I’m Ella, founder of Miss Ella, I live in a fairytale world of wonder and kitties and fluffy pink cream puffs! Ahh okay, I don't I live in the real world but I make sure it is one full of magic and fairytales.
“I love hidden details, for example the badger is wearing a skirt made of fairytales as she is a book worm.”
How did your embroidery journey begin?
theatrical costume and then worked as a costume maker for a while. This led onto an
unexpected sidestep into a job digitising designs for digital embroidery. I always remember
the one day when my boss sent me off to work for a couturier who was in need of help just
for a week. How dreamy it was to be allowed the time to slow down and hand stitch so
carefully and methodically. Fast forward and I went back to my studies and completed a
BA and MA in Animation where I really loved combining those hand skills into puppetry and
stop motion alongside gaining skills in illustration and graphic design. My heart was most
drawn to storytelling via character design, illustration and writing.
Over the last few years I’ve come back to hand embroidery making one off characters that
are sold in galleries and online. I bury the fabrics I use for those pieces, I love the patina
this creates and the fact they are born of the earth. I embroider them afterwards, freestyle,
no definite plan, but usually a theme. They evolve along the way. I love the layering of the
embroidery and fabrics to bring the characters to life and add that charm and feeling of
nostalgia.
When did you realise you wanted to design kits?
I had started my business on the side selling my illustrations, jewellery and homewares and wanted to take the illustration a step further to create something that was an experience, that people could make. A meditative project to slow down with. I loved the fact that I could combine the illustration with 3D characters and build their personalities. It was quite simply, FUN! And it incorporated my experience with puppet making, experimenting with ways of making fabric joints.
Different kits have different extras so you can get to know them. For example Astrid is a Fortune Teller and comes with Fortune telling cards, Rose Ceres is a Gardening Mouse and comes with her own concertina garden! Bibli the Badger is a Librarian and comes with Fairtyales I’ve written and library cards :)
Recently lots of lovely customers who buy the printed fabric kits have started embroidering and embellishing their kits as there are so many details to play with. I’ve loved seeing them really individualise them.
What does your design process look like?
I start with sketching and drawing characters up by hand, creating pattern elements and deciding what their character will be. Then I transfer to ProCreate to draw out digitally and add more hidden details. Then I send them off to a UK printer to be printed on organic cotton. I usually sample them 2-3 times to get the character right. Once I’m happy with them I can have the finals printed and set to work making up the kits adding the paper instructions, buttons for the joints, hand made books etc.
How do you choose what stitches to use?
What do you think makes a great kit?
I love hidden details, for example the badger is wearing a skirt made of fairytales as she is a book worm. There are different illustrations all over it representing the classics and her cloak is reversible. Many of them have animal boots on and the gathered sleeve technique I use is a simple way to create another layer.
And of course clear instructions are important so as well as paper instructions I also double up with video links to any elements I feel the maker may want to double check.
What stitches should beginners focus on first?
For my printed kits if you are making them by hand then just a running stitch or back stitch is all you need, making sure to use neat tiny stitches so that when they are turned out the seams don’t pop.
For hand embroidery I love the lazy daisy stitch as it’s such a simple way to make quick florals and create a curve.
What inspires your designs?
Vintage fabrics, reading, picture books and daily journaling and free drawing all inspire my work. I also love to travel. As well as Europe and yearly trips to Italy since I was a kid (my father lives there) I have travelled all over Japan over the last 20 years. The rural areas, mountains and islands are my favourite places to go, off the beaten track feeling like you are inside a fairytale. These are the feelings I guess I want to evoke in others, an escape to a peaceful world of comfort and colour.
What does your typical day look like?
It is so varied. Most days I am packing up orders, working on marketing and building in time for new projects where I can. All overseen by a beautiful kitten bear who sometimes helps but mostly prances around like the princess she is.
Sometimes you will find me running workshops from my cabin. For the last few days I have been at a Knitting and Stitching show in London meeting lots of lovely likeminded makers!
What advice would you give to your younger creative self?
What is next for you?
As well as online workshops which will be coming soon I am in the planning stages creating a book. I have illustrated my own picture books and stories so now I would like to create a book that combines illustration and storytelling with the ‘make it yourself’ aspect. So you will be making the characters and embroidering them along with the story. I have had so much positive feedback on creating this, now I just have to get on with it too!
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