A BRAND new venture which is helping to preserve traditional rural skills and connect people with the environment through creative workshops is hosting a series of unique 'historical dyeing days'.

On March 14, April 11, May 16 and June 13, between 11am and 3pm, experienced textile practitioners Jane Deane and Isabella Whitworth will be giving the public the chance to learn about, and see first-hand, the use of natural dyes at Leewood, near Walkhampton.

Admission to each event is free and the programme is just one in a series planned at the idyllic 30 acre smallholding that artist and sculptor Nick Viney has transformed into a lasting and environmentally friendly focussed educational resource, benefitting the local/regional community and visitors alike. 

Isabella and Jane are leading practitioners of textiles in the South West. 

They both use natural dyes in their studio work and will be working with a whole host of natural dyes and using fleece from Nick's own flock of Wensleydale sheep during the programme.

Jane, who is based in Tavistock, specialises in spinning, weaving and dyeing while Isabella, who lives in Hatherleigh, works with various dye techniques on silk and wool, as well as researching the commercial dye trade in 19th Century England. Isabella is a member of the Devon Guild of Craftsmen.

Both have taught textiles extensively for a number of years and share a fascination for traditional and historic methods of dyeing.

Until the middle of the 19th century, when chemists devised the means to produce synthetic dyes, all textiles were dyed with natural materials, such as plants, insects and shellfish.

Jane said: 'Synthetic dyes are very convenient and have a consistency of colour, but many contemporary dyers still prefer to use the natural dyes.

'The reason for this is you can achieve incredibly beautiful and subtle shades of colour with natural dyes and many dyers, like Isabella and I, are committed to retaining this connection with the natural environment and preserving the strong tradition of English dyeing.

'With its focus on sustainability and preserving rural skills and crafts, Leewood was the perfect place to stage this programme, which will be of interest to contemporary makers and textile conservators.'

The Leewood project is essentially a 'rural classroom' preserving traditional rural skills and where visitors can unleash their creativity across a wide range of artistic disciplines with the help of some of the finest creative practitioners in the region.

They can connect with the environment around them to help inspire their creative process.

Passionate about both the sustainability and rural agendas, Nick Viney had a vision to help better connect people with nature in all its glory by developing Leewood as a place where both visitors and locals could learn and experience Dartmoor's environment at close hand.

Nick said: 'At Leewood, we are on a mission to champion rural skills, to create a facility where they can be taught and preserved for generations to come.

'But it is also about encouraging and nurturing artistic and creative talent, allowing freedom of expression by both emerging and established practitioners working in the widest possible spectrum of artistic disciplines.

'I also want the educational possibilities here to be endless too, and the Historical Dyeing Days are just one of a number of events that will help deliver on that commitment.'

Anyone wishing to attend the Historical Dyeing Days is asked to contact Leewood via the website http://www.leewood.co.uk">www.leewood.co.uk in case there is any change to the schedule.