Meet Seychelles’ young local artists: |07 September 2020
A cross-stitcher makes the oldest form of embroidery come to life
In the following interview, we meet 26-year-old Sandy Willecke, to learn more about cross-stitching, a unique and interesting type of hand embroidery which is also an uncommon interest and hobby among young people.
Seychelles NATION: Tell us a bit about yourself.
Sandy Willecke: I am 26 years old and a resident of Glacis. I’m working as a project technician at the Ministry of Habitat, Infrastructure and Land Transport. I’m half German and half Seychellois. My dad is a German and my mum is a Seychellois.
I first learnt about cross-stitching in primary three. As part of our school curriculum, all students had to take up an extra-curricular activity. I don’t remember why, but I decided to be part of the sewing club. It was the best decision I made as I learnt how to cross-stitch and I developed a passion for it. All of our works were later put up in the school exhibition and I remember feeling so happy and proud when my mum came to see my work.
Seychelles NATION: What is ‘Seystitch’ and can you explain what cross-stitching is?
Sandy Willecke: ‘Seystitch’ is the name that I’ve given to my page on Instagram where I upload photos of my finished cross-stitch projects and share the progress of those that I’m still working on. The main objective of ‘Seystitch’ is to promote cross-stitching in Seychelles, especially among the youth so that more young people will be interested in this type of embroidery.
Cross-stitching is a type of hand embroidery and differs from other stitches in that it uses x-shaped stitches and a tiled pattern to create an image. Hand embroidery also uses other types of stitches to create designs on fabric such as backstitches, running stitch, French knot, just to name a few. All these stitches combined together can create a masterpiece.
What makes cross-stitching unique is how you can follow a chart and make a pattern come to life on fabric using a variety of colourful threads. Someone who receives a cross stitched item is receiving a personalised gift made from a lot of patience and love.
Cross-stitching makes me feel relaxed and calm. It’s incredible how time passes by quickly without realising it when I’m so focused on my project. It requires a lot of patience. Sometimes I make a wrong stitch and end up having to pull out the stitches and start again. However, the finished project makes it all worth it.
I feel like cross-stitching was more popular among previous generations, especially our elders. It is very rare to come across young people doing cross- stitching nowadays. I cannot say that cross-stitching is the most common form of stitching in Seychelles, since I do not know many people who do it.
Seychelles NATION: Who inspires your work?
Sandy Willecke: My greatest inspiration is my grandmother. She’s also very passionate about cross-stitching and I’ve learnt so much from her. Sometimes we sit together and each work on our own project. It’s one of my favourite moments as we get to bond and exchange ideas. She also knows how to do crochet which is something that I’m very interested in learning from her.
I’d like to take the opportunity to say thank you to my family and friends who are always there to support me and my love for cross-stitching. Thank you also goes to my past teachers and my grandmother for teaching me and inspiring me to cross-stitch.
Seychelles NATION: What is the history of cross-stitch?
Sandy Willecke: Cross-stitch can be found as far back as sixth century BC. The first known embroidery have been found and preserved in ancient Egyptian tombs. Cross-stitch was very popular during the Tang Dynasty (a period in Chinese history) and is still very popular in the country to date.
During that time, a woman’s worth in China was closely linked to her stitching ability as it was her job to sew clothes for her family. Floss used to stitch could be purchased in open markets.
The first record of movement of embroidery was between China and Russia between the years 618-900 AD. Cross-stitch found its way to other parts of the world such as Europe through trade and migration. People who migrated to other countries taught cross-stitching and it grew into part of their culture.
Seychelles NATION: What do you require to complete a cross-stitch project?
Sandy Willecke: For any cross-stitch project, you will require three main things; fabric, thread and a cross-stitch chart. Other basic supplies required include needles, scissors, embroidery hoops/frames etc.
The main thread used for cross-stitch is stranded cotton. Stranded cotton is made up of 6 strands of loosely twisted thread.
Cross-stitch projects can be done on a number of different fabrics, but the most common are Aida and linen. Aida, being the most ideal one for beginners, is a cotton fabric that is composed of woven blocks. The blocks make a grid and are the perfect holes for forming a cross-stitch.
The first step in starting a cross-stitch project is to read a cross-stitch chart. This chart tells you where to stitch and what thread colours to use. The grid on a cross- stitch chart corresponds to the grid created by the weave of the fabric, and each coloured square on the chart represents a cross-stitch.
Seychelles NATION: What are some interesting and current trends in cross- stitching?
Sandy Willecke: Some current trends include more modern designs featuring contemporary sayings compared to traditional designs. Stitching designs on almost any fabric such as jeans, jackets or tote bags can be done using water soluble canvas. You can simply stitch on the desired fabric using the clear canvas and place the finished design in hot water causing the canvas to disappear and leaving you with a customised, unique piece of clothing.
I believe that knitting and sewing has declined a lot over the years but is still more popular as hobbies among the elders as opposed to young people. I’ve only encountered one young adult who does knitting and hand embroidery in Seychelles so far and her work is incredibly beautiful.
I definitely encourage more young people to try knitting and sewing as a hobby. Sewing and knitting has been part of our culture for a very long time and we should learn from our elders so that we can pass on this tradition to our future generation.
F.P.