Rhonda Paperinik is a former Registered Nurse who has evolved her love of crafting and developed it into a
passion for textile arts. Rhonda started sewing and crafting at the side of her mother, grandmother and greatgrandmother learning how to crochet, knit and sew. Over the years that her children were involved in dance,
she has created many square dance dresses and outfits. Around 2008 Rhonda was introduced to Gail Harker
of Gail Harker Centre for Creative Art and started with a course on basic hand stitch. Rhonda was hooked
and has since gone down the rabbit hole of both multimedia and textile arts, particularly the dyeing of her
own threads and fabric. Her current work involves quilting, machine and hand stitch with reclaimed and new
textiles and multimedia pieces.
Rhonda is currently studying Advanced Studies in Experimental Stitch with Gail Harker out of LaConner
Washington. Rhonda is a member of the Cowichan Valley Heritage Quilters and SDA. She has exhibited in
Washington State
My vision is changeable and fluid but always revolves around the feel of a piece I'm creating.
I've found that even when working from a pattern, I always manage to
fix it, adding or subtracting til it's just right. My recent journey has been learning to plan and journal
my creations and it's an ongoing project!
I work mostly with new and reclaimed textiles with a focus on self dyed fabric and threads. My
work also may include multimedia items such as feathers, wood or other accent pieces. My interest
is in the use of texture, colour and shine/sparkle to create a piece with character. The use of shape,
line and depth is used to enhance the materials.
The current focus of my work is exploring the creative possibilities of textiles using a variety of
different methods.
THE CRITTER BOOK was created from a personal challenge to take a shape I drew, add facial
features and create a 'being'. I then added context to the surrounding and created a piece that can be
used to create a story.
