Bricolage is defined as something that is made from materials that are readily available. It is related to the French word, bricoleur, meaning a jack of all trades.
Emily Wohlscheid is the sole artist behind Bricolage Studios. She began her journey teaching her craft while also creating and selling her work after receiving her BFA from Adrian College. Her focus was on both metal and fiber but the two did not merge until some time later.
In 2008, the opportunity to learn to spin yarn presented itself at the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts. After several months of other art practices being on hold, it was a breakthrough. That class opened up the world of wool and fiber beyond the felting experience she had had in college. The knowledge acquired in these spinning classes allowed her to begin experimenting with dyeing and blending fibers in addition to combining fiber and metal in her jewelry.
A year after learning to spin, Emily was able to purchase her first drum carder. It was like being given permission to play with her two favorite things, texture and color. After nearly a year of vending at local art fairs with her jewelry, she knew she needed to change her direction, and her business name to reflect the growing amount of skills and media involved in her craft. A trip to the thesaurus yielded the word “bricolage,” and Bricolage Studios was born.
Bricolage Studios offers hand dyed fiber goods and unique textural fiber batts in small batch colorways as well as handcrafted metal jewelry lines incorporating handspun wirecore yarn or needle felted wool. Raw, unprocessed fibers are sourced domestically, mostly in state and around the midwest, to support local as much as possible. These fibers are picked, washed, and dyed by hand and are selected for their crimp, luster, lock structure, and color.
Emily also regularly teaches both jewelry/metalsmithing classes and spinning/fiber blending classes at the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts in addition to travelling to shows, retreats, and guilds around the country to speak, teach, and vend.