Teacher cum Laude graduate, 2024

In 2020 when the pandemic hit, I offered to teach a class to my book arts guild, North Redwoods Book Arts Guild, to show them how we could continue to hold monthly workshops over Zoom.  I went back to what I knew best and taught basic embroidery stitches on paper.  My Little Book of Embroidery Stitches was born and began my journey into the world of combining embroidery and book arts.

I’ve always been drawn to puzzles and the idea of how to make something work.  My goal for the Teacher Cum Laude program was to experiment and play, to stretch the limits of Stumpwork and see what was possible.  I wanted to test out mediums that aren’t traditionally used in the embroidery world, which led me to work with various weights of papers, book cloth and leather.  Along the way, I’ve taken classes with Karen Hanmer, Erin Fletcher, Nancy Akerly and Kit Davey, always with the question in the back of my mind:  Can I combine the book arts technique I was learning with my embroidery?” 

The Teacher cum Laude program pushed me artistically and gave me permission to color outside the lines.  I gained a different perspective and see possibilities that I never saw before.  My three-year program may be over but I’m not done yet – there is still so much more that I want to explore.

Click on the images below to see enlarged views of Celeste’s Teacher cum Laude expertise piece, Get A Mammogram, and to read her artist statement. To view more examples of Celeste’s book art, click here.