With nearly every wall decorated with a work of art, Prabha Nakarmi’s home has the air of an informal gallery. Floral wreaths, couples, landscapes, each of these draw the eye to the cool interiors of the house, banishing all thoughts of the summer heat. Looking closer, you’d see that it is not paint but thread that is the artist’s medium. The wall-hangings are cross-stitch tapestries, each one painstakingly created by Prabha. “I started hoop art to beat boredom during pandemic and I was amazed at the response,” she recalls.
Prabha runs an Instagram page called Suuka Embriodery which offers glimpses of her work. “I chose the name Suuka as it means thread in Newari,” she shares. Today she spends close to eight hours a day working on orders. The love for sewing and embroidery that she picked up while graduating from ICE College of Arts and Fashion has stayed with her. “I learnt hoop art during my graduation as part of assignments. I was least interested then but Covid 19 gave me the time to learn and experiment with the various styles of hoop art through YouTube,” she shares. Prabha then used to practice the designs and upload her work on Instagram.
She says that the most challenging part of hoop art is getting the facial features right. “When the design is there, it is quite easy to start. But you have to count and stitch correctly. If even one stitch goes wrong, you have to correct it immediately, especially when you are doing the hands and facial features,” she says. The most elaborate counted threadwork embroidery she has done is that of a lady with her pets. The fur of the two pets, the play of light and shadow on each fold of her dress, besides the tonal variations of her complexion have all been ‘painted’ with a needle.
Her favourite piece is of Miss Nepal 2020 Namrata Shrestha. “I started getting several inquiries after Namrata shared a picture of my work on social media,” she smiles. It usually takes a week for Prabha to complete an order and her hoop art is available in three sizes, 14 inches being the largest. “I even complete an order overnight if the customer wants it urgently,” she states, her passion for her art clearly evident on her face. She charges between Rs 1500 to 2000 for an order.
While she dabbled with floral designs and recreated photographs, she now wants to further experiment. “I have decided to focus on single-strand thread portraits, something I haven’t done before. I have also switched from cotton to linen and casement fabrics as they last longer and the embroidery looks better when framed,” says the designer.
She has lost count of the time and money she has spent on her hobby but the results are definitely eye-catching. She says, “Embroidery is like meditation, done in small sittings of 10 minutes or even as a break in between household chores. It’s a great way to switch off from the world and relax your mind, even if you do it only for half an hour in a day.”
