During the COVID lockdown, Jill Harrison learned she wasn’t good at sitting still on the couch. The then-earring designer craved more creative projects, and soon discovered her new favourite gear: the tufting gun.
“Tufting and needle punching still has a very niche community, so I had to learn everything, including gear maintenance, on my own,” says Harrison.
Adapting the design style from earring-making, Harrison now creates playful hangings and rugs with vivid colours. One of the recurring characters in Harrison’s studio is a colourful sun with a face, who sometimes has a football-shaped head or an extra eye.
“It all depends on what my mind came up with when doodling on my iPad,” explains Harrison. “The cartoony sun represents my style well. It’s earned its spot on my website now.”
Harrison makes herself a regular at artist markets and fairs. Two years into owning Lucky Bear, she still finds it unreal to see happy faces around her booth.
“I never knew how many items I should make for these in-person markets,” says Harrison. “Last spring, I attended the Royal Bison and Market Collective in Calgary back-to-back. Things were sold out at the Royal Bison, which was great. But then I spent 18 hours a day in the studio, trying to catch up with production for the next market.
“It’s always worth the time, though,” confirms Harrison.
Shop tufted hangings and rugs at Lucky Bear. Custom orders are also available.
This content was produced to support the Edmonton Made community. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Edify staff.
