Tierra Patch/ Dirty Needle jacket last chance

Last chance to win this Brixton jacket (size M) customised by Dirty Needle Embroidery. You have until 8am tomorrow, May 1.
Just buy the Tierra patch, for £7.50 plus post, to be entered in the draw.

We will make and announce the draw tomorrow.

The prize will be sent anywhere in the world. There is no alternative prize or size.

To read more about the good cause this patch was made for, click Tierra. G

Sideburn x Dirty Needle Embroidery Tierra Patch

I met Tierra McElroy and her husband Cody when I went to Portland for the One Motorcycle Show in January 2013. Not long after that Tierra, only 25 years old, contracted a rare and almost unknown auto immune disease that took out her kidneys, meaning she has a life of dialysis ahead of her and, living in America, some serious medical bills. Cody takes up the story...

'I decided that since I'll be at home taking care of her for an unforeseeable amount of time I may as well make money off my art, so I can take close care of her... I took up making patches (being an avid patch collector).'

Wanting to help Tierra and Cody I commissioned a one-off patch that would then be made into a machine-made short production run.

All the profits from these beautifully-made patches will go directly to Tierra McElroy's medical fund.

Get your Sideburn Tierra patch. £7.50 (plus post)

Plus, anyone buying one of these patches will be put into a prize draw to win a Brixton Gallow cotton and leatherette jacket (with zip-off sleeves). that has been customised by Dirty Needle Embroidery with a Cafe Creep handmade one-off patch. It is MEDIUM. No other prizes. Prize drawn 1 May, 2015.

Anyone can order a one-off patch from Dirty Needle Embroidery. Find him on instagram @dirtyneedleembroidery

If you would like to send any money directly to Tierra's fund, and I know some people do things like that, use Pay Pal: Tea.Air.Ah@gmail.com

Sewn to the Bone

We've mentioned Cody McElroy before. He started hand sewing patches when his wife contracted a disease that made her kidneys stop working. With no National Health Service, Cody (pictured below) had to do something fast to start paying the medical bills. Handmaking patches, one at a time of course, hardly seems the obvious choice, but it's work and he does some sensational work.
If you're on instagram, go to @dirtyneedleembroidery to see short videos of how he does it. And now he has a showcase along with some of our other friends (including the Busch Brothers from SB16 and Tuesday Weathervane (the alter ego one of the Salem riders in the current issue).

SCION AUDIO VISUAL PRESENTS “SEWN TO THE BONE”
Gallery Showcases The Intricate Embroidery Needlework of Cody McElroy plus Guest Jewelry Makers &Artists with Opening Reception June 21

Who: Embroidery artist Cody McElroy headlines group show featuring artisans Busch and Busch(leather, metal and motorcycle), Cobra Cult (jewelry), Tuesday Weathervane (embroidery), Honey Fox (jewelry) and Red Clouds Collective (leather bags, notebooks and other leather goods).

What: Gallery showing of McElroy’s revival of single-needle, free-motion machine embroidery including patches, leather jackets and other intricate, one-of-a-kind pieces reminiscent of 60s patchwork and tattoo art. Busch and Busch, Cobra Cult, Tuesday Weathervane, Honey Fox and Red Clouds Collective will join McElroy in showcasing and offering handmade jewelry, leather goods and other artwork.

Where: Scion AV Installation 7667 Melrose Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90046 (323) 272-4266

When: Opening Reception June 21, 2014, 7:00 - 10:00 p.m. Show runs June 21 - July 13 Scion AV Installation hours Tuesday-Sunday, 12:00 - 7:00 p.m.

How: Attendance is free Opening reception RSVP is mandatory – sign up now: scionav.com/installationevent 

For more information, please visit www.scionav.com. 

Additional Info: Originally from rural Nevada, the Reno-based McElroy aims to inspire creativity, push the artist within to stay challenged and pay homage to the lost craft. McElroy started playing with thread as a medium to challenge the norm of mass-produced embroidery, as well as to raise money for his wife Tierra’s kidney transplant. The 29-year-old stays connected to anything that keeps him learning including the worlds of skateboarding, music, art and custom motorcycles.

Dirty Needle Embroidery

So this there's this guy, who looks like the ghost of Bobby Gillespie, in jeans so tight they appear to have to have been painted on. His hair makes him look like he narrowly escaped being tarred and feathered. They only got the first bit done. He's wearing Chelsea boots too.
His name is Cody.
His other-half appears to be the polar opposite. Tierra looks as healthy as muesli (but tastier). They're an odd couple, for sure, but are obviously madly in love. It's Portland in February. They are both used to the desert squelch of Reno, Nevada, so they buy a couple of Sideburn scarves to keep warm and wear them for the rest of the One Motorcycle Show weekend.
We keep in touch via instagram. Then something weird and unsettling keeps popping up on their feeds. It's sudden and matter-of-fact. Tierra's in hospital. A freak auto-immune disease has attacked her and both (BOTH!) her kidneys failed. They organs have had it. Never working again.
Now Cody is doing anything he can to make money to help pay the bills. One of his ideas is to make custom patches to sell. They're the best patches I've ever seen. He makes them with a single needle sewing machine, like he's tattooing the fabric. It's a crazy process. I'm commissioning one.
He'll make you one.
Go to http://dirtyneedleembroidery.bigcartel.com
Follow his progress through instgram using @dirtyneedleembroidery