Inside: Besties Liz & Alyssa share their artistic story from their first collaboration to where they see Threadwinners in the future.
Threadwinners is the moniker for the crochet collaborative comprised of Liz Flynn and Alyssa Arney. Their work aims to subvert the patriarchy and status quo through the vehicle of crochet, often with a disarmingly whimsical and lowbrow aesthetic. Threadwinners began their collaborative art practice in 2016 and are currently based in Orange and LA County.
This interview was originally published in the Summer 2025 issue of Crochet Foundry Digital Magazine.
Hello Liz & Alyssa, welcome to the Crochet Foundry Community! We loved your display at VKL in January, and are looking forward to learning more about your process and where you see your art going in the future.
Thank you so much! It was so nice to meet you and we’re thrilled at this opportunity to speak with you.
We hear there’s a story about how you came up with your name, can you share that with us?
A + L: Absolutely! We were working on our very first exhibit, Pleasure Objects, back in 2016 when we thought of the name Threadwinners. Pleasure Objects originally began as Alyssa’s solo show with Liz in the background helping out. Liz ended up as an equal collaborator, and we discovered that we worked really well together. So, we knew we had to think of a catchy name to encompass our work and what we wanted to represent. We were searching for a collective name that was cheeky and lowbrow with a feminist bent.
We were at Alyssa’s apartment working on Comfort Food Blanket and brainstorming. Alyssa thought of “Threadwinners” as a play on the term “breadwinner.” Hence, Threadwinners was born. At this point, we can’t even think of the other alternative names we thought of during that brainstorm session.
You are a crochet collaborative, how does that work? Is it just the two of you, or do you work with others as well?
L: It’s mainly just the two of us, but we get help from some of our local fiber friends when we have a large-scale project with a tight deadline. We’re always so grateful that people we have met through crochet are always down to contribute handmade objects to our larger pieces! And, of course, we always credit them when they agree to help out and collaborate.
A: Liz is the mastermind to our social media presence. She’s so good at it and has done wonders for our following on Insta and TikTok and has made our website into a beautiful and professional platform.
How do you handle artistic differences when you are creating?
L: That’s a good question! I think we are both pretty open to change and adjustment when we get feedback from each other because we trust each other. Sometimes, there are certain projects that I want to do that Alyssa isn’t particularly interested in doing and vice versa. In those cases, we just let the other one do a solo project or explore on their own but still include it under the umbrella of the Threadwinners name.
I would say our biggest difference is my need to weave in all the ends and Alyssa’s willingness to be more…flexible…with that aspect of crocheting. I’m not saying it’s a sore subject but…hehe.
A: Dang Liz, roasted ^. In all honesty, we’re both super laid back and approach everything with a sense of humor. And just have a general understanding that we’re besties who are letting one another artistically explore various styles and concepts and just want to support one another. Like Liz said, if someone has more of a vision for a certain exhibition, we just let that person take the reins and lead that project.
What are your favorite themes for your creations?
A: Looking back at our earlier pieces, we were definitely exploring “fun pun” ideas and things we wanted to make just for the hell of it. We didn’t and still don’t really limit ourselves in the topics we want to cover but I think lately it’s tended toward nostalgia and kitsch. We made the “techstyle” blanket as an homage to all of our favorite obsolete tech that we grew up with, and our upcoming work is harkening back to Barbie dream houses and Polly Pockets. We always try to infuse serious undertones in approachable plushie formats.
Do you each have certain parts of the idea/design/creation process you tend to focus or take the lead on, or is it mixed up with you both working on every step?
A: Definitely! In the past we’ve drawn out thumbnails to get a sense of scale in a space, troubleshoot, or to visualize what we want to create. Sometimes we bounce ideas off of each other until something sticks. We share memes, Pinterest boards, and hang out with each other (not working) and usually find inspiration in one of those areas. We’re also both really flexible so if we have to add or take away or tweak pieces for an installation, we’re usually game to change.
Where do you see Threadwinners in the future?
A: Hopefully still making work when we both have time, when the inspiration strikes, and when there’s an opportunity for us to show at a space that aligns with our sensibilities. We both have so many ideas for crochet and fiber arts, and it’s such a vast world that I’m sure we’ll continue to explore it.
L: I definitely see us still making work in the future. As with most aspects of life, time is the main constraint for us and our art practice. Like Alyssa said, I see us being selective about creating and showing new work in innovative, interesting spaces that align with our views and artistic goals. We’re best friends, so Threadwinners will always be around in one form or another!
What is your dream project?
A: Since college I’ve always wanted to make a desertscape completely out of fiber sculptures that’s immersive and on a grand scale. I think it would be so fun to step outside of reality for just a few moments to enjoy a level of peace in someone else’s wacky world.
L: I would love to create a large-scale piece of work in a dead mall. I watch those eerie walk-through videos of abandoned or dead malls on YouTube all the time, and I fantasize about a large-scale install where different artists each get to transform a storefront into an original piece. I think about it all the time. If there’s anyone else out there who has the same dream, let me know so we can join forces.
What’s your best advice for creators working together?
A: Continue to remain curious! I feel like the sentiment of “the older we get and the more we learn the less we know” is so true. I never want to stop learning or creating, especially when it comes to anything fiber related. I know that I don’t know everything, so being receptive to change, not being the subject matter expert on something, and learning to go with the flow.
L: Be flexible and honest. The end point of a project is never the same place as where it started. It’s important to be open to your collaborator’s ideas and feedback. In that same vein, it’s also important to be brutally honest with each other about ideas and work output. If your art partner can’t be honest with you, who can?
What do you have coming up on your schedule?
A + L: We will be showing new work at Torrance Art Museum’s pop-up, NOMAD IV, which is happening July 11-13 at Del Amo Crossing in the South Bay area of LA. The rest of 2025 is up in the air, but we’re always open to new opportunities to exhibit or work on something new!
Where can our readers find you and all your amazing art and products on and off-line?
A + L: We have some of our small-scale works for sale on our website, threadwinnersart.com, and we love to connect with fellow fiber artists and crafters on Instagram (@thread.winners) and TikTok (@threadwinners). As for off-line, we love to meet people in real life at show openings and crafting circles, so don’t be shy if you see us crocheting or knitting out in the wild!
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