About Niamh
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.
Niamh achieved a Masters Degree in Contemporary Craft in 2017 from Plymouth College of Art. Her final piece, an interactive installation titled ‘A Feeling Of Safety, Perhaps’ was exhibited in the MA show and as part of Dwell, a two woman collaboration for Plymouth Art Weekend at Plymouth Art Centre.
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.
Niamh now lives in Camden Town with her partner Alex, a watch maker. She is currently writing her first book, continues to make work (including commissions), and has launched her #WEStitchKit – a monthly embroidery kit subscription box. You can find about more about her kit subscription here.
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.
Videos
Books and Patterns
Posts
New Block of the Month coming soon
Val: Jennie and I are busy working on a new medallion style block of the month with georgeous fabrics selected from the Rosebud Fayre designed by Andover Fabrics and distributed in the UK by Makower (the Henley Studio) and kindly donated by them.
We will be filming the various stages at the end of August so that you will be able to see step-by-step how the quilt is made.
Pauline’s Patchwork’s New Shop
Val: My friend Valerie and I decided that we neededa day out and what better excuse that to visit a quilt shop. Pauline and Sarah (Pauline's Patchwork) moved from Brewers Quay in Weymouth into their new shop in Poundbury back in January. I managed to find directions from GOoglemaps but interestingly enough Poundbury is not marked on the recent traditional maps - it can be found on the western edge of Dorchester (Dorset) and is actually more of a development (and work in progress judging by all the diggers still there) than a village. A number of small artisan shops surround Pauline's and there are several really lovely places to eat.