We chat to needlepoint designer and master of many artistic endeavours, Miesje Chafer, about her passions and her company, Threadbear Kits
Interview byJulian Odessa
Textile designer, screen printer, beading enthusiast, passionate teacher – is there anything Miesje Chafer can’t do? We chatted with Miesje to find out more about her colourful artwork…
You design bold, bright needlepoint patterns, but you’re also a textile designer and creator! What’s your history with design and creating?
Although I did an Art Foundation course, I didn’t enjoy it and ended up training as a nurse. Whilst working in nursing, I did a short screen-printing course in London and completely fell in love with it. I started experimenting with printing on fabric, made a few products, then, 12 years ago, took part in my first craft fair. Things snowballed after that when I was asked to do some wholesale, so I reduced my nursing hours to two days a week to focus on my creative business. Eight years ago, I decided to take the plunge and left nursing entirely – I haven’t regretted it once!
Your style is very uplifting and fun – do you have a name for it? How did you develop this style?
It hasn’t ever been something I’ve consciously developed – not having any sort of formal design training means I work very instinctively, choosing colours and shapes that I love and playing around until they ‘fit’. I love mid-century, Scandinavian, and folk design and am sure these have played a part in influencing my work.
I don’t know what I would call my style, I think it’s too eclectic to sum it up easily!
In addition to working with textiles, you also create stunning origami flower crowns, hairbands and garlands. Was paper a natural progression from textiles?
Fabric will always be my first love as I adore the versatility of textiles, but paper is a close second. Once I had a range of surface pattern designs it seemed natural to have them printed onto paper, opening a whole new world of creative possibilities.
What do you do when you need some inspiration?
I find this tricky to put into words! It usually starts with the spark of an idea, often a pattern or shape or maybe a combination of colours. I’ll then screen print or cut shapes from paper and play with these until something forms. I rarely have creative block as I have a backlog of half-formed ideas waiting to be plundered, but if everything seems to dry up, I do something completely unrelated – cleaning usually helps, or a good walk. It gi
