I collaborate with Global Gardens project to facilitate and lead linked group workshops, held within the garden. The workshops have the aim of giving pleasure and companionship from the garden; exploring and developing its potential as a creative environment, a provider of beauty and wellbeing, a source of materials as well as food.

We have installed a collection of suitable dye plants to grow a sustainable colour resource for use by garden members. This garden will be continued and extended, with the aim of making a stored resource of plants and uses for the classroom future, as well as using the garden resources for textile and paper projects.

Last year we grew a 3m sq crop of Flax, which has been harvested and processed to the first stage of linen fibre. We’ll continue to develop this engaging project, bringing in additional members of the community to learn to spin and weave simple small linen cloth samples. This year we’ll plant a similar size crop in a new area.

Textile mending and hand sewing is well known to be of huge benefit to mental wellbeing. The mending and making aspect of the project has been popular across all ages, with younger people having an interest in repurposing and mending for sustainable clothing.

Some of what we have done…. Dyeing cloth with plants and kitchen waste. Drawing with natural materials – inks, charcoal and brush making. Making eye pillows, lavender bags, moth bags and napkins, with garden plants. Growing Flax and dye plants. Processing Flax. Darning to mend and sashiko stitching.