Stitching together technology and design
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Inspired by our world of technology and a world of design, Mahnie Blakey has combined textiles and technology to create Phone x Stitch, a self-paced home stitching kit.
Mahnie started toying with the idea throughout her undergrad but it was in 2019—when she won the ANU School of Art and Design Emerging Artist Support Scheme John and Elizabeth Baker Design Award—that things really took off. Now, she’s a part of the Design Canberra Festival.
“It is really cool to be a part of Design Canberra, I have followed them for years so to be a part of that is really exciting. I’ve tried to make this process as open and accessible to everybody so that anyone can pick up a kit and know how to create something,” Mahnie said.
Between Wednesday 2 to Sunday 6 November you can head along to ACT Craft to pick up your free Phone x Stitch kit (just make sure you register first).
“It is a good opportunity to participate in something with Design Canberra, even if you aren’t feeling up to heading to an in-person workshop at this time,” Mahnie said.
Inside your kit, you will find an acrylic base the same size and shape as a smartphone, twelve colours of embroidery floss, a needle, and instructions both for designing and completing your kit.
From there it is time for the creative juices to start flowing. Design your embroidery using the paper template provided or visit @phonexstitch on Instagram for digital design tools.
“The whole idea is to design an embroidery that explores the relationship between technology and textiles. The relationship doesn’t have to mean what’s similar between the two it can also explore how they differ,” Mahnie said.
“A lot of the feedback I get is that feeling of accomplishment from making something, especially if they don’t usually create things. That’s a really cool feeling knowing you’ve helped someone who might not usually be involved in craft, being excited about it.”
Mahnie encourages everyone to give it a go, and with the base the same size as your phone, it’s a task that you can finish in a day and have a new artwork for your home.
“My advice with craft is to give it a go. It doesn’t have to have any particular result and it doesn’t have to look perfect or even finished. It is just about giving it a go,” Mahnie said.
Once you have created your masterpiece, hold onto it until Sunday 20 November then share a photo of your finished embroidery on Instagram with a caption of up to 250 words. Transforming the screen from a digital space into a place for contemplation, you’ll soon be stitching instead of scrolling.
THE ESSENTIALS
What: Phone x Stitch
Where: Craft ACT, 180 London Cct, Canberra City
When: Pick up Wednesday 2 – Sunday 6 November
Web: designcanberrafestival.com.au
Feature image courtesy of Brenton McGeachie
