La Vie en Couture
Her fingers move with an uncanny precision, the willful dedication of years of practice that have transformed a hobby into a passion. Each thread tightens around the fabric gently, her hands gliding above, below, above, below. Elin Pettersson is twenty-two years old and an embroidery genius. Embroidery, the art of working threads of material into fabric, may seem like a lost talent, a piece of the past that you can only find attached to an elderly person's pillow.
Image Credit: Elin Pettersson / @petronella.art
Recently, though, the haute couture fashion houses have welcomed the technique back into their designs. First widely seen in Gucci's runway shows in the form of embroidered sneakers, the trend has expanded to Valentino, Dolce & Gabbanna and Givenchy's collections. Pettersson supports the trend, stating, "Most of the things are machine embroidery, but it still shows a greater attention to detail."
Pettersson, unlike her couture maison counterparts, does all of her embroidery by hand, not machine. "It's like slowing down, taking a step back. Hand embroidery takes a lot of time, but it's worth it, it's detail," she notes. For her, the final outcome is a humbling creation. This dedication she puts into it is what is most important. This, she says, is what is the fundamental beauty in embroidery. One of her commissions, a lion patch, took two months to create. While many may balk at the time commitment, Pettersson believes it is something to be proud of, to relish in. "Embroidery is a tradition that has been around for hundreds of years," she explains, "It's making an ancient tradition modern and bringing its beauty back."
Image Credit: Elin Pettersson / @petronella.art
Her most recent commission has taken her two weeks so far, and she expects it to take many weeks more. The design, which will be attached to her client's leather jacket, is a sprawling vine of lavender flowers, billowing dandelions and dew-drop covered leaves. It's a living tapestry of textures and colors, life and beauty.
"I love color" she laughs, draped in a bright pink and orange coat, paired with a cerulean scarf. She smiles brightly, her hands moving automatically across the fabric, weaving the different thread into the pastel pink fabric. She uses dozens of colors to bring depth, reality to her creations, a difficult and time-consuming task when doing everything by hand. But creating these laborious fashion accessories, while it pays the bills, is not the sole focus. She also uses this technique in an artistic context.
"You can use the thread—it becomes like a painting," Pettersson elaborates, "but you can touch it, feel it, the textures." This special aspect of embroidery, she says, is what makes it unique from other art forms. "My interest is to use embroidery as an art form, both in fashion and beyond."
Image credit: Elin Pettersson / @petronella.art
Pettersson strives to eventually create paintings and other artworks that include embroidery. It's a curious concept and one that can only be approached when thinking about the very act of embroidery. "It brings harmony," she reflects, staring down at her creation in progress, "The time, patience and dedication, the balance of the colors, it's a delicate process."
And while embroidery may not be everyone's style, it's an art form that may yet be in style for several more seasons to come. Even if the aesthetic is not one's own, there can always be a deep-seated respect for the time, humility and heart that people like Elin Pettersson dedicate to creating such pieces. To possess one is to behold hundreds of hours of work, to look upon harmony embodied and to experience the luxury of an immemorial couture legacy.
Image credit: Elin Pettersson / @petronella.art
You can contact Elin to inquire about a commission by direct message through her instagram @petronella.art
