For my 21st Birthday I went on a fabulous trip to India with my Dad and sister. We toured the area of Rajasthan, learning about the local handcrafts. Of course the main focus was block printing, which the district is renowned for. I had always adored it and my bedroom at home was covered in Indian block printed fabrics! We were lucky enough to visit some incredible museums, such as the Anokhi Museum in Jaipur. Here they demonstrated the carving and printing, and allowed us to get involved too. There was certainly a huge amount of talent each part of the process. The style of the ancient craft has never aged, and the patterns truly stand the test of time. We also visited factories and independent craftsmen and women who had set up studios in the shanty towns. I love the intricate and characteristic details you can achieve with this kind of relief printing. Each abnormality is just as important as the pattern in creating a unique finished fabric. Different areas of India have unique ink colours and motif styles.
On my return, I was excited to work with a similar kind of hand craft back in the UK. I experimented a lot with potato printing and cutting shapes from foam and attaching them to wooden blocks. This created exciting cold shapes and allowed me to experiment with large pattern design. I then attended a lovely Lino Printing class in the Isles of Scilly and I fell in love! The lino blocks have a similar way of creating textured prints. In the past four years I have created many lino printed designs, it is an incredibly mindful thing to do. I love that it's a slow process, that has been happening in different forms for centuries. I am always creating new designs and love to create bespoke ones too for my customers. From much loved homes, to nostalgic holiday scenes. I like to think your special places can be recreated using a very special and thoughtful art form.
