NSCAD student in Halifax turning heads with her cozy headpiece creations

Beautiful balaclavas: Head-turning headwear Textile artist Alexandria Masse's creative and colourful designs take knits to a new level.

A 21-year-old in Nova Scotia is turning heads with her cozy creations and impressive knitting skills.

Alexandria Masse is studying textiles and fashion at Halifax's NSCAD University.

Last year, Masse started creating knitted and crocheted headpieces that seem to be growing in popularity.

"I started making headwear in about March and then I really picked up in August, and from there, I just started playing around with colours and shapes," explained Masse.

"And then it basically led me to here, which is, I'm just creating a lot of wacky things and wearable art."

(SOURCE: Instagram/ Alexandria Masse)

Masse says sometimes she worries that her unique pieces won't be popular with others – a response she has yet to receive.

"After I create a piece, I'm like, 'Oh my gosh. This is so strange. I don't know if anyone would like this.' And then I have an overwhelming response of people who are also interested in those strange things," said Masse. "So, I feel a lot of love from it."

(SOURCE: Instagram/ Alexandria Masse)

Masse says her creations begin with a base, which she then builds off of. She says her inspiration usually comes from her surroundings.

"My mom has a teapot collection at home and I was like, 'Oh, I really miss looking at all her strange teapots,'" said Masse. "As for the rabbits, I have two pet bunnies myself, and so one day I was making one and I just thought, like, how cool would it be if I added bunny ears. I think that would be really cute."

(SOURCE: Instagram/ Alexandria Masse)

Masse says her creative side began to snowball from there.

"I kept adding different things and then I experimented with horns and shapes, and now I've kind of moved into creating objects," she said.

(SOURCE: Instagram/ Alexandria Masse)

Masse has also created an impressive 13-metre long centipede named 'Haha.' She says the insect took her four months to complete and is made completely out of crochet.

"She's a mother. She's got 16 eggs in her clutch," Masse said. "So, I wanted to create a really, really big soft sculpture that was completely made of crochet just so I could push the limits of crochet and see what it would look like in a gallery space."

As far as her future, Masse says she doesn’t plan to stop creating anytime soon.

"I would just love to keep making art and I want to keep doing soft sculpture like my big centipede here," said Masse. "But, in the future, I definitely want to keep creating headpieces and see where that takes me."