Embroidery artists often turn to flora and fauna when looking for inspiration, but no one is doing it like Laura McGarrity. She’s a self-taught fiber artist who made quite a splash on social media with her bold and vibrant embroidery inspired by the endless beauty of the animal world.
McGarrity is the mastermind behind the Instagram page @a_warm_garlic_yurt, and she’s using the power of social media to share her stitching talent with the world. She’s an associate teaching professor from the Pacific Northwest who dabbled with many forms of fiber art before discovering embroidery.
McGarrity sees nature as her main source of inspiration, and it’s not a coincidence that her embroidery hoops represent animals in the most vibrant light.
“Animals are a very traditional subject, so I like adding my own ‘flavor’ to a piece by reinterpreting them with different palettes. I still feel like I’m learning the craft, so I like creating things using a variety of stitches and techniques,” she told My Modern Met.
McGarrity wants her embroidery art to resemble paintings because she believes there’s a natural connection between these two art forms. That’s the main reason why she adopted an elaborate layering technique, building an image stitch by stitch with one color of thread at a time.
