Last year I gave birth to my first child Cleo who’s now 9 months. I’ve been running Embellished Talk alongside being a new mum and wanted to know how other mothers in textiles manage working and taking care of their children. Mothers in Craft is a new series of conversations that will answer my questions and hopefully inspire other creative mothers. To kick off I’ve shared my new experience in motherhood.

Motherhood and creativity

Being a mother has boosted my creativity a lot within my work. I take more risks and try not to doubt myself too much. I’m better at pitching my workshops to companies. I’m more concise with what I want to do too. I’ve become less complicated with my embroidery. Before being a mother I used to take my textiles too seriously which resulted in me finding it difficult to get anything done. Now I’m focusing on creating a recognisable style within my designs. It’s taking some time but I’m getting there. 

Motherhood and confidence 

Taking care of a small human is a lot of work and I’m tired all the time now. I’ve become way more assertive as I’m too tired to pussy foot around. I don’t have the luxury of free time to overthink things. I’m better at asserting myself in writing emails as I have more time to properly articulate myself but I’m getting better at being verbal. The experience of giving birth and breastfeeding has made me care a lot less about things. 

How I manage my time between work and looking after Cleo

I work when she naps. Sometimes it’s successful and sometimes I just have to relinquish control and be ok with not getting things done when I want to. My partner occasionally works from home so I squeeze bits of work here and there when he does. He’s good at giving me time to do my thing. I’m fortunate that he respects my need to work and run Embellished Talk. We’ve started looking for nurseries for Cleo to start next year for two days a week. It’ll be good for her to interact with other children and will free up more time for me to work. I do feel a bit weird and guilty about her going to nursery but I keep telling myself it’s absolutely normal and healthy. There will still be plenty of time to enjoy mothering her.

The difference between the way I work now and the way I worked before being a mother

Before being a mum I used to waste so much time procrastinating, dreaming up loads of ideas and spending ages to execute them into embroidered samples. Now if I have an idea, I draw them, pick colours, fabric and get to stitching. If it works out the way I imagined, then I continue if not I park the idea of stop altogether. I never knew how much time went into being a mum until I became one. Sleep deprivation is so fucking real! With this new way of working I’ve actually become faster at stitching and a lot more productive. Lack of free time helps me be more decisive and I find quicker ways to get stuff done. 

My work environment

We moved into a new home a month before Cleo was born. It took us a year to find a place. My partner was really keen on having a garden but I just really wanted a room to keep all of my equipment in so I could see everything. I now have a pink and green home studio inspired by my favourite cafe Palm Vaults. It’s really nice for my stuff to have a place, I used to keep everything under our bed in our old flat. I’d forget what I had because I couldn’t see it. I enjoy decorating my studio, I’ve concluded that it will be a continual work in progress. When I was pregnant I bought so many home trinkets – vases, picture frames, storage boxes. I went overboard to be honest. Now I’m trying to find places for it all. 

Plans for 2019

Definitely more workshops. I’ll be at the Hampton Court Garden Festival next month on Wednesday 3^rdJuly running a floral themed embroidery workshop. I want to collaborate with other brands and put my embroidery on garments and interiors. I really need to revamp my website, it’s been on my mind for awhile and I want to freshen things up on it.

A goal is to be featured in British Vogue and House and Garden (H&G need more brown folk in their magazine). I want to do bespoke embroidery for people. I’d love to create a mini collection and sell it in Liberty or Selfridges.

I love make up and enjoy watching tutorials on YouTube I want to collaborate with Violette Fr as I like her temperament and aesthetic. I would also like to do some work for Fenty– to be part of Rihanna’s world would be out of this world! I want to do a lot, it might not all happen this year but I will definitely make it happen over time. My body created a human being so it can do endless things. I want Cleo and her dad to be proud of me. 

Pictures of me and Cleo by Krystal Neuvill