Kate Ceberano swaps singing for embroidery

Kate Ceberano loves embroidering clothing and quilts, which she believes stems from her Hawaiian and Filipino heritage. (ABC Far North: Amanda Cranston)

Once considered a traditional handcraft generally passed down from one generation to the next, the art of quilting and embroidery is today attracting a younger, broader audience.

More artists are taking up the craft to create one-off pieces of art, using fabric, paint and a range of embellishments as a form of storytelling, self-expression and mindfulness.

Ceberano finds the art of embroidery meditative. (ABC Far North: Amanda Cranston)

Guiding her needle through thick linen fabric, celebrated singer/songwriter Kate Ceberano adds sequin after sequin to her embellished artwork.

This latest piece, named Gaudi, is one of her own paintings printed onto fabric, and the embroidery has taken almost a year to complete.

Colourful spools of Egyptian cotton and a bowl of sequins sit on top of the current quilt Ceberano is working on. (ABC Far North: Amanda Cranston)

In between music gigs and work commitments, Ceberano tries to spend time each day in her home dressing room adding extra stitches and beading to her masterpiece.

It is a labour of love and a chance to create something beautiful and long-lasting, like the textile artisans of her ancestors.

Ceberano wearing a jacket featuring a guitar she hand painted and embroidered. (ABC Far North: Amanda Cranston)

The Aussie rock icon has been a staple on the Australian music scene since the 1980s and is about to be inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame, but she is also a passionate visual and textile artist.

"My favourite medium will always be music. Music is like breathing to me," she said.

"But I ache to come home to get my fingers to cloth and needle to thread.

"When I'm sewing, there is no noise, it's just the simple act of doing something in present time with each thread and every stitch."

Ceberano in front of her "creation" artwork. (ABC Far North: Amanda Cranston)

Ceberano said the birth of her daughter 22 years ago inspired her "creation series", which she had printed onto fabric to make embroidered wall art.

"When Gypsy was in my belly, suddenly there was a tsunami of creativity, and this particular design represents life within me," she said.

Ceberano believes her love of quilts stems from her Hawaiian and Filipino heritage, where documenting stories on fabric has cultural importance.

Ceberano embroiders and embellishes over the top of her painting, which has been printed onto thick linen. (ABC Far North: Amanda Cranston)

She even had a larg