2020-03-01_Do_It_Yourself

BHG.COM/DIYMA G A Z I N E DO IT YOURSELF Summer 2020 15

What’s your favorite aspect

of making embroidery?

A: I love developing the

designs and choosing the

colors. A lot of the time, the

colors will really dictate the

design. Sometimes I’ll change

the design based on the colors

that I’ve selected after I’ve

drawn it. I love that embroidery

is this combination of drawing

on clothes; it’s basically

painting with threads.

What inspires the creation

of your patterns?

A: Translating a story into

an image is always really fun.

Also, I love working with vintage

clothes because they kind of

have a life of their own that

they’ve already lived. When

sitting with the pieces of

clothing, they tend to tell a story

of what they were and what

they want to become. So certain

pieces, like if there’s a crazy

vintage dress, I imagine who was

the woman who used to wear

this dress and what would she

have loved to have on this dress.

What is your favorite type

of fabric to work with?

A: I always love working with

denim. That’s one of the things

I’m drawn to—doing embroidery

on jeans or denim jackets. That’s

one of my longtime loves.

THE MAKER:

CHRISTI JOHNSON

This textile artist melds style and history with

her sustainable fabric brand, Mixed Color.

CHRISTI JOHNSON BEGAN WORKING

ON TEXTILES AT A YOUNG AGE WITH

HER MOM. ONE FASHION DEGREE AND

10 YEARS IN THE INDUSTRY LATER,

SHE LAUNCHED A BUSINESS BASED ON

CAREFULLY MAKING ONE ITEM AT A TIME.

A HANDMADE’S TALE

Talk about a maker:

Christi creates each

product herself. Rather

than the fast pace she

encountered in the

fashion industry, she

now considers herself

part of the slow fashion

movement, which

aims for sustainability

and reducing fabric

waste. She often uses

repurposed fabrics

and dyes them with

botanicals, such as

dandelions and red

onion skins. With a

focus on getting back

to basics, Christi also

hopes to educate

her consumers with

plenty of information

on botanical dyes and

embroidery (along with

beautiful buyables!)

on mixedcolor.net.

PORTRAIT

JOSIE DERRICK

embroidery

stencils!

14-16_MTM.indd 15 FINAL 2/18/20 9:18 AM