Niamh Wimperis is one of the most colourful and dynamic embroidery artists currently practicing. According to Niamh, she’s “all about feminism and plants”, and finds a lot of her inspiration from her vast collection of house plants, and childhood memories of her grandparents house, Selsley Herb and Goat Farm. Her work has evolved from ultra political – – with her feminist pieces featured in Ms Magazine, Buzzfeed and The Huff Post – – to this more calming botanical style. In 2018 Niamh was chosen to be on the BBC2 programme, The Victorian House of Arts and Crafts.  This was a “living history” reality show in which Niamh and 5 other talented crafts people lived in a William Morris-esque arts and crafts commune for a month, complete with wearing Victorian clothes, eating Victorian food and using Victorian tools. The 4 part BBC2 show aired in January 2019. You can read more about her experience here, and watch the series here.

Click here to see Niamh talk about the inspiration behind her sampler, which is based on the bed spread that she made on the BBC2 programme, The Victorian House of Arts and Crafts.

Signature Technique:

Botanical Embroidery

Top Tips:

– Use the Satin Stitch for a shimmer and shine effect.
– Stitch on two layers to avoid warp and seeing stitches on the back.
– Keep your fabric tight as a drum in your hoop or your piece will pucker.
– Nothing in nature is perfect, so don’t be afraid if a stitch appears strange or off the centre line. That’s how it appears in real life.
– The Fly Stitch is wonderfully versatile; use it for pine branches, flowers and leaves.
– If you find your thread is suddenly shorter, you probably have a knot. Use your needle to pull the knot apart.