Contemporary Community Textile Artist Derbyshire UK
Collaboration Kindness Carbon Sensitivity
Films | Overview | Gallery | Matters | Inspiration | Manufacturing | Senses | Research | Practice | Updates
As thick as inkle weavers
An old Derwent Valley (Derbyshire) expression for being very close or intimate. 'Inkle' was a cheap linen tape, and the looms were so small that weavers had to sit extremely close together.
Beneath Our Feet | Derbyshire Makes Festival
Community, Industry & The Hidden Story Of Flax In Amber Valley, Derbyshire
| Project Overview & Aims
Beneath Our Feet is a participatory heritage and making project developed for Derbyshire Makes festival programming. Launching in Heanor in spring, this project explores the hidden histories of flax, linen, and related industrial processes in Derbyshire and invites communities to reconnect with these materials through shared learning and creative making. The project, with a foundation in the Riddings Community Flax Project (which still continues) and Phoenix From The Bin, brings together archival film, interpretation boards, hands-on material engagement, and a unique flax stem basket-making practice developed by me and shown in collaboration with Abigail Wastie.
Project Gallery | Flax, Community & Textile Artist Growing Adventures
Why This Project Matters
I am passionate about reviving Amber Valley’s flax heritage through creative community arts that connect past and present. For centuries, flax was grown, processed, and transformed into linen and other essential products across Derbyshire and the Midlands. In Amber Valley, flax heritage played a vital role in shaping the landscape, working lives, and the region’s textile history, underpinning both local identity and manufacturing traditions.
Today, much of this flax heritage in Derbyshire has been lost or remains hidden—demolished, unarchived, and seldom discussed, as new developments and daily routines have replaced the visible traces of our textile past. As a community textile artist rooted in Derbyshire, I am committed to ensuring that our shared heritage is not only remembered but actively lived and made relevant for future generations.
'I value every form of participation, whether it’s a passing thought, a patch of flax, or a finished basket. True success isn’t measured by numbers or completed steps, but by the connections, curiosity, and sense of belonging we nurture together.'
Beneath Our Feet is my community arts project in Amber Valley. By highlighting the industrial and social legacy of flax in Ripley, Derbyshire, and beyond, I celebrate overlooked stories from the region’s textile history. My goal is to inspire pride in local heritage and create new opportunities for creative engagement. Through this work, I aim to reach local schools, community groups, and residents of all ages, fostering new skills, pride, and a deeper connection to place.
A central strand of my project investigates the history of the British Hemp & Flax Development Co. Ltd, locally known as the Ripley flax factory. Through archival research, interpretation boards, and licensed film, I make Amber Valley’s flax heritage accessible to all, supporting lifelong learning and cultural understanding. I champion participatory arts and sustainable textile practices, inviting the community to join me in hands-on learning and heritage celebration.
Participation is central to my project. Through seed gifting and simple growing guidance, I invite visitors to take home flax seeds, nurture them, and share their progress—supporting sustainable textile projects in Derbyshire. Every interaction matters to me, from a conversation at an event to a flourishing patch of home-grown flax. I design every activity—whether seed gifting, skill sharing, or basket-making—to be open, inclusive, and supportive. I am committed to making all activities accessible, with materials and sessions suitable for beginners and those with additional needs. My inclusive approach values all forms of engagement and encourages informal learning across Amber Valley.
Skills, knowledge, and materials are exchanged between neighbours, families, and streets in Amber Valley, allowing the project to grow organically through everyday relationships. This reflects my wider practice as a community textile artist in Derbyshire—combining textile heritage research, sustainable making, and participatory arts, with a focus on broadening access and fostering community resilience. My approach aligns with the Arts Council’s Let’s Create strategy, championing creativity, community participation, and sustainable practice.
Beneath Our Feet brings the story of flax—from seed to linen—back into public awareness. By inviting people across Amber Valley and Derbyshire to explore industrial history and sustainable textile practices, I aim to create space for creativity, dialogue, and renewed connection to place.
My project consists of several interconnected strands, each designed to engage the community and celebrate Amber Valley’s unique textile heritage in inclusive, practical ways:
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Interactive interpretation boards on flax processing and linen production in Derbyshire, encouraging hands-on learning and storytelling for all ages.
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Archival research into the Ripley flax factory and local industrial heritage, connecting past and present in Amber Valley and supporting wider understanding of the region’s textile history.
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Licensed archival film showing mid-twentieth-century flax production, providing rare visual insights into Amber Valley’s textile history and offering new perspectives for today’s audiences.
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Guided flax stem basket-making sessions, supporting traditional textile skills in a welcoming, accessible community environment.
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Seed gifting to support community-led flax growing in Derbyshire, encouraging participation and shared stewardship of textile heritage.
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Neighbour-to-neighbour skill sharing and knowledge exchange, strengthening informal learning and local connections in Amber Valley, and nurturing a lasting legacy of community creativity.
I welcome collaboration, participation, and support from anyone who shares my passion for local heritage and creative making.
Contemporary Community Textile Artist Derbyshire
Contemporary Community Textile Artist Derbyshire
Contemporary Community Textile Artist Derbyshire
Contemporary Community Textile Artist Derbyshire
Contemporary Community Textile Artist Derbyshire
Contemporary Community Textile Artist Derbyshire
Contemporary Community Textile Artist Derbyshire
Contemporary Community Textile Artist Derbyshire
Contemporary Community Textile Artist Derbyshire
Contemporary Community Textile Artist Derbyshire
Seeding Inspiration & Community Intentions
My inspiration for Beneath Our Feet began with my experience in the Riddings Community Flax Project. Through that work, I became increasingly aware of how much of Amber Valley’s flax and linen history had faded from everyday conversation. I was especially struck by how little was known locally about the British Hemp & Flax Development Co. Ltd and the remarkable scale of industrial activity that once shaped this area. My aim is not simply to document this history but to make it visible, accessible and meaningful to the people who live here today. I set out to create a project that connects research, making and participation. My aim is to ensure that learning does not remain on the page or in archives, but moves into hands, homes and conversations. By working with real materials and film footage, and providing opportunities for shared making, I aim to create space for curiosity, pride and reflection. I want to help people see their own streets and landscapes with fresh eyes. At the heart of this work is my belief that local heritage matters most when it belongs to the people who live with it, shape it, and carry it forward.
From Seed To Linen | Sharing Industrial & Manufacturing Knowledge
Sharing Amber Valley’s industrial education is central to my work. I believe understanding our working past builds pride and inspires creativity today. My focus is to show the journey of flax from seed to linen, helping people appreciate where fabric comes from and the skill involved in its making. Through interpretation boards, material samples and hands-on activities, I guide visitors step by step. People can touch dried flax stems, cleaned fibres, hand-spun thread, and woven linen, and even experience the unique smell of tank-retted flax. I use clear language, traditional textile terms and local expressions so everyone feels included and the process is easy to follow. This practical, sensory approach invites questions and curiosity, making industrial history relevant for all ages and backgrounds. By involving local schools, families and community groups, I help root this knowledge in daily life. In this way, my work supports the Arts Council’s vision for creative engagement and lifelong learning, ensuring Amber Valley’s industrial heritage remains alive for everyone.
Sensory Interpretation
Bringing Amber Valley’s flax heritage to life means going beyond words on a page or images on a screen. I create opportunities for visitors to engage with history through sight, sound, touch and smell, making every encounter vivid and memorable. A centrepiece of this approach is my use of licensed footage from the Pathé film Fibre From Flax (1940 to 1949). This rare moving image lets people witness flax processing in action, especially the dramatic scenes of industrial tank retting that gave rise to Ripley’s infamous ‘great stink’. With no surviving photographs of the British Hemp & Flax Development Co. Ltd’s internal workings, this film is an invaluable visual reference for our local story. To complement the film, I design interpretation boards featuring clear diagrams, historic images and mounted material samples. These displays are accessible to all ages and learning styles. I encourage visitors to handle flax fibres, touch finished linen, and even smell a sealed sample of retted flax water. These sensory experiences invite curiosity and make the realities of industrial production immediate and tangible. For me, multi-sensory engagement is not just an educational tool. It is a way to create lasting, personal connections to place and heritage. I want everyone to leave with a deeper appreciation for Amber Valley’s history, creating memories that linger long after their visit.
Research & Community In & Around Ripley
I am committed to uncovering the lived experiences behind Amber Valley’s flax industry, weaving together official records and personal memories to tell a fuller story. From the 1940s to the 1960s, fields and streets across Amber Valley formed part of a national flax industry. Local farms grew the crop, and people from towns and villages throughout the valley travelled to work at the factory. During the Second World War, soldiers, prisoners of war, women workers and schoolchildren all helped with growing and harvesting flax. This became a shared effort, linking fields, factories and families. I bring together maps, newspaper records and local stories to show how the Ripley flax works shaped everyday life in the area. Uncovering this history has been a careful process. Very little material survives online, and only limited records remain at Matlock. With no complete company archive and many official documents lost or not digitised, much of my research has relied on searching local newspapers, council reports and government records. I have also visited archives and spoken with residents. One of the most striking moments in my research was hearing a local resident recall the smell of retted flax drifting down their street, connecting the past to the present in a sensory way. Hundreds of small references, reports and photographs have been pieced together to form a more complete picture of how this place once functioned. What has emerged is not just the story of a factory, but of a network of farms, families, workers and institutions across Amber Valley, all connected through flax production during and after the Second World War. By presenting these findings through interpretation boards that use maps, timelines and selected newspaper stories, I make this research accessible and engaging for everyone. I welcome anyone with family stories, photographs or memories of the flax industry to share them, so our understanding of Amber Valley’s heritage continues to grow. This growing archive of local knowledge helps ensure that Amber Valley’s flax heritage remains a living part of our community’s identity.
Flax Heritage, Community Making & Contemporary Practice
The research is only the beginning of the story. I use these discoveries to inform hands-on making, bringing history into daily life. By connecting past and present, I help people see themselves as part of Amber Valley’s living heritage. Although I trained in flax processing, I wanted to ensure that everyone could participate without specialist tools or experience. The basket making method I developed is simple and adaptable, using only basic materials like scissors, yarn and a large-eyed needle. Clear instructions and familiar materials mean anyone can join in, whatever their ability or background. This approach encourages confidence, conversation and community. As people make and share together, the project helps reduce isolation and supports well-being, building stronger links between neighbours, families and friends. Participants often exchange tips, stories and results, helping the project grow in a way that resembles a mycelium network—spreading quietly and connecting people and ideas beneath the surface. I am inspired by the social models of Stephen Willats and the idea of creative vessels from Ursula K. Le Guin’s Carrier Bag Theory. Each basket becomes a container for stories and seeds, connecting people across the valley. Like the wartime flax networks, this practice values cooperation and resilience. It is not about nostalgia, but about finding ethical, low-impact ways to create and connect today. By weaving research, making and shared experience, I hope to support a living, evolving heritage for Amber Valley. I hope that more people will continue to adapt, share and develop these techniques, building a living tradition together.
Contemporary Community Textile Artist Flax Updates
This project continues to grow as I learn, experiment and connect with others. I will use this section to share regular updates, new discoveries and reflections on my journey with flax. If you are interested in following along, please check back often. I welcome your stories and thoughts—our community is always stronger when we share and learn together.
