Olga Prinku creates delicate floral ‘embroidery’ on tulle fabric – applying dried flowers instead of thread to the tulle fabric. “The idea to create floral hoops first popped into my head in a dream, but that’s not as random as it might sound,” Olga explains. “I’d been making wreaths using a garden sieve as a frame, so flowers and meshes must have been in my mind, and the idea of flowers on tulle embroidery style was just a way of combining them in a new way.”
Before developing her floral hoops, Olga says she dappled in many crafts. “I’ve always been interested in making and crafting,” Olga reminisces. “During my university years I used to take evening classes and workshops in things like upholstery, silver clay jewellery and book binding, to name a few. Then I learned how to knit and crochet when I was pregnant with my son. Primarily I wanted to be able to knit him heirloom clothing and accessories, but I also enjoyed making him soft toys and a quilt. Friends started asking me to knit things for them, and I ended up knitting more and more to sell online.”
In order to promote her knitted winter good, Olga established an Instagram account. “At that time I was making more traditional winter-style wreaths (to style with woollen Christmas stockings) and gradually I became more experimental with how I made them. The idea of making floral hoops emerged from there in 2016,” Olga details.
If you take a close look at Olga’s floral hoops, the delicate arrangement of dried flowers looks challenging to achieve. When developing the technique, Olga admits there was quite a lot of trial and error. “Initially I started embroidering using fresh flowers, but I soon learned that it’s hard to predict how they will change shape as they shrink when they dry, so I’d end up with unsightly gaps. It was then a matter of adding more and more flowers in stages to try to develop the design into something that I liked. But I found it was easier if I started the design process with dry flowers instead.” That all being said Olga insists that making floral hoops is not a difficult skill to learn if you have the time and patience! “It is intricate and a bit fiddly, which can be frustrating at times if it’s not going well,” Olga says honestly, “but it’s also immensely satisfying and I can enter a state of flow for hours. It’s a bit like a form of meditation, where instead of focusing on the breath you focus your attention on the tiny flower stalks.”
Over time, Olga has investigated and experimented to determine the flower species that dry most effectively for use in her floral hoops. From her village home in North Yorkshire, in the north-east of England Olga can easily reach the moors and dales and the coast not far away. “It’s a lovely part of the world and there are lots of opportunities for walks in the countryside and foraging for new plant materials,” Olga explains. “On every walk in the countryside I’m looking for things I can use in my work. It amazes me the diversity of shapes and details one can find in the plant world. I also recently visited a dried flower company in France that has amazing techniques for preserving and stabilising flowers and I’m very excited to be working with them on a new project that I hope I can share soon.”
Given the hoops are made from plant material, looking after them properly is key to them surviving. “How long the pieces last all depends on how you care for them,” Olga says honestly. “Like any natural material there’s a certain fragility to them and colours can change and become more subtle with time. But I see it as part of the evolution of the artwork and something to appreciate. I’ve managed to keep some of the very first pieces I did and they seem still to be in good condition. I spray them with a sealant, and it’s a good idea to avoid dust build up by framing them behind glass. Otherwise I think it’s just a case of common sense measures such as keeping them out of direct sunlight and trying to minimise exposure to moisture and heat.”
When Olga began using this technique she began with tulle on embroidery hoops. Now, she is working with tulle stretched over rectangular frames, but Olga enjoys experimenting with all kinds of mesh – whether fabric or wire. “I’ve tried to make everything from lampshades to items of clothing and I’m really looking forward to experimenting more with other items as I think I’m only scratching the surface of what is possible with flowers on tulle embroidery,” Olga says excitedly.
She continues, “I’m constantly coming up with new ideas and I have lots of ideas floating around in my mind that I haven’t yet tried out. Often they turn out not to be feasible, but you never know until you experiment. The excitement of discovering whether or not something will be technically and aesthetically achievable drives me forward.”
Olga constructs her creations in her craft room in her home overlooking her garden. “I’m lucky enough to have a space where I can store all my materials, put new pieces of work together, and take photos for Instagram when the light is right,” she details. “It is a messy, but also a fun place to work in, and confining the mess there at least keeps the rest of the house relatively tidy!”
Olga’s work caught the eye of Swarovski who commissioned her to complete a piece for them. “In it I combined Swarovski crystals with my floral hoops,” she explains. “I am also very excited to say that the upcoming collection by Anthropologie will feature some homeware items inspired by my designs.”
At present, Olga’s creative pursuits are a second job behind her role as full-time mum. Olga is a graphic designer by trade but she is hoping that her floral hoops will evolve into a full-time job and her main source of income. “I’ve recently worked with two craft platforms on video tutorials that I’m really thrilled with,” Olga smiles. “There’s a how-to for a 4 inch hoop design available on Miroom and a step-by-step guide to floral typography on the UK-based site IlluminatedShadows.” Be sure to check them out!
You can follow Olga’s work on her Instagram page: @olgaprinku or visit her website: www.prinku.com