Phyllis Schuit

Artist Statement

A friend once said, “You know, Phyllis, most people don’t get so passionate about a ball of yarn.” I love yarn, textured, boucle, variegated, novelty yarns especially, and colors, colors, and more colors. I see color combinations in sunsets, forests, meadows, fall leaves, flower gardens, photographs, and in my imagination. Designing with color is limitless, creative, and exciting. Yes, I get excited over a ball of yarn and piles of embroidery thread.

Some of my creations are functional: clothing. I weave scarves on an old four harness Harrisville Design 36” floor loom. All my hats – for adults and kids – are hand-knit, using wool and sometimes dog hair (from my golden retriever) hand-spun on my Ashford spinning wheel.

My main focuses are quilted wall hangings and framed hand-embroidered art, based on my love of the great outdoors. Trees and birds animate my creations. I refer to my embroidery as hand-stitched thread painting. Instead of blending paint colors, I blend different colors of embroidery floss to create depth, texture, and color. And my wall hangings involve machine free-motion quilting which adds another dimension of texture and complexity.