The Reclaimed Collection made from 100% Recycled Textiles
Me and my cousin Alice wanted to create a collection of pieces following one simple rule: everything is 100% recycled. Every detail considered, down to the zips, labels and threads.
To create this collection we print with leftover inks. We repurpose colour swatches, end of line prints and pre-owned fabrics. Our cushions are filled with waste sheep's wool gathered from a Somerset farm.
Working with what we have, we let the materials be our guide. Everything in this collection is a one-off, everything unique.
In a world of so much waste we are trying to reuse. Hop over to the shop part of the website to view the whole collection.
My Story
Starting to screen print
During the pandemic I moved to Cornwall to live with my partner’s family. I wanted to find a new design process that treads lightly on the planet. In a disused barn on a field near their house, I set up my own DIY screen print studio. Screen printing is a process of passing ink through a screen that essentially acts as a stencil. Through repeating this process, colour is built up layer by layer, fitting together like a puzzle to create a pattern.
Lockdown was a unique time, giving me the space and courage to experiment. With a couple of old screens and a makeshift exposure unit chucked out by a friend, I started printing. Sparrows and spiders kept me company. I mixed my own inks, worked out pattern repeats and experimented with exposure times. I set myself a project: to hand print fabrics and create a textiles installation inspired by the Cornish landscape.
Setting up a studio
Screen printing became the core part of my design process. After lockdown I set up my own print studio in an old stable in Somerset. It has been challenging, especially when I started. It turns out there is no "edit undo" when doing things by hand! But I’d fallen for the screen printing process. The final hand made product is beautiful. How the ink sits on the fabric, the way the colours work together, and the organic irregularities make the print feel alive.
It’s really important to me that my work should be sustainable. I love linen because it's grown in Europe, is a natural and biodegradable textile and has been used sustainably for thousands of years. It's impossible to know every stage of fabric production and the impact this has on the planet. But printing by hand enables me to research and source fabrics and inks I can control what goes into my work.
