My 2010 resolutions are an annual mix of “hmm–let’s try that goal again” (which may or may not include attaining Gerard Butler biceps), as well as those aimed at keeping my artistic skills in shape. Among those in this latter category is taking a sewing class.

While I was researching projects a little more advanced than the pillow I made in the eighth grade, I came across a world I didn’t even know existed—stitchery art.

Julie Crabtree-Pfannes actually holds a four-year degree in embroidery from Mansfield College of Arts in Nottinghamshire, England. She now lives in western Wisconsin and uses primarily Midwestern landscapes to inspire her art.

Using a needle as her paintbrush, thread as her paint, her stitches are layered and sculpted to capture Sylvan Lake in the Black hills, a lighthouse situated on a Minnesota shore, or the Badlands in South Dakota. She even spins, weaves, and dyes most of her fabrics and threads.

Though I doubt I’ll become the next Julie Crabtree-Pfannes (or Gerard Butler), I’m happy to include her art as inspiration for my personal pursuits of growth in 2010.

To read the article, check out http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/style/79238932.html?elr=KArksUUUoDEy3LGDiO7aiU.

Happy 2010!