NOW Gallery x YSM8: Express Yourself

YSM8 curated a series of free wellbeing workshops in partnership with the NOW Gallery, to help you switch off from your digital devices, express yourself through creativity, and explore new ways of thinking and creating. Using the mind, body and energy to help you slow down, rest and create. These workshops aim to help build emotional resilience for the ups and downs 2022 brings us.

In our first workshop 'Don't Think, Just Stitch' began with a mindfulness exercise, helping us recenter and tune into the present, then embroidery artist Nicole Chui led us through her disruptive process of embroidery and lead the group into exploring their own creative style. After the collective stitching, we closed with a lovingkindness meditation helping us to cultivate kindness towards ourselves💖

What did we learn?

✨Creating with our hands helps us get out of our heads.

✨There is no right or wrong way to ‘be creative’. Everyone has their unique creative language to express themselves. We should embrace our styles instead of critiquing ourselves and try to be like others.

✨Embroidery helps us feel relaxed and calm - it’s a meditative process that we can all get ourselves into. You don’t need to have any experience, in the words of Nicole ‘ Don’t Think, Just Stitch.’

✨It’s okay just to “be” and not always do.

✨Our minds, body and energy are always soaking up vibrations. When we are surrounded by positivity it effects our whole system. We start feeling more calmer in our minds and bodies, warmth and generosity make us feel less isolated when we are held in a group.

Questions our group asked?
✨Am I actually making enough time to slow down my brain?
✨How would I feel if I started giving myself 30 mins to stitch everyday?
✨What does my creative language look like through embroidery?
✨If I created from a place of joy instead of fear, what would I create?

Thank you to the NOW Gallery for trusting our vision and giving us space to curate and create.

Photography by the talented Josh Croll

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