Emma Quinn- From art to mind

Emma Quinn, a campaigner for "Mind" charity discusses battles with mental health, the importance of raising awareness and how art has played a part in her mental health journey. Read more about Mind. Piffy and Egg, a place to show off Emma's talented art-work and named through friendship is launching soon. Read on to find out more.

1) What does campaigning for “Mind” entail?


Mind, the mental health charity, provides resources and support for those suffering from mental health illnesses. They run a number of campaigns which work towards breaking stigma, equal rights, improvement of services and even changing laws to protect those who are vulnerable. Piffy & Egg supports Mind by donating 7.5% of every sale to the charity, while I personally am involved in campaigns by participating in surveys, group sessions and public speaking.


2) Have you had any experiences that have specifically encouraged you to raise awareness for mental health?


I have personally been affected by mental health illness. Last summer, I had a devastating breakdown in my mental and physical health that lead me to leave full-time employment and I have been unable to return to work to date. After a long period of care from the Crisis Resolution and Home Treatment Team, I was stabilised and handed over to the care of the community mental health team. I have recently been diagnosed with Bipolar Affective disorder and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Both of these illnesses are poorly understood and even as a health practitioner myself, I knew very little about these conditions. There are many badly painted stereotypes of people with Bipolar and OCD, such as them being completely unstable or needing to turn a light switch on and off seventeen times before leaving a room. While this can be the case, it is more often not so. This has really inspired me to educate people about mental illnesses and encourage global discussion with real life accounts to help break stigma and change perceptions people have about people struggling with these illnesses.

3) What are your top tips for helping someone struggling with mental health issues?


I always say approach the conversation with an open mind; leave your prejudices at the door and just listen to what the person has to say. No doubt it will have taken a lot of courage to reach the point where they feel ready to open up to someone about it, so treat this conversation as a privilege. They have chosen to confide in you for a reason. Do not try to relate to them- everyone’s experience is preciously personal so try not to devalue their journey. Listen. It is the highest form of communication.


4) Explain the mental process when creating each individual piece of art?


The original artwork was created as a result of my OCD. I was frantically clearing out rooms in the house, completely stripping everything back to the wall to try and ‘neutralise’ how I was feeling. I redecorated rooms so that they were clean and orderly. For the feature wall in the office, I needed to fill four white box frames with some artwork. The geometric designs lent themselves to the organised criteria and the copper was a playful and creative twist. This was therapeutic and calming in a time that was otherwise frantic and chaotic. The other products in the range stemmed from these designs, and my most exciting product is the copper craft box which is filled with materials for people to make their own art at home in a therapeutic manner.


5) What does a typical “me day” look like?


Every day is totally different! I’d be lying if I said I had a great routine because currently, I don’t. This is something I have always struggled with as a result of being a shift worker and having fluctuating health. 

On a “good” day, I am really strict about getting up and having breakfast, washing my face and sitting at my desk to make plans. These kind of days are filled with craft making, business planning, meetings, courses and lots of fun hobbies (climbing, kayaking, canoe polo). 

I eat well and drink lots of water and always try to have an early night, although sometimes find myself getting carried away with new ideas until the early hours! On a “bad” day, I rest until I am ready for the day, even if it consists of only a few hours of productivity. I do not set myself strict goals, I just outline tasks that are achievable from my good day list and slowly work my way through them. 

I am often so physically unwell that I cannot move much further than the bed, but that’s the beauty of e-commerce. I am able to design and create all of my digital products on these days and I can still host online meetings and calls in between rest periods. I make it work around my health.


6) Has a particular place in your life inspired your love for art?


I have always loved art and been really creative since a very young age. My family had always encouraged me to pursue art as a career or at least a side earner. However, I chose to go down the academic route and studied Biology at degree level; followed by a Masters in Nursing. I applied to study Veterinary medicine just before I became unwell and kept really pushing myself to do more and achieve greater things, but I didn’t actually realise that my intentions were all wrong, my happiness had disappeared a long time ago and that I was actually completely lost. 

While I was lucky enough to have been successful in these pursuits, I was living a life I thought looked successful instead of one that actually was successful, and that’s because I didn’t understand what success meant to me. Success for me is helping others and making sure everyone feels cared for. By combining this with something I enjoy (art), I knew I was on to a winner.


7) What made you interested in creating art yourself?

I love that art can be so therapeutic. I have always turned to art if I was having a logical mind block or going through a really stressful period of study, I would create something to engage the other side of my brain and release some tension. Art therapy is incredibly helpful in so many other ways and in particular- mental health recovery. It can be a very mindful task and aid in re-centering and focusing yourself. It is so incredibly undervalued, I think it is so easy to get caught up in the logical left-sided brain when executing tasks, however productivity can be increased if you engage the creative right.

8) Where did the name Piffy and Egg come from?


Piffy & Egg are mine and my best friend’s nicknames for each other. Piffy stemmed from piggy as we both used to snort all the time when laughing, and if I’m honest, Egg is unexplainable. We have called each other these names for years and when we lived together a few years back, we got Piffy & Egg printed on wall stickers. Everyone commented that it looked like a brand, so three years later when I needed a company name-it was a no brainer.


9) What are the next steps for Piffy and Egg?


Piffy & Egg will officially be launching on the 11th August 2018! We are having a party at Ernest in Newcastle upon Tyne to celebrate with friends and family (and locals!). We cannot wait! Our online launch will follow this but has been pushed back a little as I have had some very exciting news and will be moving to Warwick in September! I am also working with the Prince’s Trust which is an incredible organisation supporting young people with skills and education to find work. I will then be speaking at some events in aid of Mind too. There are so many exciting things in store but I don’t want to give too much away just yet!


10) Where is your happy place?

My happy place is in the mountains. There is no better feeling than being surrounded by nature in its most rugged form and aligning yourself by breathing in the fresh air. Not to mention all the serotonin that will have been released during the hike up! Winner all round.

Find more about Piffy and Egg here:

Instagram: @piffyandegg

Website: www.piffyandegg.co.uk