Prairie Alphabet Project
Shelly Nicolle-Phillips is a transplanted Maritimer who has been living in and learning about her Prairie home since she arrived in Regina in 2002.
Drawing on the traditional rug hooking technique from her Island heritage in a unique way, Shelly uses the texture and colours of natural fibres to explore this prairie landscape which has been so foreign to her.
Prairie Alphabet Project
This project began in 2021 and took almost two years to come to life. The inspiration came from a desire to learn more about the native prairie or grasslands ecosystem and the plants and animals that depend on it. Native prairie in Saskatchewan is in a precarious state and needs to be protected. Many birds, plants and animals rely on this ecosystem and as it declines, the risk that we may lose these precious species increases. Grasslands is one of the most threatened ecosystems in the world and holds great cultural, spiritual, recreational, environmental and economic significance.
The project consists of 26 separate pieces from A to Z, each one representing a species found in the grasslands ecosystem in Saskatchewan. Each piece was designed and hand crafted by Shelly.
The Manitoba Fibre Festival is thrilled to display the complete Prairie Alphabet Project on September 8 & 9. Come see how many species you can identify! Shelly will be present on Friday night to chat about rug hooking, grasslands, and the therapeutic benefits of craft. On Saturday she is teaching a sold out class for beginners to learn the joys of rug hooking.
Learn more about Shelly and her work on her website, Hooked on the Prairies; and follow her on Instagram and Facebook.
The Prairie Alphabet Project display, and Shelly’s workshop at the Festival, are made possible by support from the Janice Charko Fibre Arts Fund. This fund was established in 2022 when the Festival was given the honour of disbursing and selling Janice’s incredible collection of tools and materials, built up over a lifetime of creative work. The money raised from that sale will be used by the Festival to enrich the local fibre arts community through classes, displays, and special projects.
Donations can be made to the Janice Charko Fibre Arts Fund anytime.
Preserving prairie grasslands:
Learn more here:
What you can do:
Learn more about native prairie and tell others what you learn
Go for a hike in a park or conservation area
Volunteer or donate to an organization that is working to protect native prairie
Plant a native prairie garden