Already as a child I had a deep love for colors and textures, and textile arts as well as painting were an important part of my life since then. Educated in crafts and needlework in school as well as at home, it was very natural to me that I took up embroidery and stitching during schooltime, university, and later after being at home with my (then) little baby in 1989.

I took up stitching again then, but I changed ready bought patterns so they accomodated my own taste of color and shape and soon friends and family proposed that I make my own :)) The first designs were made with crayons on math graph paper and from there I went on. From these first designs, I self-published and worked additionally freelance for some German craft magazines and stitching companies for a few years.

After finding what was available in USA in materials compared to Germany – I thought I was in “designer’s heaven” and my imagination ran wild with variegated threads, silks, metallics, beads and all the pretty Stash Stuff available for embroidery! I tried my fingers and needles at many different techniques – one particular love of mine is Silk Ribbon Embroidery.

My goal as a designer is to incorporate many interesting and challenging materials as well as stitches “beyond” cross stitch to make the finished embroidery worth the time and money which is involved with them.
Over the years I invented the “Mandala Gardens” which are my “trademark” and began to publish designs and projects online in classes and “Mysteries”.

Chatelaine Designs has become not only a very important part of my life and dreams but as well popular among stitchers and embroiderers – and each year I try to invent new, challenging and entertaining designs for your stitching pleasure! My designs are inspired and influenced by gardens of the world (and my own little one, which lives in a certain chaos) as well as art and architecture of all kinds of places and times. You could as well say: All things around me influence my ideas and designs.

Yours,

Martina Rosenberg
Châtelaine

 

Martina died suddenly and unexpectedly in 2017. We mourn for her.

 

My mother was an artist through and through. One of my earliest memories is how she builds the most wonderful dollhouse from an old cardboard box and some wallpaper leftovers. How she paints beautiful porcelain, makes a commemorative embroidery picture for my first hamster and sews blankets for the whole family. And in 1997 she finally officially became “Châtelaine”. She took me with her to textile dealers and weaving mills to pick the material for her first designs and introduced me into the world of these materials. I remember folding the first print charts in our living room. I remember my mother, concentrated and surrounded by yarn, pearls, and patterns at her desk, sometimes before breakfast, driven by a new idea.
When my mother passed away in December 2017 I got to know her wonderful community and got a much more intense impression of the art she had created. I decided to step in and to carry on her legacy. From January 2018 on I started managing the things here – always supported by her wonderful community and long-time friends.
Even though growing up in such a creative environment, I did not find my way into textile arts. I rather come after the also maternal line of booksellers and book enthusiasts. I decided to study German Literature, Philosophy, Biology and Educational Science. I love photography, reading, cats, hiking, vegetarian/vegan cooking (and eating!), animal welfare, yoga, interior design, and watercolor painting. But stitching? Well. I did not know much about stitching or cross stitch designs when I started providing the Châtelaine Designs – and still, sometimes it’s a big Mystery (pun intended) to me. But I am very happy to learn and to carry on with Châtelaine Design.
Even though we did not work on this at the same time, I now regard Châtelaine as a time-shifted and intergenerational family business. And I love that.

Yours,

Ela