Skinny Malinky Quilts

Today may look like any other Tuesday but, as with most things, looks can be deceiving. It is in fact International Women's Day, "..a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women.." and what better way to celebrate than to champion the achievements of women in a special bumper edition of 'Exploring Etsy'. So sit back everyone and bask in the talent of two new fabulous Etsy needlecrafters. First up is the stunning and powerful work of Maria Arseniuk whose shop 'Femmebroidery' is full of beautiful pieces with important things to say. A huge enthusiast, Maria first discovered embroidery after receiving a book of stitches as a gift. She has now been embroidering, in some capacity on and off, for about 15 years. Now stitching full time she finds craftivism - activism by art - really rewarding. A passionate women's and gay rights advocate these are often central themes in her embroideries. As she's grown as an artist though, she's moved towards incorporating all kinds of aspects into her work - everything from pet portraits (the stencils by the way are designed by her super supportive soon-to-be-husband) to pop culture. The only thing she loves more than embroidery and social justice, is travel, she's looking forward to scratching her 50th country off her bucket list this summer and having a weekend adventure in Portland. What is your earliest stitching memory? My earliest stitching memory is actually my introduction to embroidery. When I was just a kid, in 1999, a friend of my mom's gifted me a book of embroidery stitches - and I got hooked! I was so enthralled by all the colours and textures and the limitless possibilities, my imagination ran wild. This book is actually very special. Two or three years later I moved overseas to live with my dad in Ukraine, and I passed the book along to my best friend, Anna, in 2000. When she was done with it she in turn donated it to the school library. Flash forward 15 years - and she stumbles upon the book in circulation, in Ukraine. She knew it was the same book because of the inscription on the first page. She mailed it back to me to surprise me, and now almost 20 years later this little book that first got me into stitching has inadvertently been around the world. What fires your imagination? Colours, shapes and textures! I really love embroidering on designer fabrics because the various patterns allow for some really creative embroideries. I'm mostly a colour queen, but every once in a while I find it really rewarding to stitch up something minimalist and monochromatic. More than anything I'm really inspired by feminist and social justice related themes, which you'll find ever present in my work. Maria's vibrant and colourful hoop art is both beautiful and life affirming. With women all over the world never afforded the opportunity to make their voice heard, it's important that those of us who can, shout that little bit louder, be it through our craft or by the simple act of putting our mark in a box come election day. To check out more exquisite pieces by Maria please do visit her shop. Right, without further ado let us continue this crafty party, up next we have a brilliant maker who works in an area of needlecraft that will be making it's 'Exploring Etsy' debut today. It's the wonderful world of quilting, the fresh, crisp designs created by Lucy Engels for her shop 'Skinny Malinky Quilts' are a joy to behold. Lucy studied printmaking at art school and began making quilts just a couple of years ago. So what prompted this foray in to quilting I hear you ask? With the arrival of her first nephew she wanted to make him a very special gift. Deciding on a quilt, she tracked down her old sewing machine and got to work. Falling in love with the process Lucy soon unexpectedly discovered the similarities between printmaking and quilting. It has to be exact, using layers to create the final piece and adding textures to create dimension. After moving a short time ago Lucy now lives in Edinburgh, has recently secured workshop space and is looking forward to printing her own fabric to use in her quilts. Fabric panels are also going to become available in her Etsy shop this month. What is your earliest stitching memory? My earliest stitch memory is in primary school during home economics. I would finish my sewing really quickly and when the teacher wasn't looking would finish off my friends' work for them. What fires your imagination? My imagination is fired up by music. Hence the reason my quilts are all named after songs. When listening to music quite often an idea for a quilt design/ colour palette comes into my head. My commissioned quilts have all begun from a song that means something to the person and been designed to reflect the music in the quilt. Lucy's background in printmaking really shines through in her work and makes for some really exciting and unique pieces. You all know what I'm going to say now don't you, that's right pop along to her shop to see more loveliness! ----- Jessica Taylor aka Loadofolbobbins is a Textile Artist and Illustrator based by the sea in Portsmouth. At her happiest with a needle and thread, with a passion for genealogy she often explores old photographs in her Textile art. With her fingers in many creative pies she loves to experiment with new techniques, creating illustrated and stitched goodies for her new Etsy shop.