really don’t want to be a slave to Instagram and stress myself over its algorithms and how to get many likes. I try to improve my photography and look forward to updating my camera. But these are essential elements of having a business – you try to improve certain areas quality-wise little by little. But am I going to spend more time on Instagram just so it can favor me, while I can spend that time in a more fruitful way? For now, at least, my answer is no. I’m not even a social media person, to be frank. I don’t even have active personal accounts on any platform, so I really don’t want to force myself to something I’m not entirely comfortable with for the sake of likes.  

What do you love about embroidery?

In one word, I would say: variety. I guess, that’s exactly what’s keeping me engaged and sincerely curious about embroidery after all these years (like I said, I tend to lose interest in things rather quickly). I like to compare embroidery with a mountain range. For example, let’s say you like surface embroidery. This becomes your mountain which you climb little by little, step by step. But as soon as you top it you see many other mountains waiting for you. Many other techniques, many other stitches, many other materials to try, many other styles to explore. What a breathtaking adventure.

Follow Amina here.