About
Sustainable and Ethical Printing
I'm passionate about sustainable and ethical practice, and particularly about challenging the social and environmental havoc that the textile and fashion industries are wreaking on our planet. I use and promote alternative, eco friendly and socially just materials and methods which use natural processes, applying heat and moisture to release and transfer natural pigments and dyes.
If you’re looking for something unique and hand made with natural materials and with love and respect for the planet, rather than a synthetic mass produced item made in poor conditions, then you’ll feel at home here.
Wherever I can, I use upcycled household linen or clothes, recycled paper, ethically/organically produced fabric and dye stuffs and food waste in my work. When sourcing new fabric, I try to find producers who use organic cultivation methods and reward the spinners and weavers fairly, preferably in co-operative/collective arrangements. This can result in higher materials costs, and therefore prices, but I feel these are non-negotiable values worth paying for.
And you can learn these environmentally friendly methods in my face to face workshops and online courses.
Bringing Botanical Printing to you
You can share in the joy of sustainable printing with plants and natural dyes with the following services:
Online Shop
Each of my unique pieces are individually designed and hand made with love and care, using natural, sustainable and eco friendly methods. I strive to use organically and ethically produced materials, including preloved, upcycled items. I make many of my own natural dyes from food waste and local plants and as far as possible, source my materials from small and ethical businesses.
Workshops and Events
I offer in-person introductory and more advanced workshops. In these sessions you will learn how to identify your natural fibres and prepare them for printing and dyeing, unearth which leaves give great prints and discover how to create stunning backgrounds using natural tannins and dyestuffs. I'll show you different methods of applying heat and moisture to mobilise and transfer natural pigments from foliage to fibre, and share the key techniques which ensure the best possible prints. Plus, you’ll learn about after care of your beautiful prints too.
Online Courses
I also offer learning online, to which I give additional support through private Facebook Groups. You can learn at your own pace, and share your results with fellow learners if you wish, learning with and from each other.
I am also developing a series of short e-booklets on specific topics which can be downloaded FREE of charge.
Commissions
I’m always happy to consider specific commissions, printing bespoke fabrics or paper prints for a special person or occasion, or an item which you wish to transform.
I have printed commemorative prints with thanksgiving service flowers; printed and made bespoke bags and re-upholstered furniture. I’ll take your ideas and wishes and shape them into something unique, beautiful and suitable.
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About Me
Maggie Pearson
Sustainable Textile Artist - Botanical Eco Printing & Natural Dyes
Hi there. Thanks for hopping onto my website. I'm Maggie, a textile artist living and practising in Liverpool, passionate about sustainability.
I first discovered botanical eco printing by accident in 2018 after collecting too many elderberries and wondering how to make dye. Rummaging about on the internet for clues, I discovered botanical eco printing [down a rabbit hole!] along the way. I've been hooked ever since.
My main method is botanical contact printing [also known as eco printing], using local leaves with natural dyes to design and create unique and sustainable hand printed designs on natural fibres. I work on both fabric and paper, using preloved, upcycled fibres as much as possible. My inspiration is drawn from Liverpool's rich natural environment and green spaces, and their botanical diversity. I bundle locally grown flowers and leaves with natural fibres, and then steam them over water, or simmer them in a dye bath, to extract the plant pigments and transfer them permanently to the natural fibres to create my individual prints. I also make and use natural dyes, and print with rust and indigo.
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Have a good rummage here, and if you don't find quite what you are looking for here, please drop me an email. I'd be really happy to discuss how I can help you find what you're seeking.
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Maggie
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ps - Let's keep in touch…you can sign up to my email news Tales from the Fish Kettle in which I regularly share tips about botanical printing and dyeing and news about sustainability and textiles. Email subscribers are also the first to know about my new creations and workshops.