A weaver at a pit loom, seen through the warp, working by the light of a barred window.

Craft is living knowledge.

Craft

Technique that is still being written.

Traditional craftsmanship is not a relic of the past but a continuously evolving body of expertise that remains relevant in contemporary design.

Working with it means designing alongside the people who hold it, rather than borrowing its surface.

Madder-dyed yarn wound on the pegs of a warping frame.

01

Preparing the cloth

Scouring and preparation decide how a fibre will take colour.

A dyer lifts a dripping hank of indigo-dyed yarn from a basin of water.

02

Dyeing by hand

Depth is built in stages rather than fixed in a single bath.

A weaver's tools — shuttle, pirns, mallet — against a pink plastered wall.

03

Finishing

Pressing, hand finishing and the last checks before a piece is released.

Indigo check cloth rolled over the beam of a handloom.

04

Making

Construction carried out by the people whose skill the garment depends on.

A wooden shuttle rests on a length of madder and marigold check cloth on the loom.

People, materials and place

A technique belongs to the place it comes from and the people who continue it. Understanding that relationship is the first part of the design work, not a note added afterwards.