Olivia Laws is a fiber sculpture artist who makes large-scale sculptures out of crochet, using Red Heart Super Saver. We saw her photos on social media -- especially her giant ice cream cone -- and wanted to learn more. 1. When did you start crocheting? When did you start crocheting giant sculptures? I learned how to crochet when I was around 10 years old. All I knew back then was how to make a granny square. After a while I stopped crocheting but I picked it back up in 2010 and have been crocheting pretty steadily ever since. I just recently, within the last year or so, started crocheting big sculptures. 2. What made you start crocheting these pieces? What was your first big piece? Do you make any small pieces?I started making bigger pieces because, since I crochet, a lot of people in the art field didn't view it as art so I needed to go bigger to have that wow factor. My first big piece wasn't really that big but it was a 2' wide by 3' tall box of popcorn. I made it for an invitational exhibition. As for smaller pieces, yes, I make pieces of any size. From gigantic 6' ice cream cones to tiny 1 fried eggs and slices of bacon. 3. What is your inspiration? My inspiration is anything silly and brightly colored. I'm just a fun person so I like bringing that to my art. 4. How did you choose Super Saver? Are there certain colors that are your favorite? I started using Super Saver because I needed a budget friendly yarn that was easily available. I continue to use Super Saver because of vast color palette and high durability. The texture of Super Saver is great for my bigger sculptures because it holds up to the high amount of work I put it through. The number one reason I use Super Saver is for the colors. There are so many colors from super bright to dark and rustic. My top three favorite colors would have to be Blacklight, Glowworm, and Pretty 'n Pink. 5. Are your pieces on display anywhere? Where? I'm a senior in a studio art BFA program at The University of Tennessee at Martin. I just had a collection of my pieces on display on campus as a part of my Bachelor of Fine Arts Senior Thesis Exhibition titled Comfy Foods. I'm always trying to find new places to display my work. 6. Can people buy your pieces? Where? Do you have patterns for sale or just the pieces? I don't have any patterns because most of my pieces are just made up as I go. I usually start with some sketches of what I want the piece to look like but I may change the way something looks when I'm in the middle of sculpting the piece so for me it's easier to go without a pattern. I sell my pieces on Etsy and I also take commissions. 7. What are your websites/social channels/etc. you want to share? You can find me on Instagram (@OliviaLawsArt), Facebook (Facebook.com/OliviaLawsArt), Etsy (OliviaLawsArt.Etsy.com), my website (OliviaLawsArt.com), and I just started a Twitter (@OliviaLawsArt). 8. Anything else you'd like our readers to know about you. Just a little background information about me, I'm 24 living in Tennessee with my husband, Hunter. We have a little dog, Eddie. Other than that, I'm a pretty simple and straightforward person who just enjoys hanging out at home watching movies and crocheting.
