“A Day in the Life” with embroidery artists Anna and Piotr Angiel

There’s so much I could say about the Angiel family — like Anna can do a stunning makeover of a home in need of a ‘refresh’ using little more than a few power tools and her deep gift for colour, light, and texture. She is the most gifted designer I’ve ever met — whatever she touches turns into stunning art.

On Piotr’s end, he’s the best photographer I know, full stop. He spent hundreds of hours teaching me to ‘harvest’ light and capture the beauty, stretching my own photography skills as we travelled from southern Alberta to the Arctic Ocean over the course of those four years.

Also, the Angiels have a level of dedication that rises above anything I’d ever experienced — that extends to their home countries of Poland and Canada, their love of learning (both hold advanced degrees, are multi-lingual, and broad world views), and their friends and family (especially their two children). Recently, Anna and Piotr combined a few of their “superpowers” to create something truly remarkable: Piotr carries his camera up scenic byways and into remote areas — and when light and composition come together, captures striking images of planet Earth. Anna takes those photos, and using mostly embroidery floss translates those images into equally stunning, unique artworks as breathtaking as the landscapes themselves. I hope you’ll take the chance to view their breathtaking items and consider supporting the essence of a wonderful family-owned, local business. You’ll sense the love they pour into every shutter click, every stitch, and every kit.

Written by Michael Shane Long, Friend

Angiel
These are some of our designs released as DIY embroidery kits.
Angiel
A Day in the Life with embroidery artists Anna and Piotr Angiel
Angiel
Some of our favourite vacation views are also translated to embroidery.
Our gallery wall changes constantly as we add new pieces before they find new homes.
Stitching is incredibly meditative and relaxing…
… and takes many, many hours.
Each embroidery piece starts with a good photo or sketch.
The Rockies are our main source of inspiration.

 

Which ‘hood are you in?

We live in Deer Run. It’s a wonderful neighbourhood, and we love being close to Fish Creek Park.

What do you do?

We create modern hand embroidery art inspired by our hikes and travels. Anna’s background is in interior design and linguistics, and Piotr is a geologist who loves landscape photography and painting.

Our mission is to popularize embroidery as a cool and modern hobby, and that is why we release some of our designs as DIY kits and downloadable patterns.

What are you currently working on?

Currently, we’re super busy with Christmas orders for our customers, but we hope to have more time soon to get back to stitching new projects. Piotr has already started stitching a 16” view of Vancouver coast, and Anna is planning to embroider Sunburst Lake with Mount Assiniboine in the background.

Where can we find your work?

Our original works, as well as DIY embroidery kits, are available in our online store

We invite you to follow us on Instagram

Our embroidery kits can also be purchased from many stores around Calgary: STASH Lounge, Steeling Home, Pudding Yarn, Marketspot, Made Local Marketplace, Collab, Poor David’s Handmade; Homegrown House and Pantry Inc. in Airdrie, and Cochrane Main Street Mercantile.

 

 

About Demian Vernieri 525 Articles
Demian is an Argentinian retired musician, avid gamer and editor for the Montréal Guardian, Toronto Guardian, Calgary Guardian and Vancouver Guardian websites.