Melodie Nicolle of Happy Melodie is a textile artist who lives in Caen, a delightful city in Normandy nicknamed "the city of 100 spires". Melodie has adopted a vegan lifestyle which, from the start, has also influenced her approach to her work. In fact, she prefers to use materials of plant origin such as cotton, hemp, viscose. This demonstrates great awareness of an important topic for our age, that is sustainability.
It is with these base materials that Melodie has created some handcrafted yarns and a wall hanging. The colour palettes range from browns to pinks to bright yellow that mixes with bright blue.
The piece is called Shining Within and symbolizes the multiple layers that lead to our core, our essence. To what we contain in our hearts. Some layers are more complex than others, but in the end, we always find a light that reveals to us, without deception, what we are.
It fills us with joy knowing that Melodie appreciates our products and the effort we put into offering our customers items of non-animal origin.
Enjoy Melodie's creations you see here and learn more about her in the article below.
My journey into textile art began after a nervous breakdown I experienced in 2015. It was a really difficult period for me because I found myself dealing with anxiety and panic attacks, but it was also in that moment that I felt an urge: to do something creative, particularly something with my hands. For a while I made jewellry, but it didn't satisfy me much. Then, in 2014, I tried hand weaving, and it was love at first sight! I immediately loved the weaving process because it allowed me to focus on myself but at the same time it gave me the opportunity to allow my mind to wander for hours. It was all very relaxing and therefore therapeutic for me. Then, in the summer of 2021, I started with hand carding and spinning. This too was love at first sight.
What inspires me most in my work are the materials I work with. I usually start with a ball of yarn or raw fiber that I like and feel drawn to. Then I imagine what it would be like to work them, to give them structure and shape. I always start from there. The part that excites me the most is obviously the yarn selection. Texture and colour are the defining elements of the final piece.
As much as I love seeing the final product I make, what I really love is the creation process itself. Whether it's weaving, carding or hand spinning, the process of creation is what inspires me and makes me happy every day. Experimenting with yarns and fibers is all that matters to me.
Being a spinner that is vegan makes it always quite difficult to find fibers of non-animal origin. So, when I met DHG and their large collection of plant-based fibers, especially cotton and viscose, it was wonderful! I don't think I would have been able to continue my work, as I have it today, without a shop like this.
If you liked this article maybe you would also enjoy how to spin a slub yarn by hand.
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