The Mystery Box

WHAT IS THE MYSTERY BOX?

“Like ‘Chopped,’ but for Fiber” (and without recipes)

The Mystery Box is an opportunity to challenge your creativity while building community. It’s a puzzle in a box that comes with no instructions (outside of a few winks and nudges). Three times a year, we band together at Unfettered to concoct a mystery. We work to design a custom metal frame that corresponds with a one-word hint and a few playful clues. We curate a series of fibres that may be used for the mystery project (but certainly don’t have to be). And then we host an inclusive event on Instagram @unfetteredsupply that forments community, highlights discussion, and organizes a competition. Each mystery box is equipped with a deadline, and makers who wish to submit their creations to our competition have the opportunity to win the next mystery box for free!

The mystery box is a maddening bit of fun. You’ll stay up at night thinking and re-thinking your design ideas. You’ll question your project at every step. You’ll push yourself to learn new skills and take your art practice in unprecedented directions. You’ll get to do all of this with a supportive group of makers who know exactly what you’re going through!

If you’ve ever found yourself stuck in a creative rut, the mystery box is for you
If you’ve ever found yourself feeling isolated on social media, the mystery box is for you
If you love a challenge and healthy dose of competition, the mystery box is for you
If you love reality tv competitions involving creativity and craft, the mystery box is for you
If you’ve ever wondered what fibre art school might look like, the mystery box is for you
If you want to push yourself mentally and artistically, the mystery box is for you
If you’d like to try something out of your comfort zone, the mystery box is for you

With this listing, we’ve included broad, representative sampling of entries to our mystery box challenges over the years. You can get a sense of just how widely (and wildly!) projects range. No two mystery boxes are alike, and we never unveil the contents of a mystery box until it is well-underway. All we can really say is that our boxes get better with every new mystery.