About Me
Hi, I Am Emma Horan
Mum to Tommy , Wife to Phil and Human Servant to a little stray black cat called Stoopy. I am also the Owner/ Creative Designer/Marketing Director/ Cross Stitch Kit Factory Worker / Shop Keeper and Tea Maker for Emma Louise Art Stitch.
Prior to this I lived in the Cities of London and Birmingham and worked mainly in the fast paced environments of Bar/Hotel Management and then Senior Level Technology Recruitment / Headhunting.
In 2010, on one of our many weekends spent in Cornwall, We found a little, affordable cottage in St Austell, and took the plunge to fulfill a dream and relocate from Birmingham to the Cornish Coast and pursue a different kind of life.
Inspired by my new surroundings and having a little more time on my hands, I decided to play around at being creative and painting acrylic versions of my favourite coastal scenes , and after finding some second hand Cross Stitch Software in a National Trust Bookshop these started to envolve into the Kits we sell today.
Initial response on Social Media was incredible so I created the business to sell online (and purchased some professional software ) and now make a living creating products in a little studio near the sea.
This little business created from my Kitchen table is continuing to grow and evolve, and I now have over 60 Cross Stitch Kits , Colouring Items and Branded Accessories. You can also join the growing online community by becoming a member of the supportive and friendly Facebook Group and/or meeting in person at one of the Saturday Stitch Sessions here at my Studio in Cornwall.
When I am not working in my Studio I am usually found exploring the beauty of Cornwall on a beach , Coast Path or Woodland somewhere. You can find out more about me and preview new products , the design process and lots of Cornwall pictures by following and interacting on Instagram and Facebook.
The Studio / Shop is based in St Austell Town and is open 6 days a week. You can pop in and take a look at the finished kits and chat all things stitchy whilst I work on designs.
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Emma
About your Kit -The Process
Step 1 – Visit beautiful places that inspire me and take many pictures of different aspects of the scene. (this may or may not include a Pasty!)…
Step 2 – Decide on a composition and then create the artwork. I often combine elements of different photos and try to capture the feel of the place whilst also giving it my own style. I tend to use a lot of bright colours and do try and keep as many key features as I can so that the locations are hopefully still recognisable.
Step 3– Chart Design – This incorporates a number of steps including size, layout and thread colour choice. The time consuming part consists of translating the painting into a cross stitch chart. Using Charting Software (and at times good old fashioned squared paper..!) I graphically design each square. Each stitch is carefully considered and not imported straight into photo reading software in order to create the artistic effect.
Step 4 – The finished chart is then proof stitched by my brilliant team of Test Stitchers. Conferring with me at each step of stitching to ensure the symbols are all correct and easy to read to achieve the best results and there is plenty of thread in the kit.
Step 5 – Complete the paperwork and assemble the kit! I make a special effort to ensure that the charts are easy to read, with distinctly different symbols for each thread colour.
