**Neapolitan** – small weaving made from Alice’s neighbours fleece – pink dyed with homegrown madder.

Previous resident Jane Higginbottom shares her story:

During a mini residency at the Hide, I learnt to use a drop spindle and weave with the resulting yarn. Seeing sheep in the nearby field I wondered if I could use their fleece, and Alice kindly asked the neighbour who donated some.

The residency gave me time and space to focus on learning something new, in an area that is historically famous for its’ wool and textile industry - which I discovered at the bottom of the hill where the old mill ponds and buildings still exist.

My intention was to reflect on my practice and explore my current project through techniques familiar and unfamiliar to me. I took a variety of artistic materials with me to The Hide, and after my first mentoring session, I settled on a minimalist approach.

I had planned to travel more widely across The Cotswolds but there was so much to explore locally I chose to focus on where I could get to under my own steam. My car didn’t move an inch all week.

This was the start of my spinning journey and I had no idea where it would lead me. I am now an owner of two spinning wheels and use my own spun yarn to natural dye and work on art pieces with.

A recent piece ‘Indigo Blues’ is made from yarn I have spun and dyed with plants from my garden. I recently relocated to Hastings and attend a local spinning group and have worked with botanical dyer Tara McDonald.

The piece reflects my new relationship with the Sussex coast and its’ beauty but also fragility in the current climate, which is causing cliff falls.

Since learning to spin I have also been part of an Artcan project, Bridge, where I was partnered with the Swedish artist Susanna Gunnarson. The first year we exhibited in Sweden and the following year in London. I used Swedish alpaca fleece and plants from Susanna’s garden to make the first set of work and Hastings roots and madder plants to make the work for the London exhibition.

Bridge 2 – **Weaving ‘Growing New Roots’**

I am not sure where my spinning journey is going to take me next, but I feel that I am located in the right place – there are a lot of textile connections in Sussex - and the mini residency was the beginning of this.