The Bristol Weaving Mill is a product of necessity, sort of. Established by textile designers Juliet Bailey and Franki Brewer in 2015, it was initially conceived as a way to facilitate the more unorthodox prototypes of the pair’s design studio Dash & Miller (founded in 2009), but has subsequently morphed into an independent operation. “We’ve grown into our own entity, and we have a different client base,” shares sales and design manager, Rosie Nolan. “We don't really produce what they're working on, though I think lots of what we do also informs what they do, especially the research into British yarn development.”
Juliet and Franki still oversee everything the micro mill does, she adds, and the two companies are based out of the same 1950s office building, a short walk from Bristol Temple Meads station. Dash & Miller has a space on the second floor, with the Bristol Weaving Mill's studio on the first floor and their mill area filling much of the ground floor. Though largely non-descript from the outside, their neighbours in the building work in similarly creative fields, with a digital embroiderer, jewellery designer, and the Bristol Textile Quarter all on site (the latter functions as a co-working space and workshop studio).
Effectively separated into two arenas, on the business side of Bristol Weaving Mill's office space is a small handful of desks and computers, while large hand looms and a selection of samples are stationed on the other; spanning much of the wall between them is a bevy of yarn cones, varying in size and texture and grouped by colour, they spill from neutral tones of cream, grey and brown through to bright rainbow shades of red, green and blue. Downstairs, the mill is a maze of further looms, bags of materials, and other heavy machinery. Having arrived at lunch time, the atmosphere is unusually peaceful, the equipment’s buzz replaced by stillness.
“Our power loom is an old model from the 1980s, so it still runs on a punch card system, which is what dictates the pattern of whatever we're weaving,” says Rosie, breaking the silence as she narrates the mechanics of the tools surrounding us. “The yarn will come in, it'll be warped on this big warping mill, which is just getting threaded up. We're quite used to it, but it is a long process."
Nearby the shutters (rolled up come summer offering a window into the city), a group of brown boxes are taped up ready to be sent elsewhere. “We work with some weavers and finishers based in the borders of Scotland, or in Yorkshire, for either warping or finishing,” explains Rosie. “This run of the TOAST blankets were actually woven in the borders, but it all comes through us. Basically, this part of the country doesn't have the same textiles industry so it has to go up north.” A new collaboration with TOAST, the weighty wool blankets combine British heritage wool and Pure New Wool yarns, developed using hand-woven swatches. Boasting a core grey design, overlaid with geometric bands of blue squares, they were inspired by the wider collection’s themes, leaning into ideas about sculpture, origami and building blocks.
“We get approached for all sorts of interesting and unique projects,” notes Rosie, reflecting on the company’s broad appeal. “Our forte is definitely using natural fibres, but we get people with a wide range of enquiries. Everyone has different needs; if it's a personal project, every decision is huge.” Early on the company was most intrigued by the amount of commissions coming from farmers, she says, who would approach them about weaving wool from their own livestock. “Everything is really precious. We actually have a lot of people come in with their own wool, usually sheep or alpaca.”
As a small company with fewer than ten staff members, the principles of participation factor heavily in the mill’s practice, informing the work they take on and the roles implemented. “Day to day changes a lot, depending on what's going on – dressing the looms, setting them up, creating warps, or actually weaving,” says production assistant Rheanna Davison, highlighting the shared responsibilities that make The Bristol Weaving Mill unique. A graduate of the Chelsea College of Art – “I realised all my work was grids and I thought, ‘of course I like weaving’,” – Rheanna arrived at the mill as a freelancer, joining full time in the summer. “Because [you’re working across all of it] you appreciate the whole process, whereas if you’re isolated you don’t get the full impact of every stage.”
“Other mills have very determined departments, whereas because we’re small scale, you're doing all of the jobs,” echoes Rosie, who’s been with the mill since 2020. “Some weavers can’t believe it – there's so much to learn. It's lovely to have such ownership over each project.” Despite their size and focus on bespoke, the company remains privy to wider industry shifts – like a greater collective consciousness for locally produced textiles – and Rosie recognises the impact of these things in shaping how the company operates. “It has definitely developed. Today, we’re more efficient than we've ever been.”
Shop the Bristol Weaving Mill Geo Blanket.
Words by Zoe Whitfield.
Photography by Elliott Cole.
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