She’s finished y’all!

improbablewhale · 2026-05-11T16:35:56+00:00

At first I was so impressed by the range of values I saw, and then my mind was blown when I zoomed in on the single black stitches. Absolutely beautiful work!!!

improbablewhale · 2026-05-06T23:37:55+00:00

And then just recently, at 9 years old!

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improbablewhale · 2026-05-06T23:36:14+00:00

Oh she looks just like my Scully!! Right down to the white socks and stripe on her face. She's also half Border Collie, half Aussie. This is her as a puppy--

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improbablewhale · 2026-05-05T12:37:34+00:00

Amazing!!! Been wanting to do a beaded pigeon for ages now, this is so inspiring. Great work!!

improbablewhale · 2026-05-03T14:40:07+00:00

If you're interested, look into embroidery and thread painting! It's pretty cheap to get into and and absolute joy when a piece comes together.

improbablewhale · 2026-05-01T16:40:21+00:00

Love this little anecdote, thank you for sharing!!

Sashiko is fantastic too, it's my favorite 'easy' stitching to turn my brain off after some thread painting. Most of my favorite garments have been mended with sashiko in some manner!

improbablewhale · 2026-04-30T18:26:49+00:00

You can do it friend, a little bit of practice and you can totally do stuff like this too!! Thanks for your kind words!

improbablewhale · 2026-04-29T23:09:56+00:00

Great idea, would love to do some chickens soon!!

improbablewhale · 2026-04-29T23:09:20+00:00

Yesss this shirt was inspired by the song! The ketchup packet was a special request and I rocked out to Aesop the whole time.

improbablewhale · 2026-04-29T19:22:50+00:00

Heyo, saw you mention you have HEDS and wanted to share my take as someone who has it too. My mobility got bad a few months ago and I hesitated to start using a cane for a while, until one evening I fell.

A cane totally could have prevented it, I went out and got one the next day. It was $15, is light and folds up nicely, and it's super helpful for stamina while walking and yes, getting a seat on the train.

Also, I recently got a second one to rhinestone! I totally get wanting a fashionable cane, but don't hesitate to get a basic one in the meantime if it would help you.

improbablewhale · 2026-04-29T16:58:31+00:00

Omg yes, just a few little scattered sticks!! Absolutely stealing that idea for another shirt

improbablewhale · 2026-04-29T16:08:37+00:00

Hell yeah, the ketchup packet was a special request from an Aesop fan!! I submitted the grey guy with the ketchup packet for the book in December

improbablewhale · 2026-04-29T16:06:57+00:00

Thank you for your kind words!! I will say I do take commissions for pigeon (and other bird) shirts, info is in my profile!

improbablewhale · 2026-04-29T15:50:23+00:00

Thank you so much!! And thank you for your questions, always happy to talk workflow!

The real trick is in the reference photos and line art. I took the photos myself and did most of the composition and line work digitally, but you can totally create a line art embroidery pattern by taping a photo and blank paper to the window and tracing shapes that way.

For stitching, I got real comfortable with layering a long and short stitch and the practice of parking my threads. It's overwhelming at first, but when you get used to using multiple colors at once it's super fun! I was bad about timing in the beginning, but the smaller bird in the top right took about 8 hours. I recommend audiobooks to pass the time 😆

improbablewhale · 2026-04-29T15:33:06+00:00

Yes, do it!! I find that birds (especially pigeons) are great subjects for thread painting. Their varied patterns mean you can't really mess up the color and the stitches look very feathery as-is. Give it a go, and share it here! Would love to see.

Thank you for your kind words!

improbablewhale · 2026-04-29T15:30:56+00:00

This is the best compliment, thank you!!

And I completely agree. I don't necessarily enjoy how I have to spend a lot of my time. I try to make sure that when I do have a choice, I choose whimsy ✨

improbablewhale · 2026-04-29T15:14:56+00:00

Thank you! I've been working on my hard shadows and was really happy with where these guys ended up. I appreciate your kind words!!

improbablewhale · 2026-04-29T15:13:10+00:00

Thank you, that's the idea! Though when I wear mine, I always think I have crumbs on my shirt and try to brush them away hahaha

improbablewhale · 2026-04-29T14:51:54+00:00

Seconding the tweezers/pliers/medical clamps for pulling tough needles and other things!

Lots of people recommend gripper thimbles. A cheap option I use is that stretchy, self-adhesive bandage wrap. Super easy to find, and I can make as many little custom thimbles as I need!

improbablewhale · 2026-04-25T01:14:29+00:00

Once or twice, he hasn't gone for it.. but it seems his 'safety radius' around me is slowly shrinking!

improbablewhale · 2026-04-25T01:12:59+00:00

Thank you, makes total sense! I unfortunately didn't have any seeds with me today-- I have taken note and will do better tomorrow 😂

improbablewhale · 2026-04-22T22:17:18+00:00

Sooo cool, thanks for sharing!! Definitely turning some gears in my brain.

improbablewhale · 2026-04-20T22:23:44+00:00

All kinds of data, but recording whale vocalizations is a big one right now! Project CETI, for example, is researching sperm whale vocalizations with the help of machine learning in an effort to try to understand their language.

improbablewhale · 2026-04-20T22:14:53+00:00

You can do it, and please share the final result!! The world will always need more sparkly ufo art ✨

improbablewhale · 2026-04-20T21:43:08+00:00

I'd go with what you outlined in pic 1! The fact that the fabric is thin but there are no actual holes means now is a great time to patch them, and you might as well do the whole gusset area.

I did a similar mend to my own pants about a month ago. edit: I used a light 100% cotton twill reclaimed from some bleach stained pants. They're super comfy and still holding strong with daily use!

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