Embroidery and Shoemaking with Sabina de Oliveira Lima
In this Craft Journeys series, we spoke with QEST Scholar and Brazilian-British textile artist Sabina de Oliveira Lima. With a background in architecture and a PhD in urban planning, Sabina’s journey into craft has been anything but ordinary. She shares how childhood memories, formal training, and an unstoppable curiosity led her to build a creative practice full of colour, culture and detail — one stitch (and shoe) at a time.
Can you introduce yourself and your craft practice?
My name is Sabina de Oliveira Lima. I am a Brazilian-British textile artist based in London and I create bespoke hand embroidered works pieces. I graduated from the Royal School of Needlework and my original background is in Architecture where I hold a PhD degree.
In my work I always strive to create art that engages the observer. Exploring traditional skills and craftsmanship in the pursuit of exciting designs; the use of mixed media and paying great attention to detail at every step of the making process are all central to my practice.
I’m also a QEST alumni, pursuing excellence in the craft of shoemaking to create impressive couture hand embroidered shoes.
What was your first introduction to craft and making?
Ever since I was a young child, I have been fascinated by embroidery and shoemaking. An early memory that has stayed with me my whole life was when at the age of 8, I saw my mother and aunt embroidering a large mantle for my brother to be used in a festive celebration in Brazil. I remember the awe and excitement I got from helping them complete the mantle.
At the age of 12, I got to learn more about needlework in a special art programme at my primary school. At that time, craft was an integral part of the curriculum: students were able to learn once a week needlework, carpentry or cooking. Here, I got to produce small works of embroidery. I would spend hours practising the skills that I learned at school. Even during my summer breaks, in 38-degree warm weather, I would spend time happily embroidering and making tapestries.
What advice would you give someone considering a craft career?
Start learning a new craft now! Be open in trying different types of crafts if you can. Having a successful career in any craft you need a high level of discipline and dexterity. Craft also involves repetition, which means you are going to be training your patience and the desire to make something better and better.
And if you decide to take a step further in craft while learning a craft, in terms of not only being a maker, but also a designer, you will get a lot about creativity and solving problems. And that will help you when you decide to choose a career of an artist or an engineer.
Be patient, be disciplined. Make a register of your work, you will see a progress by practising every day. And that is truly rewarding.
Can you share your craft journey?
My passion for hand embroidery would not turn out to be a career option for me at the time when I had to choose my professional path. In the city where I grew up, there was not a lot of focus on the arts and crafts, and there was nowhere to pursue this kind of study at a higher level let alone any study aimed at the fashion industry.
As a consequence, I decided to study Architecture and Urbanism. Studying Architecture and working with prominent projects worldwide has given me a strong foundation in all aspects of design: composition, proportion, scale, balance and harmony.
For about 16 years, I built my career in this field, always pushing myself to gain new skills or acquire new knowledge. My journey in the field of architecture culminated when I finished my PhD in Urban Planning. My experience in Urban Planning expanded my perspective on design in general: a building cannot be considered in isolation; it must respect and be informed by its environment. That also applies to a design for embroidery or shoes. After completing my PhD, I took a short break to find out where I wanted to go from here. I felt like something was missing: I wanted to work with my hands.
That is when I decide to embark on the journey of shoemaking in 2017, and my first contact with the craft was when I did an intensive footwear summer course at the London College of Fashion. I think of this course as a trial, to test my commitment and desire to pursue this further. The course was great; however, the methods taught was for cemented construction. I felt I needed to learn in greater detail how to do hand welted shoes.
After that, I started attending an evening course, once a week, at the Carréducker Shoemaking School for about 5 ½ years. With a small group of students, I learned more than 200 steps involved in making handmade shoes. And, alongside shoemaking classes, I decided to learn hand embroidery in a professional level at the Royal School of Needlework.
Learning the technical aspects – such as selecting the right stitches, threads, needles, and fabrics for specific projects – was invaluable and gave my work a new level of precision and artistry that I had never achieved before. It also opened my eyes to the depth of tradition behind each technique and ignited a passion for exploring new innovative approaches to design and colour.
Over time, the combination of formal training and a lifelong love for needlework transformed embroidery from a pastime into a true calling – one that challenges and inspires me with every new piece I create.
My goal is to merge these two disciplines, creating show-stopping shoes that highlight both exceptional design and craftsmanship.
Were there any turning points or mentors that shaped your career?
Receiving the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust award was a turning point, allowing me to focus on refining my shoemaking technique —a craft I have practiced for about seven years. I see a clear gap in the market for bespoke, handmade designer shoes, particularly for women. While the quality of men’s shoemaking in the UK is exceptional, few artisans bring that same level of craftsmanship to women’s shoes.
Shoemaking is classified as an endangered craft by the Heritage Crafts Association in the UK. It’s a deeply traditional skill that hasn’t attracted many pioneers willing to push its boundaries, leaving a scarcity of new ideas at both the skills and design levels. Hand embroidery faces similar challenges, as it, too, is heavily rooted in traditional making rather than design, which often causes it to be overlooked as an art form.
I have been fortunate to develop my skills in both hand embroidery and shoemaking here in the UK, where these crafts are practiced at the highest level. My next goal is to fuse these disciplines, exploring materials like embroidered leather, silk, velvet, and cotton for the uppers of my shoes. The choice of embroidery technique will adapt to meet each client’s unique needs and expectations.
