Sue and I have been ‘into textiles’ since 1972 and if there is one thing we have learnt it’s that no one knows it all. Fibre preparation and spinning had always been the preserve of children and women, weaving (and wool combing) that of men. When the spinning wheel was introduced to Europe, thought to be in the 11th century from China, it was not regarded as a labour saving device. Hand carders, invented in the 13th century, were not legalised until the 14th century. Dyes were natural until the 19th century, fibres natural until the mid 20th century. The ability to turn fibre into cloth was a prerequisite of civilisation, the skill and art of doing so was a closely guarded secret and innovation gave the producer a revenue earning edge.

Since the industrial revolution the western world has been brainwashed (I will let you guess by whom) into thinking that ‘manufactured is best’ and ‘hand made’ is, at best, inferior. (So why do people drool over designer clothes?) If this web site has helped convinced you that textile crafts is something you would like to try we have succeeded in our mission. You will find lots of like-minded enthusiasts all over the world, and lots of ‘ you must do it this way’ advice.

Our advice has always been simple and goes as follows. If the results you achieve are what you wanted, then you got it right. If not, you got it wrong and you need to try another technique. Our forebears were incredibly dextrous and some of the cloth they produced is  mind-blowing in its complexity, we just strive to be as good.

We hope you have enjoyed the site, if we have got anything wrong let us know, and if we have got it right, it would be nice to know.

Thanks for
visiting us.