I also came across Holly in the Regretsy forums new listing thread, and was blown away by this amazing embroidered hot air balloon necklace she'd stitched. The twenty-five year old, originally from Lancashire England and now living in Massachusetts, moved here to be with a guy (which worked out for her--they've been married five years, next month). Currently studying at university, she picked up the fiber art of embroidery to fill time between classes. I'd said it's worked out for her and her amazing work.
Tell us three other things about yourself.
-I’m a history major and an English minor
-I was eighteen when I moved to the US—and terrified of flying!
-I never thought I’d be any good with a needle—before February I’d barely even done any basic clothing repairs.
You embroider, which isn't exactly an common hobby for someone our age. How did you get into it? I wanted to get into some kind of fiber art, and I started out with knitting on the recommendation of a school counselor who said that it had helped other students with ADHD to concentrate in class. Knowing that keeping my hands busy helps, I picked up the supplies and had a go. I have a strange mental block when it comes to translating a printed pattern into a real-world object, though—I can’t read maps, and I can’t follow a knitting pattern. I also wanted the opportunity to be more spontaneous and complete projects in a short timeframe. Around February, someone suggested embroidery, and it turned out to be a really good match for me.
For something you've only done for six months, you have an obvious talent. What’s your favorite thing you’ve made?
So far, my favorite thing is a satin-stitched lovebird pendant. I would definitely make him chubbier if I was to do it again, but I like the stitching and the bright colors. It’s a step up in complexity from things I’ve made before, and on a cute tiny scale.
You seem to have a lot of aerial items, from lovebirds to balloons. From where do you take inspiration?
From everything I see! I’m still relatively new to embroidery and very excited by the possibilities, so my problem is keeping inspiration down to a level where I can actually make all of the ideas that I have. I tend to have them just as I’m drifting off to sleep, or I’ll be talking to someone and suddenly it sparks off a thought that I just HAVE to run and write down… and then I’m kicking myself for adding another thing to an already too-long list!
You've made everything from snowflakes to constellations to the hot air balloon. Name one piece of someone else's art you wish you'd been the creator of.
Kim Ulrick’s embroideries of children’s drawings. The idea itself is true genius—really one of those “I wish I’d thought of that” moments, and her interpretations of the artwork are beautiful and so much fun. (See one of Kim's embroideries here )
You've gotten a lot done for only doing this for six months. What are you doing when you’re not crafting? Sleeping, usually! I tend to take my embroidery with me wherever I go, because it’s good for me to have something to do. If I don’t have a needle in my hand and I’m awake, I’m probably playing with my dogs or walking in the forest with them and my husband.
If you had to give up your medium and pursue another, what would it be and why?
Probably baking. I love making beautiful cakes, especially cupcakes. It fulfills the same crafty drive AND it tastes good. I’d love to own a cupcake shop and sell the most gorgeous cakes around.
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| Ace of Hearts Embroidered Pendant |
Tell us about a time you were making something that came out better than expected and how it happened.
My hot air balloon pendant. My brother’s girlfriend gave me the idea when I asked her what she wanted me to make for her. I knew it was going to be interesting as soon as she said it, but when I actually made it I was so proud of myself. It looked fantastic, and it got a LOT of attention in the short time it was listed before someone bought it. I want to make more in different colors and on different fabrics, but I have so many other ideas to try out as well.
Who is one person living or dead, famous or not, who you wish owned one of your creations and why?
I’d love it if my Grandma could see the things I make—well, not the things with swearing in them. The nice things. She was very traditional and would have really appreciated me being into embroidery.
Embroidery is something that was often popular with an older generation. How would you explain how to do what you do to an eight year old so that it might interest them?
I take a piece of fabric and I draw pictures on it using a needle and thread instead of pens and pencils. I like to make them colorful!
Everyone has one part of the process the love, one moment or step that is better than the rest. What's yours? Those last few stitches. Unless it’s a repeat of something I’ve already done—which is rare for me—I always start a project not knowing whether or not it’s going to work out. I love that moment when I can see exactly how it’s going to look and can enjoy the last little pieces of floss falling into place before I have to go and take photographs and all the rest of the stuff that comes afterwards. I also take a real delight in packaging orders. I’m always trying to figure out new little ways to make it look pretty, from finding the perfect way to fold the tissue paper to making my own stickers to decorate bags and boxes. It’s a true pleasure to look at something you made nestled in decorative packaging and think of the person at the other end opening it up like a little gift. It’s still amazing and exciting to me that people want to wear things that I made, or decorate their homes with them.
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| Snowflake Embroidered Pendant |
One random thing you think people should know.
About anything? I think they should know the story of Alcibiades from ancient Greece. I could do a stand-up routine about that guy, I swear. His life was just one big “and THEN guess what happened” after another.
Your shop address/facebook/Twitter/blog/website. Etc.
Here's my shop address: www.eviltwinpixie.etsy.com
And I'm Eviltwinpixie on Twitter, too--though I haven't used it in a while.
And because I always have to ask one weird random questions. What did you want to be when you were ten?
An archaeologist. I went through many different “I’m going to be-s” since then, but I’ve come back around to wishing and dreaming about digging up ancient treasures and spending my days in old libraries reading crackling documents. Perhaps someday I’ll end up doing some kind of historical research, but right now I have no idea!
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