Rachel Drake Art/Stitch and Collage: A foundation course in combining embroidery with mixed media paper collage

  • £180 or 4 monthly payments of £45

Stitch and Collage: A foundation course in combining embroidery with mixed media paper collage

  • Course
  • 92 Lessons

Stitch and Collage is a self-paced online course which will teach you how to create your own pieces of textured mixed media art. I will guide you through the process of generating ideas, planning compositions, experimenting with stitching and making your own textured papers. Ideal for starting out on your creative journey or for developing your skills further.

A Journey of Discovery in Mixed Media

Have you always wanted to be more experimental or try something new but never had the confidence?

This course is perfect for showing you the way.

Being creative and exploring new ideas is a great way to work but often people don't know where to start.

This comprehensive course will cover all aspects of working in paper collage and combining it with stitching:

  • Learn how to make your own textured papers

  • Get confident using colour

  • Learn how you can enhance images with stitching

  • Be confident drawing and planning out ideas

  • Make a piece of mixed media collage good enough to frame

Introducing Stitch and Collage - A foundation course in combining embroidery with mixed media collage

A self-paced online course that teaches you how to work more creatively and experimentally using readily available materials.

Watch the Trailer

See what's in the course

What you will learn

Generate ideas

Find inspiration, sketch and create compositional ideas. It's easy - even if you can't draw! 

Make your own textured papers

You will learn many ways of creating textures using simple techniques ready to be used in your first collage. 

Learn collage techniques

Try out cutting, tearing and piecing papers together, exploring repetition to build up textures in collage.

Learn some hand embroidery stitches.

See how you can work on paper, using simple stitching to effectively enhance a piece of collage. 

Embrace machine embroidery

Many people are apprehensive of trying out this amazing embroidery technique. It's actually really very simple and I'll show you easy ways to create all over stitched textures interpreting your images. 

Dive into colour

Explore the effects of colour, experiment with paint, mixed media and colourful threads to create samples and ideas. 

Using stitches in collage

Discover how you can add hand and machine stitching to paper to embellish your collages effectively. 

Planning a final project

I'll guide you through the whole process from start to finish. Deciding on imagery, planning your composition, choosing materials and techniques to use and the best working methods to successfully complete your finished artwork. 

Show off your skills

You want to proudly display your collage so I'll show you ways of mounting and framing your work to show it off to its best advantage. 

Course contents

This shows a breakdown of the entire course and what lessons are in each module

The orange preview buttons will allow you to take a peak at some of the lessons for FREE!

Welcome and Introduction

Welcome and Introduction

Welcome to the course
Join the private community
Meet Rachel
Tools and Materials
Preview

Finding Inspiration

2.1 Introduction
2.2 Gathering images
2.3 Looking with fresh eyes
2.4 Exploring Pinterest
2.5 Editing photos

Developing Ideas

3.1 Introduction
3.2 Preparing to draw
3.3 Simplifying elements
3.4 Scale
3.5 Combining patterns
3.6 Annotation

Creative Collage

4.1 Introduction
4.2 What is collage?
4.3 Tools for collage
Preview
4.4 Papers
4.5 Scrunching papers
4.6 Ironing papers
4.7 Tissue paper and glue
4.8 Making holes by hand
4.9 Making holes using a sewing machine
4.10 Cutting out shapes
4.11 Folding
4.12 Repetition - Layering
4.13 Repetition - Cutting and folding

Interpreting Your Drawings With Collage Techniques

5.1 Introduction
5.2 Combining textures
5.3 Formulating ideas
5.4 Making a collage

Hand Stitching

6.1 Introduction
6.2 Running stitch and backstitch
6.3 French knots and bullion knots
6.4 Hand embroidery stitch instructions
6.5 Choosing threads
Preview
6.6 Hand stitching creatively
6.7 Formulating ideas

Machine Embroidery

7.1 Introduction
7.2 Introduction to the sewing machine
Preview
7.3 Overcoming problems
7.4 Playing about with machine stitching
7.5 Working without the darning foot - NOT ADVISED!
7.6 Using machine stitching in creative ways
7.7 Formulating ideas

Embellishing your collage

8.1 introduction
8.2 Adding hand stitching to collage
8.3 Adding machine stitching to collage
8.4 Recap of work so far
8.5 Stitching your finished collage sample

Colour - Using paint and other media

9.1 Introduction
9.2 Colour theory
9.3 Materials
9.4 Watercolours part 1
9.5 Watercolours part 2
9.6 Acrylics part 1
9.7 Acrylics part 2
9.8 Pens and pencils
9.9 Oil pastel and chalk pastel
9.10 Paint and collaged mixed media
9.11 Adding dry media to collaged papers
9.12 Adding dry media to collaged fabrics
9.13 Combining coloured paper and paint

Colour - Working with Stitch and Collage

10.1 Introduction
10.2 Texturising a coloured collage
10.3 Using a single colour on samples
10.4 Working with two or more colours on samples
10.5 Adding contrasting colours to a cutwork sample
10.6 Choosing threads for hand stitching
10.7 Hand stitching in colour part 1
10.8 Hand stitching in colour part 2
10.9 Machine stitching in colour part 1
10.10 Machine stitching in colour part 2

Completing a Project

11.1 Introduction
11.2 Starting a final piece
11.3 Planning
11.4 Choosing colours
11.5 Choosing materials and making a start
11.6 Development of ideas
11.7 Making the green tissue paper section
11.8 Painting the other sections
11.9 Completing the corrugated card section
11.10 Choosing threads and stitches
11.11 Making changes - Finalising the composition
11.12 The finished collage

Displaying your work

12.1 Introduction
12.2 Options for mounting and framing Part 1
12.3 Mounting and framing Part 2
12.4 Collating your work
12.5 What next?
Feedback Form

Course contents in more detail

I talk you through the modules, the course structure and the Podia platform in more depth so you can really see what you get when you enrol.

What's included in the course

Instant access

 
Instant access to the whole course from the moment you enrol. You get ongoing access so you can come back and watch videos again and again when you want. 

Self-paced lessons

 
Self-paced video content so you can learn at your own speed and in your own time. You can choose to binge watch the whole course in one go or just do little and often - it's up to you. 

PDF downloads

 
Stitch instructions and guides to materials and tools required. Downloadable PDF documents outlining the best materials for the course along with links to suppliers to help you easily track down those harder to find items. 

Tutor support

 
Tutor support and an online community. I'm here to help you all the way through the course. You can ask me questions through the course portal or join the Facebook group to meet with others on the course and share ideas. 

Overhead videos

 
Overhead and close up videos detailing every technique. Watch each stage of the process to make learning easier. 

Project and sample ideas

 
Create samples and projects throughout the course. Build up a catalogue of techniques and ideas before completing your final artwork. 

Who is it for?

This course is ideal if:

You are a beginner and looking to get started with stitching and painting

You love doing embroidery but have never tried working in mixed media or paper

You are used to drawing and painting but have never worked with textiles before

You have never had the confidence to really experiment and work outside your comfort zone

You are an art student or practising artist looking to explore a new technique

You want to find new ways of using your embroidery skills

You are a keen amateur artist looking for a creative challenge

Meet Rachel

After completing my degree in Embroidered and Woven Textiles at Glasgow School of Art I've been a professional artist for nearly 30 years working both as a fine artist and textile designer. I have taught both disciplines throughout my career at all levels from primary, secondary, degree level and adults. My aim is to get other people to be creative and push their boundaries a little bit.

I get a real buzz from constantly trying out new ideas and techniques as it keeps me fresh and more creative, and I'd love to pass this enthusiasm on to you. I'm looking forward to taking you on a journey, showing you how I work and giving you lots of ideas on how you can boost your creativity in the wonderful medium of collage and textiles.

Combining stitching and collage can be a process of trial and error - you don't always know how things will turn out.

That's what I love about it. I love that unpredictability and spontaneity of not knowing exactly what the outcome is going to be. I always tell students not to have a fixed idea in their mind, because it stifles a bit of that creativity.

You have to go through the process of doing - of looking at images, drawing, trying out techniques, experimenting with colours, textures and stitching to form ideas. You can't just dream them out of thin air. And by doing that, you will create something unexpected that works really successfully.

Experiment ~ Explore ~ Evolve

Frequently asked questions

What materials do I need for the course?

 
Materials needed for collage and embroidery are discussed in detail within the course. The materials list is available to preview and download in the contents section above and has links to suppliers. You can complete the course with some basic materials such as paper, paints and embroidery threads, however, investing in a wider range of materials will give you more scope. 

I'm a complete beginner - can I do this course?

 
Yes! The course will guide you through every step of the process from coming up with ideas and sketching, teaching you simple embroidery stitches and collage techniques. All the techniques are demonstrated in detail and are suitable even if you have done nothing like this before. This course is structured in such a way that each module builds on the one before so you will be guided through each section and gradually build up to completing a finished artwork. 

How long will it take to complete the course?

This is a self-paced course so you are free to work through it at your own speed and in your own way. Some people will prefer to watch all of the lessons and then make a start and others will want to work through the modules one at a time, completing the exercises and projects as they go along (this is recommended). Some of the sections will be quicker to complete than others and it does depend on how much time you have to devote to it. I would estimate you could work through the course in around 8-10 weeks. 

How long do I have access to the course content?

 
You get ‘lifetime’ access to the content so you are free to revisit lessons whenever you wish simply by logging into the course portal. 

I don't have a sewing machine, can I still do the course?

 
Yes you can. It's preferable to have a sewing machine to try out free machine embroidery, but if you can only do hand stitching then you can still complete this course successfully. All of the lessons and ideas using machine embroidery can be adapted to working with hand stitching instead. Hand stitching will give different results and is just a bit slower to do! 

What if I'm not happy with my purchase?

 
That would be a shame but if you're really unhappy just e-mail me within 10 days to get a full refund. 

What if I still have questions?

 
Please e-mail me at info@racheldrakeart.com and I'll be happy to help.