Members

Jemima Smale is a costume designer specialising in performance wear for Drag, burlesque and theatre.

Jemima is specialist in corsetry, stretch, tailoring, leather, latex, PVC, kink, alterations and much more

Anna Hambridge is a textile designer and maker, specialising in knitted and felted fabrics

Sophie is an artist and maker who works with natural dyes, print and hand embroidery techniques to connect to nature and  mindfulness whilst maintaining a conscience for sustainability.

Drawing is at the heart of her  creative practice using it as an intuitive and contemplative tool to create a sense of movement  and flow. Marks made initially with brush and ink are translated through a variety of textile  processes.

Sophie Bowen

Natra Studios is a new label by Apparel and Footwear designer Rebecca Miller.

Mixing casual wear and sportswear from material selection to cut lines. All fabrics and trims have been hyper locally sourced in Bristol, UK. Orders are handmade and Natra works on a preorder system to avoid overproduction.

Alice-Marie Archer is a Bristol-based multidisciplinary artist who worked in community aquaponic farming for nearly 10 years, before turning to her own creative practice.

Alice works with a craft / materials-led approach that asks of her to contemplate our human makings as hybrid worlds for coexistence with nature; to expand our imagining of how we might interact with the species and ecologies around us.

Working with hand and machine-knit sheep wool Alice reimagines the forms that are possible for soilless cultivation, germinating and growing seed in her increasingly sculptural knitted artifacts.

Paying attention to questions of ecological congruence, Alice sources fibre through the Fibreshed local to her work, and holds space for questions of indigeneity of seed and plant.

Knitwear designer Rhianna Davenport, aka @studioohaf  . Rhianna is our 23/24 graduate placement in collaboration with Bath Spa, where Rhianna graduated in Knitwear, specialising after studying BA (Hons) Textile Design for Fashion and Interiors.

Rhianna aspires to do knit design for interiors and fashion.

Ti Green primarily designs for performance, creating costumes and sets for theatre productions. Ti is passionate about sustainable Fashion and has launched her own fashion label, Article Green.

Ti has designed a small collection of the kind of clothes that are minimal, in the way she understands the term: apparently simple, but achieved with a detailed consideration of proportion and construction. They are designed to let you move easily, carry yourself well and think on your feet, with sustainability built into the design and the production process.

Rheanna’s work explores the symbiotic nature of weaving: cooperative relationships between warp and weft, colour and texture, bre and yarn. The slow methodical temperament of weaving allows her to react upon and reference the medium itself. Geometric patterns echo the topography of weaving, creating conversation between medium, material and process. She is available for commissions, as well as direct sales of work. @rheanna.tara

The name comes from Lizzie’s Mum, who’s maiden name was Silk, so the Betty Silk sewing alias is in memory of—and thanks to—her. She fondly remembers her hands around her own, showing her how to do it with so much love.

She sews for many reasons, from sentimental to political, for nostalgia and for the future, for her mental health and for soulful wealth, but above all she is passionate about crafting a meaningful wardrobe she loves, that looks good, is sewn beautifully and doesn’t exploit anyone.

Lizzie is also an independent Creative Director, you can find out all about it here.

Amber Hards is a Bristol based knitwear label, designing & making luxury knit clothes & accessories as well as high end fashion knitwear.

She designs and makes everything herself from Bristol Textile Quarter. She uses vintage, domestic knitting machines which are hand operated so it’s a very manual process.  She is passionate about pushing knitwear forward and pushing people’s perception of knitwear forward.

“When you knit something nobody’s seen before, it’s just amazing – and all from a cone of yarn”.

Fi Stewart has created La Folle – a contemporary alfresco accessories range consisting of bags, berets and fans!

La Folle is inspired by art, fashion, music, dance, dressing up, travelling the globe and general good times!

Eve works with found and re-used textiles, using crochet and spinning to make colourful, layered, tactile sculptures that reflect organic forms. She focuses on traditional crafting techniques to challenge the digital advances of the modern-day environment, portraying delicacy, strength and fluidity through soft materials. Wool allows her to capture the qualities of natural forms to create vibrant ecosystems that juxtapose each other and spool across the floor and walls.

Eve was the ’23/24 BTQ graduate placement in partnership with Bath Spa University 

Born in Paris, Justine is a trained costume maker and experienced seamstress with a passion for pattern cutting, tailoring and hand embroidery.

Justine worked for prestigious fashion houses in Paris, during the ‘ready to wear’ and haute couture fashion weeks, whilst also working for a streetwear brand and some emerging theatre companies. She came to England five years ago to be a junior embroiderer for a haute couture fashion house based in London and is now based in Somerset.

Justine is excited about how more and more people are inclined to make their own clothes, and how this feeds into a sustainable approach to fashion. She has the desire to teach everything she has learnt along the way. Justine Dumotier Khripounoff

Youngye is a textile artist, originally from South Korea but having done her MA at the RCA in London.

Her work through weaving explores rhythm, repetition, links, and spatial relationships between structures and space. She explores the rhythm of repetition and pattern, complex colour contrasts, textured surfaces, and the feel of the materials moving in her hand. She is inspired by her experiences, social issues and natural phenomena.

Jess Strain is the founder of Ovrbloom, a sustainable accessories business that creates transparency reports for every single product. Ovrbloom is disrupting the fashion industry by giving consumers the knowledge and tools they need to challenge the high street giants to do better in their supply chains.

Studying at Loughborough University, she gained a First Class Honours degree on Textiles: Innovation and Design in 2020. Jess is also a highly trained embroidery and textile designer, often spending 100 hours on a single piece of embroidery. Photo © Ana Clark.

Meg, or Clothemod, is a sustainable fashion stylist based in Bristol. She specialises in working with second hand fashion – Want to become more environmentally conscious with your clothing choices? Meg can lend a hand. All the clothes Meg sources are sustainable, from quirky prints to bold colour pops and retro bags – Clothemod will help your personality shine through. Meg also offers a monthly second-hand fashion subscription that embraces the circular economy.

Mateja, Perosa Design , is committed to sustainable clothing, accessories, and homeware. Because the fabric of your life shouldn’t cost the Earth.

She produces made-on-demand timeless pieces, for fearless and authentic women.

“As a craft, that is as old as humanity, textiles are an important feature of our day-to-day lives, no matter where you come from (or where are you going). For this reason we must not let the textile industry present an ecological threat to our world”

Ellie, aka Ulterior Motifs, believes in celebrating our rich cultural heritage of textiles and high quality craftsmanship. Inspired by the natural world and cultural sense of identity, with an avant-garde approach to design, this is where the historical meets contemporary and quirky, bold designs are born.

Lovingly designed and made in her Bristol studio, she celebrates skilled making and creates a unique sense of identity within the everyday furnished environment. In her commitment to protect and preserve the natural world and historical sites that inspire her designs, a percentage of her profit is donated to charities and organisations that help to protect native species and habitats.

Rosee Woodland is a writer, knitwear designer and technical editor, with an expert knowledge of grading and pattern writing. She also designs handknits with ethically-produced yarn.

Nina Redman is a Pattern Cutter, Tailor and Seamstress. She works with small brands, bringing their drawings to life and creating beautifully functional garments – she provides help with drafting, grading and making industry standard card patterns and technical drawings. Nina is also working on a Womenswear collection that focuses on slow, handmade, and naturally dyed clothing, inspired by strong women and the outdoors. She also runs pattern cutting workshops. For all details and enquiries, please visit her website www.ninaredman.co.uk.

Dear Gussie is Mary Yarwood, a seamstress, upcycler and mender. She specialises in taking textiles with meaning and memories, transforming them into usable and touchable items – such as cushions and wall hangings – so that people, times and places which they embody can be honoured and celebrated. She is also available for small batch production of textiles goods, repairs and alterations. Contact Dear Gussie for commissions.

After graduating from Falmouth University, Shannon Hawkins worked as a bespoke shirt tailor and pattern cutter. Shannon has now set up her own label creating and providing a niche service of mens shirts which have a modern design with the use of traditional techniques based on bespoke tailoring. Her love of shirtings and modern design adds a practical and contemporary aspect to the brand.