Features

A small envelope of purple threads fell from the hinges of an upturned rusty trunk: I stared with some incredulity at handwriting in red ink claiming the envelope’s contents to be ‘Tyrian Purple, dyed with the bodies of shellfish found on the African coast'.

Whenever I am asked whether it is best to wash sheep’s fleece before spinning, or spin raw fleece ‘in the grease’, I always have the same answer.

I left on 18 July, flew into Chengdu in China for an overnight stay, then flew on up to Labrang (in Amdo, an area of Tibet just on the eastern edge of the Tibetan plateau)

Michael Crompton describes his design process from travel inspiration to woven tapestry.