Artist portrait - Laura Martin

    My sister Laura Martin is one of the first person I turn too for counsel and advice in regard to Roland-designs, through the years she has also contributed some original patterns, and graphic work.

    Here is an artist portrait where she explains a little about herself.:

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Laura and her dogs

My name is Laura Martin. I’m a self taught artist, specializing in portraiture and illustrations. Right now I’m living in La Reunion, which is a French department in the Indian Ocean. Travel is an important part of my life, and I’ve lived in a few different countries including Brazil, Madagascar, and Ireland. 

    My hobbies include needlework, crafting, dog training, and coffee. 

    Growing up I was very interested in needlework as my older sisters were often embroidering, knitting, crocheting, and sewing. I remember when I was five years old, one of my sisters stitched a tapestry and I wished with all of my heart that I could grow up quickly and learn how to do it as well. Of course, by the time I could handle a needle my sisters were eager to teach me and I spent many happy hours sewing clothes for Barbie and little embroidered cards for friends.

Ornament in hardanger and cross stitch designed by Laura

    - My favorite methods of stitching are cross stitch and Norwegian Hardangar. I love how cross stitching is so simple, yet versatile. You can use it for a variety of styles and effects. 

     There are many different materials and threads available, though I usually stitch with DMC threads on linen. The reason for this is that DMC threads are available in almost any country and linen is often a bit stiff, which makes the stitches lie flat.

     As an artist, I always want to personalize whatever I do, whether it’s cooking, drawing, or stitching. Because of this, I’ve started designing and stitching my own charts. It usually takes a lot of work, and often the end result isn’t what I had originally planned, but it is always a very rewarding process.

     When I design a pattern, it often starts off as a simple idea and I sketch it out a few times till I have a more concrete idea of what it should look like. Then I design a basic pattern with a digital pattern creator, which I then ‘iron out’, align the stitches, add details, etc. Once the pattern is complete, I stitch it on some old linen. This step shows up any flaws in the design which I fix, and then re-stitch. When I’m happy with it, I tidy up the pattern (even though it’s digital it’s sometimes messy) and send it to get published.

   - I hope that in the future I can expand my hobbies to include crocheting and knitting, which I’ve learnt to do, but am terrible at. One of my dreams is to improve my art and be able to support myself full time through it, and to use it on an international level. I also dream of one day adopting and training a dog of my own to be at a service level.

    -At the moment I’m working through a digital drawing course, as well as studying Betty Edwards’ Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. I’ve also started trying out painting portraits with acrylics.

Portrait of Princess cat painted by Laura