A graduate from the Ontario College of Art and Design, Michelle Galletta started Kiriki Press after she wanted to make her niece an embroidered doll but couldn’t find a pattern anywhere. She’s a great example of how artists morph their talent into full-time businesses.
As she was making a set of owl dolls for her niece, she “became fascinated with embroidery: the vibrant colors, the countless variety of stitches, the calming effect it had on me,” Galletta says. “I majored in printmaking at university, so silkscreening the patterns right onto the fabric seemed like an obvious step to make the transfer process easier.” Now she runs a successful business selling DIY embroidery kits.
Every pattern is hand printed in her studio, where everything is assembled. Her handcrafted embroidery kits pair classic stitches with a contemporary illustration. The patterns are screen printed with vibrant, water-based inks right onto the fabric so no tracing or transferring required.
Now, the Toronto artist sells online, also runs workshops and is a major provider of embroidery kits in stores and galleries across Canada, the U.S. and internationally.
Michelle Galletta’s Kiriki Press website, here.
Her Instagram, here.
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