What do you make?

I make Hand screen printed framed drawings/designs on Irish linen.

Could you tell us a little bit about your studio? Favourite thing about the space and how do you get into the mindset of making?

I am in the process of building a studio, up until now I've been working in a conservatory-style space surrounded by windows light and plants both inside and out. The warm woody natural tones around me make me feel grounded and never far from the nature that inspires me.

What is your favourite tool and why?

My pencil is, and my Steadtler fine black pen and notebook because these are the first marks that are made as I work through ideas, I find it meditative and relaxing.

Can you describe the making process and inspiration behind your print collection?

Screen printing is a messy medium, which requires plenty of newspaper, pinnys and cloths. I develop my own screens and take great care to recreate the fine lines made by my pen. When printing I need to wipe my screens a lot to keep the line fine and clear. The colours I choose need to stand out against the natural Irish linen so I pick strong hues that in some way add to the image I created.

What led you to choosing this craft as a profession? What do you love most about it?

I love to draw, I get excited about drawings, preliminary sketches, anything that show the skeleton of the finished idea, I wanted to reproduce this and found screen printing fulfilled my desire to do this. I have found I like the variety of drawing and messy printmaking, I'm evolving and moving along within the medium, therefore my art is changing within this process.

We have a small selection of Martina's prints available through our online shop and wider selection along with some large framed prints available from our Drury Street shop. 

• What do you make?

I create a range of functional and decorative products made from my own handwoven woollen cloth. At the moment, this is mainly cushions and small zipped bags, but I'm currently working on a couple of scarf designs for winter. I'm really excited about these because I love the idea of creating something that people can wrap themselves up in and use to keep warm! I also sometimes weave larger pieces like wall hangings and rugs for exhibitions.

• Could you tell us a little bit about your studio? Favourite thing about the space and how do you get into the mindset of making?

My studio is in north Belfast, in an area nick-named 'Little America' because of the many American street names. It's a part of the city that I didn't know at all before, but I love it now - there's a gorgeous park called the Waterworks very close to our building with so many birds, and we have a lovely view of Cavehill.

I share the building with the architectural practice Oscar & Oscar, who saw its potential a few years ago and as well as using it as their own base, decided to let the other spaces out to artists and makers. It's a lovely light-filled office building from the 60's, and I don't think much has been changed since then, which gives it lots of character! We also have a couple of bakers who make sourdough bread and other delights for sale in the local area.

I do most of my computer-based work at home, so when I get into the studio I have few distractions to take away from designing and making time. That definitely helps! Of course, smartphones can ruin this a little so I keep my phone on silent a lot of the time and try only to check it for a few minutes at break-times - easier said than done.

• What is your favourite tool and why?

Hm, that's tricky as I have quite a few but I'd have to say the warping board that my brother made for me when I first started to weave at home many years ago. It's basically a long piece of MDF with short dowelling pegs, mounted on the wall. I wrap long lengths of yarn around it to make my warps - this is the first practical step (after the technical design) to weaving cloth so it always feels very positive. It could be quite a monotonous task (depending on the width of the cloth and structure I might have to wrap up to 800 ends), but I often listen to music at the same time so that it becomes a repetitive rhythmic movement.

You can get much more sophisticated equipment for warping but it's expensive, and I love the simplicity of my warping board. I travelled to Peru and Bolivia many years ago to see their woven textiles and one of my most vivid memories is seeing an indigenous lady warping outdoors on top of a hill in Cuzco - she had two sticks stuck in the ground and was wrapping her yarn around them. They can weave amazing cloth, using the most basic tools and keeping everything in their head, so it made me realise that you don't need complex equipment to create.

• Can you describe the making process and inspiration behind your Newgrange clutch?

I actually first came up with the idea for the cloth way back when I was at college in NCAD, probably 2004! I had visited the passage grave at Newgrange in Co. Meath for a project and was intrigued by the geometric stone carvings and the mystery of their significance. Perhaps they contained messages, or maybe they were purely decorative like doodles on a page. One of the carvings had a design with interlocking diamonds and zig-zags. I played around with this a little and realised that it worked perfectly with the symmetry of simple reflective threading techniques in weaving. When I started up Olla Nua in 2015 after several years working in other fields, it was the first design I wanted to weave, so it had really stayed with me.

• What led you to choosing this craft as a profession? What do you love most about it?

Sometimes I'm not sure if I chose it or it chose me! I've always been a very indecisive person, and tend to think too much before making decisions, so I had many different ideas of what I should do for a living...but somehow I kept thinking about textiles. My mum taught me to sew and knit from a very young age, and we had an attic full of fabric - I'm sure that had something to do with it!
I love being hands-on with natural materials, right through from initial design to finished cloth, and I enjoy finding satisfaction in the process and repetitive tasks. Weaving is quite a structured craft and I think that suits my personality. I'm also very thankful for the support of my family - it simply would have been impossible for me to get my business started without their support and encouragement.

The photographs featured in this maker story are by Simon Mills. The Olla Nua clutch bag is available to purchase here. 

Visitors to our shop love to hear the story behind the item they are purchasing. In an age of mass production, the handmade is still, thankfully, cherished by many. Over the Summer, we will be highlighting a selection of our favourite stockists who are masters of their chosen craft from wood turning to weaving. Every week, we will add a new story which will give an insight into a specific making process and the life of a craftsperson, from their favourite process and studio set up, to what led them to pursue a career in craft and design. 

Our first maker story featuring Nicola Gates of Olla Nua will be posted early next week. 

Our search for a manufacturer of Irish linen led us to the sunny south east and Emblem weavers. With no finalised product in mind, we arranged to meet Stephen, who talked us through the various fabrics they produce, the weaving process and the history of this family business. Established in 1962 by Jim Conway (Stephen's father), Emblem Weavers grew from humble beginnings in a basement on Dublin's Amien Street. Having received money as a birthday gift from his mother, Jim bought two secondhand looms, made a yarn winder from a bicycle wheel, and wove his first lot of fabric samples. Initially selling door to door, Jim quickly gained a reputation for producing wonderful wool fabrics and began supplying large department stores and Dublin-based designers. 

In 1981, Emblem Weavers invested in modern looms and began to weave colour woven Irish Linen. This was an immediate success following the presentation of the first collection at Interstoff (the international trade fair in Frankfurt.) and as a result, Emblem began supplying International fashion houses with their high-quality Irish fabrics. The growth of the business led Jim to expand Emblem Weavers and move location to Wexford. 

Today, Emblem Weavers is very much a family affair with three of Jim’s nine children, Seamus, Stephen and Debbie directly engaged in the running of the business. They continue to produce the finest Irish linen and supply leading fashion designers Internationally.  We hope to further develop our linen range with this family business in 2017.

You can shop our Emblem range here which includes our exclusive tea cloths and napkins.

For more information on the business and to view their current selection of linens, check out the Emblem website here.