I have always been fascinated by detail, and many of my designs evolve from everyday objects or things I have seen in far flung places – the pattern on a porcelain tea cup, a piece of crochet work by my grandmother, tribal patterns, textiles and jewellery.
Like the Bangla giris, who learn from each other, from their mothers, aunties and grandmothers, my family have always been involved in dressmaking, knitting, embroidery and other needlework. Since I was a girl, I have made things and although our community in Orkney is very different from the grinding poverty I see in Mombaso and Dhaka, the girls make me feel part of their community and their families. The circumstances may be very different, but you’d be surprised how much young girls have in common the world over!
I became involved in these Fair Trade projects through friends in Orkney who were working there, and I volunteered for a time with the Meider Jonno Asha Foundation (Hope for Girls) in Bangladesh. It’s really a two-way process – my designs help to create a market for their clothes and accessories; and I can develop the products by having access to their skills. For example, I have been able to translate printed patterns into embroidery, which adds intrigue to the garments and makes each piece unique.
I hope you enioy browsing through these pages where you can find out more about my products and how they are made.
You can buy them from my online store.
