PROJECTS

AILEEN FOLEY

 For my final project for the Sewing Revamping workshop, I embroidered a sleeping fox on the back of an old denim shirt that I have. I used the denim shirt, embroidery floss, embroidery stabilizer, embroidery hoop, a sewing needle, and scissors to do this. To begin my project, I first drew the design on the sheet of stabilizer. I then placed the stabilizer on the back of my shirt, put the shirt in an embroidery hoop, and began to embroider the design with the embroidery floss. Throughout this semester, I learned various embroidery stitches in the workshop. To connect my project to what I have learned in the workshop, I incorporated some of the stitches I have learned into my final project. I used the satin stitch to stitch the fox’s fur and body, back stitch for the eyes, french knots for the flowers, and detached chain stitch for the flower petals. After I was done embroidering, I removed the stabilizer from the shirt using water. The final product of my project is a wearable piece of artwork that was reworked from old clothing. My project connects to the Arts Scholars program because it sends a message through artwork, the message being that fashion can be sustainable and upcycling old pieces of clothing instead of buying new clothing is a viable option.

GRACE GUZMAN

 I completed the sewing and revamping workshop for CPSA101. In this workshop we learned basic embroidery stitches and how to treat clothes in a way that is good for the environment. For my final project I used the embroidery stitches I learned in this workshop to improve an old pair of jeans. I created an image of mushrooms, flowers, and grass growing out of one of the back pockets.To create this I used embroidery floss of various colors, a sewing needle, my old jeans, scissors, and an embroidery hoop. I ensured that my process was regimented in order to complete the project within three class periods. I began by sketching my design in a notebook so I knew what my goal was supposed to be. I then used a pen to draw it on the jeans. I then utilized the stitches I learned such as the split stitch and the satin stitch. I think that this project is very appropriate for the arts scholars program. Embroidery is an art I believe which is not always thought of or recognized. It can be used to express just about anything like any other art form. I used my project to represent nature.

CASSIDY HENNING

For this final project, I used a needle, 4 colors of embroidery thread, embroidery transfer paper, and a bucket hat. I chose to do this since we have been learning a variety of stitches over the course of the semester and our project's goal was to use those stitches to embroider a piece of clothing we already owned. This project connects to the scholar's project in how we have been exploring different mediums to express art, embroidery being one of them. When beginning this project, I was torn between working with an old pair of shoes, a sweatshirt, or a bucket hat. In the end, I chose to embroider my bucket hat because I thought my shoes would be too difficult to maneuver, I did not have a plain sweatshirt, and my bucket hat was just plain white and I felt like I wanted it to be a little more special. When deciding on a design, I knew I wanted to embroider the letters UMD on the hat with either flowers or flames. I ended up choosing the flames because I thought they would be something different for me. I ended up using back stitch, running stitch, and french knot in my piece. While the project did take a while to complete and was at times frustrating dealing with such thick material, I am very happy with how it turned out.

 VARSHA IYER

For my Sewing Revamping final project I decided to sew a spider web and with a spider on it. I decided to make this a patch on a pair of pants I already owned. My materials included a pale piece of cloth, blue thread, a needle, and a white pair of pants. I used techniques from the detached chain stitch and feather stitch to create the star-like pattern that made up the spider web, and then sewed lines overtop of it to create the finished spider web. For the spider, I created its outline, and then filled it in. For the spider's legs, I again used the techniques from the detached chain stitch and feather stitch to create bent, slightly geometric lines. I tried to patch the spider web onto the pair of pants with a rough, "homemade" look, because that's how I tried to make the spider web and spider itself, and I think I did alright with it. For this project, I used stitches that we learned in class, so it was fun to test what I had learned from the workshops on a larger finished work, to see if I could understand and repeat the patterns. Arts Scholars focuses very heavily on introducing us to new mediums and helping us explore them our own way, and I think this project allowed me to explore the sewing medium, which was something I had not thought much about before this workshop.

KELLY KIM

For my project, I wanted to combine my two favorite interests—technology and nature—by embroidering the letters “GG” with an anaglyph3D font in corner brackets, hovering over plants. The letters stand for “good game,” which is a phrase often said after a match in many different multiplayer video games, including my favorite game: League of Legends. The plants I included are meaningful because they are all things that I have seen in the forest, and some of them are things that I have foraged, like Queen Anne’s lace, ostrich fern fiddleheads, dandelions, and enoki mushrooms. During the Sewing Revamping workshop, I learned several new stitch patterns for embroidery, so I integrated them into my work to give it more dimension. I included fly, satin, French knot, stem, and back stitches for leaves, mushrooms, flowers, and stems in softer colors, in order to mimic the natural textures of the actual plants. For the block letters, I used only satin and back stitches in bright, pigmented colors to emphasize the sleekness and artificiality associated with technology. In the Art Scholars program, I wanted to be able to add more meaning to my creations as a way to express my interests, which was something that I could not do before, due to a lack of confidence. Therefore, I wanted to highlight how complete opposites can actually work to benefit each other, so I decided on nature and technology. For example, what actually got me interested in foraging was playing a video game called Stardew Valley, where I could farm,
forage, and interact with nature in different ways. I learned how to identify plants by using my phone and laptop to read forums and plant/mushroom identification articles. Now, I know which plants I can take home due to their invasive nature, and which plants to protect, as they are native. Similarly, video games also benefit from nature. In League of Legends, the map of the arena has a jungle and there are many plants along the barriers. Because the plants don’t actually affect the game, it may be difficult to see why they are important. However, without those designs, the game would look incredibly bare and much less aesthetically pleasing.

KATERINA KREMER

For this art scholars’ workshop, I decided to revamp an old, plain red shirt that I had in my closet. I had never worn it, so now it is given a new purpose from the embroidering I added to it. I decided that because it was red, I was going to make school apparel to rep UMD. I used black floss, white floss and gold floss to have all of UMD’s colors on my shirt. I free handed the outline of the bubble letters “UMD”. Then, I used the chain stitch repetitively to form the shape of a flower with one color. I then tied off the floss and switched the floss in my needle to the next color. At first, I was too worried to do more than one flower each time and per color, but by the end I would try to do multiple. It took a lot of time to figure out the systematic way to form the best flowers, but I was able to make them of varying sizes to fill up the bubble letters perfectly. My goal was to make all the flowers have five petals, except if they were on the edge to help outline the letters, then there were some with only three petals. Overall, I am very proud of my project and can’t wait to wear it often!

SIDNEY STRONG

For my final project, I used thread and an old shirt that I found in my mother’s closet to create an upcycled version of the shirt with embroidery. I used many stitches that I learned in the Sewing Revamping workshop for this piece including the stem stitch, back stitch, french knot, and the satin stitch. To create this piece I sketched the idea I had for the design on stabilizing interfacing fabric and then I embroidered on top of it. There was a lot of trial and error in the process of making it but the final product became something that I am really proud of in the end. This piece was inspired by recent social movements such as Black Lives Matter and Stop Asian Hate. With all of the recent turmoil in America, I wanted to create a piece that made a statement about hate crimes but one that also highlighted hope for the future. This design features a cat and dog hugging because it is a riff on the common phrase “fighting like cats and dogs.” These animals are notorious for their constant fights, so I wanted to depict the message through the animals’ pose that despite their differences they could also interact peacefully. Through the Arts Scholars program, I have learned about the ways art can be used to advocate for causes and I used that knowledge to revamp clothing in a way that advocates for movements that I am passionate about. I also like that through using animals to symbolize differences among people this design doesn’t limit itself to any one race or social movement that advocates for civil rights.

ALEXCIA WILLS

I created this piece using a pair of old sneakers that I usually don’t wear. In this workshop, we discussed the harm that the clothing industry does to the environment. In Arts Scholars, we emphasize embracing creativity to make an impact on the environment and society that surrounds us. So instead of buying a new pair of sneakers, I used the new skills I learned from this workshop to revamp these old ones into something I would be proud of wearing. The Spring season and budding plants inspired me to sew flowers and a quote onto them. Before I started sewing, I drew my design on the sewing stabilizer and then placed it on the shoes. Throughout the process, however, I encountered a few challenges. When I first started my project, I realized that my sewing needle was too large and was making it difficult to pierce through the fabric of the shoes. I eventually moved on to using a smaller needle but this setback (along with the many times I started over due to a flower not coming out as expected) made my project a little time consuming. Despite these unexpected issues, I am very happy with the way my project came out. There is beauty in all its imperfections. Without rain (challenges/downpours) there are no flowers (successes/growth).

VICKI ZHANG

 I am currently a sophomore Arts Scholar student, and I am in the Sewing workshop this semester. For my final project, I embroidered a flower design onto my yellow jean jacket. The materials I used for the project includes my yellow jean jacket, a needle, and multicolor thread to make the final design colorful. This project really allowed me to see how much I learned through the workshop! The cool stitches that I never knew before are now in my grasp, allowing me to make fun designs, like my final project. It also allowed me to realize the many varieties of arts in the world. Being in Art Scholars allowed me to cover a wider range of arts, which I really appreciate. I enjoy learning new forms of art, especially amidst the pandemic. For me, art is a source of relief during this tough time of quarantine because it allows me to relax and be imaginative without having to think about what is happening right now. The process I went through when creating my project is by first brainstorming the piece of clothing I will be embroidering on and what design I would want to make on it. I decided to go with a flower design on one of the front pockets of the yellow jean jacket since it is currently spring. Then, I started sewing the design by creating an outline of the grass with backstitch. Afterwards, I used satin stitch to fill in the grass outline with the green color. Then, I started sewing the flower petals with bullion stitch. To finish up the design, I used backstitch to create the flower stems and leaves.