“Let’s all slow down, get cozy, get crafty,” reads Liz Stiglets’ Instagram bio. Words to live by, especially these days. The founder of Cozy Blue, Stiglets sells embroidery patterns and DIY kits, all offered through her online Etsy shop. “Here’s the truth: everyone is creative,” reads her website, “and making time to express that creativity is a vital part of living this life.”
According to Stiglets, nurturing ourselves and tapping into our creativity allows us to become happier, more joyful, whole people. “I encourage you to slow down, “she says. “Take some time to notice the world around you. Look within and help your mind focus and calm so that you can come from a place of quiet rather than chaos. When your mind is peaceful, your life is richer.”
In an interview with the Etsy blog, Stiglets recalled how she first experimented with embroidery when she was a teenager, by stitching little designs onto her backpack and jeans. “I put it away for a while, then came back to it years later when my kids were very young, and I pretty much never stopped!” she says. Completely self-taught, her craft was learned by trial and error, allowing herself room to make mistakes.
The kits she sells include everything you need to get started wit embroidery yourself. The pattern is pre-printed on the fabric, and the floss, needle, and hoop are included too. She also adds a Getting Started Guide, which walks you through setting up your hoop and prepping your embroidery floss. Her How-to Guide includes diagrams for a handful of her favorite basic stitches. “I give notes for each design, including which stitches I used where, so folks can replicate my example photos if they want to—or they can do their own thing,” explains Stiglets.
Get going!
